Joe Palooka: An Old-School Icon with a New Twist

(Cover art courtesy of Palooka.com)

Just recently, my good friend and fellow Maxboxing.com staffer, Alec Kohut, brought a new comic book concept to my attention, involving an old name with a brand-new spin: Joe Palooka. It turns out veteran boxing and mixed martial arts ring announcer Joe Antonacci has brought back an American icon in Palooka with an emphasis on modern-day action and suspense. 

For those of us with a modicum of knowledge about professional boxing, we associate the word
"palooka" with a fighter. Some use it in the context of a boxer who might be punchy or washed-up or just a throwback, tough-guy scrapper. Nonetheless, the comic book hero who was originally associated with the word was Joe Palooka himself, a heavyweight champion who did battle in comics and the funnies (as well as television and movies) from April 19, 1930 (my birthdate...not the 1930 part, however) until November 24, 1984.

In the aftermath of the brand's trademark lapse, Antonacci, a fan of Ham Fisher's original creation, decided to take the character's name and move it into an entirely fresh direction, this time, in the gritty, blood-soaked world of mixed martial arts. As someone who doesn't follow the wildly popular sport but loves comic books, I took advantage of a fantastic offer at Antonacci's new site, www.palooka.com, and purchased the first and second issues of Joe Palooka, bundled up for only $1.99 (available in PDF format. You can also sign up for a free preview). 

What I discovered was action from the gate. It turns out our hero, Nick Davis (more on his "Joe Palooka" name change later), is a 22-year-old rookie light heavyweight (only having begun his MMA training the previous year) with a professional record of 3-0. He's a guy with a dysfunctional remnant of a family but a bright future and a beautiful girlfriend, Nina, to match. That said, it wasn't long before it all fell apart...

Juan "Baby Bull" Diaz!

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Not sure why I haven't posted this blast from the recent past but this graphite number of then-triple-crown lightweight titleholder/now-retired Juan "Baby Bull" Diaz is back from October 2007. I hated drawing that damn alphabet strap but what can ya do? I didn't do all the hard work to win it. (Graphite on Bristol Board)

Black Adam (Ink Study)

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Not sure what the inspiration was for this ink study I did of DC Comics antihero Black Adam (from "Shazam/Captain Marvel" titles) some months back but I wanted to go dark with this cat. Yeah, I know the effects from the lightning aren't exactly accurate but it was still fun and looks kinda ominous. This is what one does with pens when he should be painting! (Done with Staedtler Pigment Liners)

Gabriella and Giuliana Blatt!

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Some months ago, I shed up my own raffle to raise money for the family of Lisa Millim, a family friend suffering from cancer. The top prize was a 16" X 20" acrylic-on-canvas panel rendering (by me!) of any subject the winner desired, the winner being a friend in the boxing media, Kevin Blatt (of ONTHEGRiND BOXiNG). 

Well, originally, Kev had a really cool idea for a fantasy fight piece involving Marvelous Marvin Hagler vs. Bernard Hopkins (my favorite fantasy bout as well!), a meeting between two legendary ex-Undisputed Middleweight Champions that couldn't possibly happen. That said, Hagler-Hopkins wasn't the only option.

Enter Kevin's wife, Marquita, who had the genuinely nice idea to render the couple's two young daughters, Gabriella ("Gabby") and Giuliana ("Giuli"). And although I was psyched to render a Hagler-Hopkins piece, I was even more psyched to create a painting involving non-celebrities. Until now, the only non-celebrity or fighter I recreated was my wife, Debbie's late maternal grandfather, Charles Harl (http://www.coyoteduran.com/2010/09/some-say-that-artist-has-gift-in-doing.html). That said, this is the very first painting I've ever done of someone's- anyone's- relatives. 


Honestly, I think it's the very best painting I've ever done. And I have the Blatts to thank for the subjects, mainly for the challenge of having to stay as true as humanly (and artistically) possible to the subject matter.


As you can see, I've provided the actual photo reference below the finished work just to give you Howlers a little context to go off of. It mighn't be exact but that's only because one can't possibly recreate the actual beauty of children. It's freaking impossible.

Yo, Dawg: The Truth Behind Mayweather vs. Merchant

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So, it's been exactly one week since the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Victor Ortiz fight and with as popular as the image of a shocked post-fight/pre-"I wish I was 50 years younger and I'd kick your ass." Larry Merchant is, I'm shocked no one gave it the Xzibit/"Pimp My Ride" internet meme treatment. That said, I'm calling "Firsties" with my Leonard Ellerbe-less creation! Enjoy and share with your meme-loving friends!

Catwoman: Got Milk? (Inked Version)

Right around the time I knocked out my Iron Man drawing, I figured I'd try my hand at the female (albeit very exaggerated) comic book form. Back then (and I guess, maybe even now. I haven't actually bought comic books in a while), it was all about big boobs, big hips, and long legs and one of the kings of comic cheesecake was Jim Balent, who penciled a six-year run on Catwoman, from 1993 to 1999. Now Balent was a guy who gave the fanboy juuuuuust what he wanted, offering a sort of pseudo-porn, complete with bodysuits that would seemingly wrap around each breast...and the fanboy LOVED it. Here's my take on Selina Kyle complete with three feline friends, completely inked with Staedtler pigment liners. Stay tuned for the colored version!

Iron Man Makes a New Friend (Full Color Version)

 

So as you remember from a couple of days ago, I shared my inked version of my fun little Iron Man piece. Here's the finished product, hand-colored in Prismacolor watercolor pencil. Just a fun little piece to practice gradients, contrast and color variations! I hope you Iron Man (and bald eagle) fans dig it! OK, back to painting!

Iron Man Makes a New Friend (Inked Version)

So around the time I conceived my Madman piece, I was doing all sorts of other superhero scenes (some you might see here in the near future!) and thought I'd have a little fun with a hero who's gained a lot of steam in recent years (thanks to a couple of really outstanding movies), Iron Man. I've always been a big fan of his classic red and gold armor, as opposed to keeping up with one of his many changes over the years (guy has more wardrobe issues than the Wasp, I tell ya...that's for the Marvel nerds). Originally, I did this piece with a mountain range and clouds in the background but as I looked back, the mountains just weren't doing it for me, detail-wise (I think I lazied my way through them). There was really no valid depth or authenticity to them, at least in my eyes. However, I wanted to share this piece but I figured I'd simplify it a little and make it more about Iron Man meeting his new friend, a slightly surprised bald eagle. I fully inked the eagle and Iron Man (with my trusty Staedtler pigment liners), then scanned the drawing into my laptop so I could open it in Photoshop. From there, I'd clone out the background and feature our two main characters. I think it still works because the two provide context of location (the sky) for each other.

From here, I'll now color the fully inked and simplified image by hand, which I'll post as soon as I'm finished! Stay tuned and enjoy!

Stevie Ray Vaughan: A Blast from My Past (and Present)!

It was a LOOOOOOONG time ago but sometime between 1993 and 1996, I drew a graphite portrait of legendary blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan for a co-worker. Back then I didn't have a computer, much less a scanner, so before I framed the piece and gave it to my friend, I photocopied the original. I was bored out of my skull one day, I guess, so I inked the photocopy. Recently, I dug out the inked image and I have to say, I kind of laughed at myself and my pseudo-effort. See, then, I was going through a phase where I was trying everything possible to up my inking game. Quill pens, Pelikan brand/India ink, brushes. You name it, I tried it but didn't practice enough, therefore I sucked hard at it. So, a few days ago, I laid down more solid blacks to the image, popped it into Photoshop, then minimized the detail just to see if less was truly more. You know what? It actually was. These days, I've upped my game with a bolder inking style through the use of archival ink pens like Microns and Staedtlers so really, this piece isn't indicative of what I can do today. It's merely a preservation or restoration of something totally I forgot about years ago. Plus, it's just fun to share a new(ish) image. :)

 

(Above: the original photocopy, after fresh ink was hammered in, pre-Photoshop)

(Road Warrior) Coyote's Book Review #1: The Road Warriors: Danger, Death, and the Rush of Wrestling

(Coyote's note: Not unlike drawing, painting, cooking or making music, writing is truly an art. Read on for my inaugural book review ART-icle featuring The Road Warriors: Danger, Death, and the Rush of Wrestling. I couldn't think of a better tome to kick off this new feature as these guys changed this wanna-be Road Warrior's life, making it truly OK to be bigger than life. I even have a Road Warrior-style first name!)

Boxing had Muhammad Ali. Basketball had Michael Jordan. Pop music had Michael Jackson and Hollywood has Robert De Niro. Professional wrestling had the Road Warriors. If you were a child of the ‘80s, you were fully aware of the impact the latter form of entertainment had on the decade- fan or not. It was during the ‘80s when the WWE’s (then known as the WWF, the World Wrestling Federation) “Hulkamania,” “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling” and “Wrestlemania” brought in scores of new fans, many of the much younger set. Hawk and Animal, the Road Warriors (also known as the “Legion of Doom”), not only worked against the kid-friendly formulas the WWE had to offer; they preceded them. For fans of the fearsome twosome, billed from Chicago, Illinois, the history provided by Animal himself, Joe Laurinaitis, is laid out in heartfelt grandeur in his autobiography, The Road Warriors: Danger, Death, and the Rush of Wrestling (Medallion Press, 2011, 368 pages, $24.95 USA, $27.95 Canada, hardcover, $9.95, e-book available in Kindle, PDF, ePub and NookBook) and is a look back you simply can’t miss. Especially if you’re a lapsed fan like me, who stopped watching wrestling altogether around 1993 or so (with scattered pay-per-view look-sees here and there when I had a hot box between ’98 and 2000).

The book, co-authored by Andrew William Wright, isn’t just an autobiography; it’s a labor of love spanning 20 years, beginning with an origin story borne of pure necessity (Joe becoming a father for the first time) and ending with the death of friend/tag-team partner/brother-in-paint Mike Hegstrand (AKA Hawk) and an update on Animal’s greatest achievements- his three children. Mainly, it’s a view of an unpredictable life through the eyes of a truly gentle giant- gentler than you would’ve ever believed if you were a Warriors fan.