Yellow Submarine: The Glove

The dreaded Glove, the advance scout of the Meanie army. Seeing as he is an aggressive & negative menace throughout the course of the film, I chose to represent him as such.

Yellow Submarine: March of the Meanies

The Beatles' animated classic, Yellow Submarine, premiered in the U.S. on November 13th, 1968. This was the first movie I ever saw, though a few years later. It was New Year's Eve and my parents had decided to stay home that year. I was having my usual bath in the kitchen sink and my father was watching The Fab Four's animated antics on television. Channel 5 here in New York regularly showed the film at midnight on the beginning of a new year from the 1970s till about 1988.
I could see the T.V. from my spot in the sink and it was here that my mind was expanded without the use of drugs (I have never relied on them). The psychedelic sights and sounds had a profound effect on me from my tender age of two.
The Blue Meanies were completely frightening and did give me nightmares. For those who don't recognize the main figure in this piece, it is the ECW/WWE wrestler who goes by the same name. Beginning his career in the 1990s, his wrestling presence is the funniest I have ever seen. 
And, for you sticklers out there, yes, I know the Kinky Boot Beast (in the lower right corner next to Robin the Butterfly Stomper) is not a Blue Meanie, but he worked well in this drawing.

Twenty five years ago today . . .

Twenty five years ago today, Vincent Price passed away. That rhymes.
Rightfully considered one of the twentieth century's masters of horror, Vincent Price had a career that stretched from the mid 1940s to the early 1990s. Apart from an extremely long list of films, Price was also the host of PBS' Mystery! television program. He maintained that post admirably until ill heath forced him to abdictate to his friend, Dame Diana Rigg, with whom he starred in Theatre of Blood, one of his best films.
Vincent Price was also a star on radio, appearing as Simon Templar aka The Saint. His best films were made in the sixties and seventies, but as audiences turned their attention to slasher flicks, Price ventured into the role of pitchman. He hocked everything from children's vitamins to board games and had a memorable association with Milton Bradley's line of toys.
Televison welcomed Price's presence and he had a long association with the medium. Apart from the aforementioned Mystery!, he appeared on Batman (as Egghead), Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Here's Lucy, and F-Troop to name a few.
A gourmet chef with several cookbooks to his name, Price was also an avid art collector. In an effort to bring fine art to the masses, he teamed up with Sears & Roebuck in the 60s, handpicking reproductions of the great masters work which was then sold in Sears stores across America.

Remember Brandon Lee . . . .

Killed 25 years ago when he was struck by a bullet loaded into a prop gun, Brandon Lee never lived to see the success he would achieve after death. Living in the shadow of his late father, the legendary Bruce Lee, Brandon struggled to establish his own identity in Hollywood and in life. He had some minor success on television with 1986's Kung Fu: The Movie and the feature film Showdown in Little Tokyo in 1991, alongside Dolph Lundgren.
However, in 1992 Lee started to shake things up in cinema's with Rapid Fire; an excellent action flick now unjustly forgotten. Rapid Fire (similar in tone to his father's movie, The Big Boss) left a strong impression on me. Brandon Lee didn't hide from his father's legacy in this film, in fact, he openly embraced it. After watching this motion picture I was really looking forward to many future projects from this young actor.
That future became all too brief when on the afternoon of March, 31 1993, Lee died in a North Carolina hospital, the victim of a gunshot wound. With his current film now in limbo, we were not going to see anymore of this dynamic celebrity. I equate the loss of Brandon Lee to the death of Kurt Cobain a year later. Both are tragic losses that affected me and others of my generation.

R. I. P. Oscar Gamble

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