Harold and Maude - If You Want to Sing Out

If you know me, you'll know that when I find something to passionately obsess about, I tend to go all out. One of my more recent obsessions has been the singer-songwriter Cat Stevens. This new-found infatuation can be linked directly to my unending love of vinyl records. You haven't experienced music until you've heard "Teaser and the Firecat" on vinyl. It will blow your mind. (I think I just used up my allotted "Hippie-points" for the month).

A second obsession of mine has become the 1971 Hal Ashby film "Harold and Maude". This movie is dark, and dramatic, and funny, and if you haven't seen it, make a point to do so.

So what do these two things have in common? Funny you should ask. Get this - Cat Stevens wrote and performs the amazing soundtrack to, you guessed it, "Harold and Maude"!

The anchor song of the film is Cat Steven's anthem for personal independence, "If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out." Give it a listen here. (I promise, you'll be glad you did)

See? Wasn't that awesome? Anyway, this song is featured a few times throughout the film, but perhaps the most iconic moment is... SPOILER ALERT... right after Harold drives his car off the cliff and stands on the edge with his banjo in hand. He slowly walks away strumming the tune as the soundtrack fades in and the credits roll. Absolutely perfect.

You can view a clip of the scene in question here. (Starts at around the 2:45 mark)

Inspired by all of these wonderful things, I made this print.

(Click image for full size - it will look much better)

I hope you like it!

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Who is Pepe Silvia? - It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is just one of those unbelievably funny shows that can make me laugh no matter what.

One episode in particular is "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack" from Season 4.

After splitting a minimum wage job sorting mail in order to get health benefits, Charlie's complete illiteracy leads to what might be one of the best moments in the whole series:

Update: The original video got taken down, so you can see a "recorded off the TV" version here.

"I've got BOXES full of Pepe!"

Using that scene and it's hilarious nod to crime/mystery films at the end, I created a poster for "Who is Pepe Silvia?" a new film starring the king of rats himself, Charlie Kelly.

(click image for full size)

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Take Shelter Poster

Alright, so this blog has been unapologetically neglected over the last few months thanks mostly to Tumblr. Have you guys seen that thing? It's pretty sweet.

With that said, I'm just going to jump right into this sucker with a warning.

Warning: This post is probably going to make me seem like a total shill for the film "Take Shelter". I am aware of this, and I've come to terms with it. Thank you.

So I saw this trailer online the other day and I absolutely loved it. The plot, the tone, the effects, the sounds, everything. So after watching it ten more times, I really wanted to make a sweet poster for it that played off of the feel of the trailer.

I haven't done any photo manipulation projects in a long time, so I grabbed a handful of images and went to town. It was honestly a blast to do, and I hope everyone likes how it turned out!

(click image for full size)

Well, after all this talking it up, I really hope that this movie doesn't disappoint. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

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Animal Bands

Yikes. It's been quite awhile since I've posted something here. (About 2 months and 4 days to be exact.) There are any number of people that I'd love to throw under the bus for this one, but in the interest of honesty, it's pretty much just me to blame.

Oh well! A new day is upon us, and a new post is here! This is an idea that's been rattling around in my dome for awhile now, but I wasn't really sure how to go about it because I'm not a huge fan of drawing. (It sure feels good to get that off of my chest)

Anyhow, I just decided to throw caution to the wind, and let it happen. So, without further ado, I present "Animal Bands"

(click image for full size)

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Let's Get Dangerous - Darkwing Duck Poster

Let me just start by saying that I love Darkwing Duck.

I've loved that crime-fighting bird since I was a kid. (Disney Afternoon anyone?) I had action figures, plastic banks, toy weapons, and stuffed animals devoted to everyone's favorite "daring duck of mystery".

But, things get forgotten, and I haven't thought particularly much about Mr. Drake Mallard or his alter ego in the last few years...

Cut to Christmas 2010. What's this? The first two seasons of Disney's Darkwing Duck on DVD? Spectacular.

Freshly inspired and currently swooning over the egotistical DW, I decided to make a poster in his honor.

So I present, for your consideration, a poster for Darkwing Duck.

(click image for full size)

Of course, it was necessary to feature his absolutely unecessary catchphrase - "I am the terror that flaps in the night!" If you read closely, the text that makes up the background of the poster consists of every "I am the..." line used throughout the series.

And oh boy does he love that line...

Well that's it for now. Just remember that when there's trouble, you call DW.

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Vincent Price - Tribute Poster

Let me set up a scenario for you.

I’m wandering the rows of my local family-owned video rental store, just perusing the shelves for any title that may catch my eye.

It’s obviously a slow night. I hear the faint sounds of another customer lost in the aisles somewhere near the old war movies. The two girls behind the counter look like your everyday bored to death high-school students. But what’s this? Strolling through the front door, come two women, quite possibly a mother and daughter, in their 30’s and 50’s respectively. As they approach the teenagers behind the counter, it should be noted that there are now three generations of people convening together. They approach the counter and this is how the conversation plays out.

Customers: Do you have anything by Vincent Price?

Clerks: I have no idea. I can look him up. Is he an actor? (STRIKE 1)

Customers: No, a director. (STRIKE 2)

(I’m eavesdropping pretty hard at this point and every word exchanged is killing me a little inside.)

Clerks: Ok, let me check. *type type type* I don’t see anything under director, was he in Edward Scissorhands?

Customers: No. (STRIKE 3)

(Cue Intervention)

Me: Uhm, yeah he was. He was the Inventor. It was one of the last things he did before he died.

Customers: OH.

Clerks: Well sorry, that’s all we have.

AND SCENE

Following this exchange, I checked out the "Horror" section to be greeted with a slew of Vincent Price classics, including (but not limited to) House on Haunted Hill, The Masque of the Red Death, The Bat, and House of Wax.

I don’t know why that bothered me, but it did. How could three generations of people be that oblivious to the existence of the great Vincent Price? Aside from his status as a legend of the horror film genre, he’s done plenty of “pop culture friendly” things to appease the masses.

He was on Hollywood Squares, he voiced Professor Ratigan in Disney’s (DISNEY’S) The Great Mouse Detective, he was in Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands, and he was the narrator of Michael Jackson’sFAMOUS Thriller video. Perhaps, even more important than that, he was on the freaking Muppet Show. Does it get any better than that? How could it?

See what I mean? Long story (very long story) short, the whole experience inspired me to make a poster of Vincent Price as a tribute to all of the great films that he made throughout his life, and of course, as a tribute to that famous mustache.

Vincent Price
1911 – 1993

(click image for full size)

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Update: 12-13-10

This post was featured on the two awesome horror genre sites Classic-Horror & Horror Society. Thanks guys!

Prints for Sale - Minimalist Muppets

Well, here we are.

Just one week from my original Minimalist Muppets post, and thanks to hundreds of people spreading the word and reblogging the crap out of this thing, my blog has received almost 6,000 page views in 2 days, and the term "Minimalist Muppets" has gone insane on both Twitter and Google.

I can't say enough how much I appreciate all the kind words, and yes, I know that Gonzo's nose looks phallic. That was pretty much happening already without my help.

Over the last couple days, I have had more than a handful of E-mails and messages asking if prints would be made available. Well, without further ado... drumroll please... they are. (I've never been good at building dramatic tension.)

I've chose to make the prints available through ImageKind.com, because they allow for a wide variety of dimensions, paper types, and even canvas and framing options.

Click on the handy box below (or click here) to check it out!

If there is enough interest in these suckers, I will take a look at getting some t-shirts made available as well. If you would like specific prints of individual Muppets, just leave a comment below and let me know so that we can work something out.

Thanks, and spread the word to all your Muppet-loving friends!

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Update: 12-05-10

Due to multiple requests, I have now made available through ImageKind.com individual prints of each Muppet, as well as prints of a few of the more popular duos (Bunsen & Beaker, Waldorf & Statler, Kermit & Miss Piggy, etc.)

All of the currently available prints can be found be following the this link.

Join Us - Minimalist Evil Dead Poster

I hesitate to post twice about minimalist design back to back out of the fear of redundancy, but on the other hand, what do I care?

With that said, and as mentioned in my last post, I am a fan of minimalism. In order to jump right on the bandwagon of the mass of minimalist movie posters bombarding the internet, I made one of my own. (This piece is a bit older, so if you have seen it already, just deal with it)

For those of you who don’t know (get with it will ya?), the Evil Dead trilogy is something that I obsess over. A LOT. This poster is my tribute to the infamous “flinch-worthy” scene in the first Evil Dead where demon-possessed Cheryl grabs a sharpened pencil and just stabs the crap out of Linda’s ankle. It’s pretty brutal. (also, pretty awesome)

Well, it’s probably better if you just watch it:

See! Wasn’t that awesome?

Anyway, here is my minimalist movie poster for the Evil Dead.

(click image for full size)

This piece was featured (sans paper texture) on the amazing blog Evil Dead News on Friday, October 22^nd, 2010.

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Minimalist Muppets

As a general rule, I am a fan of minimalism. Add pop culture to that, and you just got your name put on my Christmas Card list! (Ed. Note - You're name will not actually be added to my Christmas Card list - unless you are my mother. Hi mom!)

There have been some really terrific Minimalist Movie Posters circulating the internet in the recent past, and I even did one of my own which I will probably be posting whenever I feel like it. (Planning ahead is for nerdz)

In the spirit of trying new things, I wanted to try some minimalism that wasn't a movie poster. Throw in my recent trip to the Jim Henson's Fantastic World exhibit at the Museum of Science & Industry, and the ever-expanding buzz around the new Jason Segel helmed Muppet Movie, and it was pretty much a no-brainer:

Minimalist Muppets.

(click image for full size)

Can you figure them all out? Well if you can't, it may be time to blow the dust off of your VHS copy of Muppet Treasure Island and pop that sucker in, (Ed. Note - An acceptable alternative to this would be the Muppet Christmas Carol) and feel free to use the cheat sheet below. (CHEATER!)

(L to R)
Row 1
Kermit the Frog, Fozzie Bear, Swedish Chef, Scooter, Waldorf, Statler, Rizzo the Rat

Row 2
Dr. Teeth, Zoot, Sgt. Floyd Pepper, Janice, Animal, Bunsen Honeydew, Beaker

Row 3
Sweetums, Sam the Eagle, Gonzo the Great, Camilla the Chicken, Miss Piggy, Rowlf the Dog

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Update: 11-28-10

This post was featured on The Muppet Mindset, one of the internets top blogs for everything Muppets! Thanks to Ryan Dosier, of Muppet Mindset, for posting it.

Update: 11-30-10

This post was featured on the Cheezburger Network site The Daily What.

Update: 12-02-10

Prints of this piece are now available! Please refer to this post for details, or just go straight to the site to purchase! Thanks!

Update: 12-05-10

This post was featured on the hotlink section of CollegeHumor.com

Update: 12-22-10

This post was made into a quiz and featured on the homepage of Sporcle.com

Welcome to 2004! My first blog.

Be warned, this may SHOCK you, but I (Eric Slager), known for being ALWAYS on the cutting edge of what's popular with the kidz these days, does not have a blog.

I'll give you a moment to take that in and digest it, while I shuffle some papers here.

Well, once I finally made the decision to cancel my subscription to Tiger Beat, I figured it was time to jump on the figurative bandwagon and make this thing happen.

Truth be told, Twitter's brevity ("...so that's what you call me.") paired with the effort required to adequately update my portfolio website, has sort of forced my hand into this whole "blogosphere" (I hear that's what the kidz are calling it).

In closing, prepare for random updates from me, Eric Slager, mostly involving graphic design... but probably some film and music too.

That is all. "Ya'll come back now, ya hear?" (The Beverly Hillbillies is timely right? Kidz?)

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