Hamburger America, Pt. 1

In sifting through my book collection, I stumbled upon one from 2008 that I had yet to really read, titled Hamburger America: A State-By_state Guide to 100 Great Burger Joints. As I thumbed through it, I realized I had actually been to a few, including the Northgate Soda Shop in Greenville, South Carolina.



During my one-and-only trip to Greenville in 2017, I dined at this spot located on Main Street.



I had to get their classic Pimiento Cheeseburger. According to the Hamburger America book, “You’ll either love it or hate it,” one of the waitresses was quoted as saying. Made fresh every day, the Pimiento spread is a combo of mayonnaise, cheddar, and diced pimientos.



The place was a veritable museum of antiques that I could have spent days looking at.



This vintage photo shows how the Soda Shop looked “back in the day.”



…and how it looks now (or at least when I visited in 2017):



In reading the book, I realized that many of these old joints have bit the dust, including one in San Diego (Western Steakburger) that I’d never sampled. I also learned that while I was in Memphis in 2009, I shot the neon sign for another legendary burger joint:



…without even knowing the history of what was going on inside. The burgers have been cooked in the same grease for the last 90 years (or at least until the time of the book being published). Talk about tasting history! When the restaurant was moved from its original location to Beale Street, police escorts accompanied the van that carried the historic buckets of grease to make sure they got to their destination safely!

Folks, don’t ever take history for granted. Now you see it, (chances are) now you don’t. With that in mind, I plan on hitting the Apple Pan next time I'm in LA!

See more Greenville photos at my main website.

The Return of (Forever) Marilyn

On a trip to Palm Springs in 2012, I was able to see the temporary outdoor installation of Forever Marilyn, by Seward Johnson. The 26' tall statue was based on a famous photo by Bernard of Hollywood taken when Marilyn was filming “The Seven Year Itch”:



The statue was taken down in 2014, and immediately the cry to have it return began. Sadly, this did not happen before Johnson’s passing in March 2020. According to the Forever Marilyn webpage:

She was officially welcomed back on June 20, 2021 at a special ceremony drawing hundreds of supporters and fans – and will now, at last, be a permanent feature of the Palm Springs landscape.





Yup…there’s a backside, too. This just doesn’t seem right. I would think that Johnson could have come up with a more tasteful rear view.



Ever wanted to see Marilyn’s feet up close? Looks like she already needs a pedicure.







I love how the sunshine illuminates her face; I was too lazy to wait until the Palm frond shadows completely disappeared.



And how Marilyn looks first thing in the morning; not bad!



Nearby on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars, Marilyn has her own block:



The new location is definitely more dramatic. Perched on Museum Way in front of the Palm Springs Art Museum, the walk leading up to Marilyn is lined by Palm trees. Every time that I walked by Marilyn was drawing a crowd of tourists attempting to get a selfie with the icon.

See more Palm Springs photos at my main website.

1960 Palm Springs Panorama

In my ongoing quest for interesting (to me, at least) vintage slides, I stumbled upon a number of images that were labeled as a hotel in Palm Springs, circa 1960.



I immediately recognized the hotel as the Riviera, which I have stayed at a number of times. At first glance, none of these shots were extremely interesting. Until…



I wondered if it would be possible to digitally “stitch” the images together to get a panorama shot? As it turned out, yes...it was possible, and here it is. MUCH more interesting!



I’m not sure if the 1960 photographer intended to get three consecutive coverage shots or not, but they definitely did! Unfortunately, none of the shots I’ve taken during my past visits matched up. Regardless, here’s how the pool (and there are at least two pools at this hotel) looked in 2018:





I guess I need to go back!

See more Riviera Hotel photos at my main website.

The Return of Rocky and Bullwinkle!

From 1961 to 2013, the famous rotating statue of Rocky and Bullwinkle resided across the street from my favorite Hollywood haunt the Chateau Marmont on Sunset Boulevard. The statue and the pose was inspired by the short-lived larger-than-life rotating Vegas Showgirl that stood in front of the Marmont.

“Rocky and his Friends/The Bullwinkle Show” aired from 1959 to 1964 and eventually developed into a cult classic (we can ignore the box office disaster live-action version from 2000). The 14-foot, 700-pound came to be when the animated series switched networks in 1961; creator and producer Jay Ward felt that the event should be publicized, so he hired artist Bill Oberlin to create the statue and placed it outside the Jay Ward Productions offices at 8218 Sunset  Boulevard. Bullwinkle wore a Gay Nineties striped swimsuit, which parodied the cowgirl/showgirl statue across the street.

The statue was dedicated on September 24, 1961 by Jayne Mansfield, who unveiled Rocky and Bullwinkle for over 5,000 attendees. The shows' writers and voice actors pressed their elbows into wet cement around the base of the statue; Jay Ward asked for elbow prints instead of the usual hand prints so that no one would spill their martinis. Every time the spinning cowgirl's outfit changed so did Bullwinkle’s. The showgirl was taken down in the early 1970s (to be replaced by the Marlboro Man). By 1990, Jay Ward was dead and the motor for the rotation had ceased to work, but the statue itself remained until July 22, 2013 when it was removed from its Sunset Boulevard home. 

What had happened to the lovable duo? They were being restored by artist Ric Scozzari, with funding by 20th Century-Fox and Dreamworks, and donated by the Jay Ward family for the City of West Hollywood’s Urban Art Collection. After appearances in Beverly Hills at the Paley Center in 2014 and West Hollywood’s City Hall in 2016, the Rocky and Bullwinkle statue disappeared again. Ric and his team of plasterers, welders, fabricators, painters, and finishers continued their work, stripping off layers of paint, gunk, and rust, and studying old photos of the statue to get every original detail correct.

On February 29, 2020, Rocky and Bullwinkle finally returned to Sunset Boulevard, standing in a traffic triangle at Holloway Drive and Sunset Boulevard, about a mile west of their former spot. Ric said that the restored statue looks almost exactly as it did in 1961, down to the number of stripes on Bullwinkle’s suit and the seven hairs on top of his head. The only difference is that Rocky and Bullwinkle stand on a lower pedestal, and Ric lowered the gaze of Rocky and Bullwinkle's eyes so that they can smile at their fans.  

The day I saw it, the statue was not rotating.

Still, it was good to see this goofy piece of pop culture back again after so long.

See more Sunset Boulevard photos at my main website.

An American in Paris

As I was scanning some of my old negatives, I came across this shot of a painting I did back in 1999, showing Gene Kelly in his harlequin costume from the MGM Musical “An American in Paris.” The story of this movie was/is nothing new, but boy is it a feast for the eyes and ears. With the music of the Gershwins and the artistic genius that was Vincente Minnelli, one would be hard pressed not to enjoy this film...not to mention the talents of Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron. One of my favorite sequences is the Beaux Arts Ball that precedes the title’s fantasy ballet. This painting shows Kelly just before his mind drifts off, with Paris in the background. See more of my art at my website.

Whatever Happened to Baby Sarah, pt. 2

Lettering is a bitch. What else can I say? World of Wonder is at it again, this time, with an exhibit entitled "HOLLYWOOD D.C: LIGHTS... CAMERA... ELECTION!" With the fine line between celebrity and politics, WOW thought they’d put together an exhibit highlighting some of the wacky possibilities as the two categories blend together. Opening night is October 23rd. Stay tuned! To see more of my art, visit my regular website.

DOLLYPOP! The Exhibit

Last Saturday, Sept. 12 was the spectacular opening night reception for the World of Wonder’s latest exhibit, “Dollypop!”. As you can imagine, the front display windows were busting out with cool Dolly decor:





Co-curators Marc Malkin (1st pic) & Steven Corfe (2nd pic standing with me in front of my "9 to 5" painting) deserve much credit for a fantastic collection of over 30 artists who used a wide-range of materials (from bubble gum to sand to paint) to celebrate the beloved Country Western Diva.





Guests sipped pink champagne (last time I had pink champagne was probably back in college) while perusing the collection.



Dolly didn’t make opening night, however, the next best thing was available and more than happy to pose with all the guests:



Here are three of my faves from the evening:







If you are in the Los Angeles area, be sure to check out the Dollypop! exhibit at World of Wonder on Hollywood Boulevard until October 8th! Meanwhile, just a hop skip and a jump away in downtown Los Angeles, the new musical "9 to 5" has just opened before its big splash on Broadway next spring. Somewhat skeptically, I purchased tickets for today’s matinee and LOVED it! Dolly did an incredible job with the songs/score, and the cast is top notch. Megan Hilty steals the show as Doralee Rhodes (played by Dolly in the original film). Marc Kudisch gives Dabney Coleman a run for the money as Franklin Hart, the sexist egotistical lying hypocritical bigot of a boss in the pink collar ghetto.



To see more of my art, visit my regular website.

Dolly, Warhol, and 9 to 5, Pt. 6

Moving along...Dolly & Jane are now taking shape as Lily has been completed. Here’s a shot of my revised “Dolly of the Caribbean”:



Be sure to make your way to World of Wonder on Hollywood Boulevard on September 12! To see more of my art, visit my regular website.

Dolly, Warhol, and 9 to 5, Pt. 3

9 to 5 is taking shape; much more to come tomorrow (I hope!), now that my half marathon is over. Be sure to make your way to World of Wonder on Hollywood Boulevard on September 12! To see more of my art, visit my regular website.

Marilyn on Mailer

The pose of Marilyn Monroe that I worked from to create this painting many moons ago graced the cover of Normal Mailer’s infamous book. Although the text is extremely questionable, the selection of photos is incredible. The interesting thing about this particular photo is that depending upon which book you see it in, it can look entirely different. Some of the exposures make Marilyn look half dead, while others (like the one in the particular edition I owned) emphasize the over-accentuated glamour of her Hollywood persona. As I have grown older, I tend to prefer to paint Marilyn in a more "natural" state and not so plasticized. To see more of my art, visit my regular website.

The Hitchhiker Pt. 4: Doing Better

Feeling a little better on this one now that I have gotten much more under my belt yesterday. To see more of my art, visit my regular website.