Sunday, December 30, 2012

Happy New Year!


Some Things Never Go Out of Fashion.

Today I'm putting a shout-out to the 1990 graduating
class of Maine West High School in Des Plaines, Il.
As a fellow bad (challanged) hair decision maker,
I salute you all as brothers (and sisters) in arms!
ROLL CALL!

Bethany Staniec!

Matthew Winters!
Olga Alvarez!

Veronica Fuzer!

Steven Garica!

Selena Cothell!

Shari Dasko!
Michael Hartwig!

Ronald Roepke!

Dawn Jacobsen!

Kurt Kaszuba!

Jane Nolan!

Laura Otto!

Yvette Perez!

Jenifer Perik!

Brent Penrose!

Tracy Olsen!

Friday, December 28, 2012

And the Winners are….!

With the book, Mitch O'Connell, the World's Best Artist by Mitch O'Connell"  hitting your local bookstore in a few weeks, it seems time to announce the winners of the world-wide competition, "I Give You Free Stuff
(http://www.facebook.com/events/369911723090903/)!"
If you remember, I mailed out about 10,000 stickers to folks whose job it was to creatively place them anywhere they saw fit. At some point I would award gifts to the favorites. 
THAT TIME IS NOW!
Now, this WAY too much responsibility for me, and I sure didn't want to be yelled at, so I passed the possible ulcer inducing job off on my go-to gal, Skittles. After all, who could ever get mad at a little fuzzy six and a half pound big-eyed kitty cat? 
I whittled the selection down to the top ten. Those numbers were written individually on small squares of paper, while the corresponding master list of entries was hermitically sealing in a licked and taped envelope which was stored under my hat all week. The numbered squares were laid upside down on the floor while Kieran applied grade A honey to Skittles paws. As our furry housemate was lowered and released on the hardwood surface, a random assortment of three numbers scientifically stuck to her paws.
Unfortunately, our official labcoats were at the dry cleaners, but it still counts.

I now have in my hand the envelope and the sticky numbers.
Let me open it ... oh my ...this is amazing ...the WINNERS ARE...


Mackenzie Moore, with her fantastic recreation of everyones favorite book cover, is the GRAND PRIZE WINNER!
She takes home an original full color painting done for Playboy magazine!

fyi- The winners are responsible for paying the taxes on the estimated value of their awards.

In this case, I'm guessing Mackenzie will need to kick in between $3000 to $5000 to the IRS.


Twiggy Starrdust, Constantinople Darling and Ava Adore are the 2nd place winners for their equally enchanting choice of attire!
They get to fight over the only set ever made of the triple M.O'C tiki decks!
In-between pillow hits, ripping of clothing is encouraged.


Amy Robillard, due to random nature of the selection,
seems to have come in Third Place with my art on an ape's ass.
Even though she missed the point completely by making fun of me in a pathetic sad shallow unfunny juvenile way, she still wins everything in the prize closet, including posters, stickers, books, transfers, cards, tattoo flash, prints, and more!
I'm pretty sure this 20lb package will arrive postage due.
HA! HA! Who's laughing now "funny girl"?!

Thanks to everyone who entered! You're ALL WINNERS!


Thursday, December 27, 2012

Booksigning!




The Titians of The Arts, Mitch O'Connell (artist)
and Joseph Allen Black (designer),
are making a rare reunion appearance together to autograph their book,
"Mitch O'Connell, the World's Best Artist, by Mitch O'Connell"!

Friday, February 1, 2013!
6:00pm until 8:00pm!!
Rotofugi Designer Toy Store & Gallery
2780 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago!!!

A little about Mitch and Joe.
In 1989 they founded The Chippendales,
an all male dance troupe that thrilled millions
of female patrons with erotic choreographed gyrations
touring the world for over a decade. Sadly, as you're sure to
remember, during the 1999 New Years Eve show, a faulty batch
of rip-away pants resulted in disaster.
The outcome was a severe groin pull for Mitch and
the tragic loss of Joe's inner thigh muscles.
Both men would never perform again.
In the following years, Mitch sought seclusion in Holland
and took up art painting landscapes in the Dutch hills.
Unbeknownst to each other, Joe also moved to the Netherlands
and became Amsterdam's #1 graphic designer specializing
in pamphlets for the burgeoning prostitution and drug trade.
In 2009 a stir was created when these two superstars
accidentally met again at a Mitch gallery opening.
Old habits die hard, as they were both attired in the
same unique formalwear, tight black pants,
white cuffs, white collar, black tux tie, and shirtless.
Conversation lead to the decision to combine their
new skills and produce a book of Mitch's art.
Along with recruiting the former president of
The Chippendales Fan Club, Colin Turner,
who had gone on to become a book publisher at
Last Gasp Books, the "Three Musketeers," have made
what is arguably the most exciting book of the ages,
"Mitch O'Connell, the World's Best Artist, by Mitch O'Connell"!

FYI- Won't be able to make it, but still want a signed copy?
Just go to my website!
http://www.mitchoconnell.com/merchandise/merchandise.htm

Back in my day, artists were given a little more respect!


The Secret Untold Origin of Scooby-Doo!



I'm nattily attired in a  trenchcoat and peering through a magnifying glass to get you in the proper Investigative Reports frame of mind as I uncover Saturday Mornings dirtiest darkest secret!
In 1966, did Joe Rudy and Ken Spears sit at the same barber shop and leaf through a copy of "Swing With Scooter" #1 planting the seed that resulted in their beyond famous animated "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!" tv show three years later?
Scooter, drawn by EC artist Joe Orlando and scripted by Jack Miller and Barbara Friedlander, mainly follows an english mop top superstar who tries to get away from the demands of fame by living in the states surrounded by a group of rag tag fun-lovin' fellow teens. But it's as if the second cousins of the Scooby crew lurk in every other panel. You have a chubby goateed Shaggy called Sylvester, Velma is now Cynthia, and the Mystery Machine van is the Super Bus.

I only have the first issue of what appears to be a 36 issue run (from which the panels are from), but judging by future covers (thanks to NY Comics Shop), it's seems they even got more Scooby-Dooish as time went on. Who knows? Maybe they even adopted a dog at some point.
BTW- No one is taking credit for coming up with Scrappy Doo.












Reading Rainbow!

"Dress Forward" has a new book out celebrating their 15 years in the t-shirt business.
Surprisingly, I get 6 pages of my doodles for having
designed a logo for 'em way back when.
Check it out at-
dress-forward.de

Flea Market Finds!

From the "Just Plain Wrong" file, spied at Unique Thrift on Elston-
When you've given up on your son ever making friends,
and you never want him, or any member of your household,
to be able to sleep again…
it's Corky!

Merry Christmas!


Thursday, December 20, 2012