Monday, September 16, 2013

Crazy Crafty: Beaver's Sweatshirt Monsters

I have many friends who don't watch TV.  Honestly, I never knew that was an option (both not watching television and befriending those who do not watch television).  I'll freely admit that I get more than a little annoyed when those friends wear their television-impoverishment like a badge of honor. "I don't waaaaatch TV," I hear them saying smugly - the obvious subtext being, "My pursuits are inherently superior to your own," or "Every moment you mindlessly spend in front of the television, I am writing the next great American novel, or feeding the poor, or solving the problems in the Middle East," or "Mr. Tiny, you are lazy, undisciplined, and fat perhaps just very-slightly overweight."  Or maybe I am just internalizing the guilt I feel for watching so much TV...including Leave It to Beaver.  Leave It to Beaver was such a corny, cornfed, cornball sit-com that it never occurs to me what a groundbreaking example it was of television's ability to address serious familial issues including inappropriate dress and teenage rebellion.

Did you ever have a rebellious faze?  Did you do everything you could to make your mother worry?  Did you exhibit serious attitude?  Did you smoke in the school bathroom?  Did you actually live out that the iconic sit-com moment where you took your real outfit in your backpack or hid your "unacceptable" clothing under a jacket so you wouldn't be stopped by your parents with, "You're not leaving the house wearing that," as you quietly tried to sneak out the front door?  I never thought I had a rebellious faze because aside from the occasional need for a minor attitude adjustment, I never exhibited any of those behaviors.  Recently, however, the looks I receive from my mom make me think that my whole life is a rebellion to her carefully-laid plans* - especially when she saw the product of my most recent "Crazy Crafty" endeavor.

Talk about inappropriate dress and teenage rebellion!!!!

Did you ever see the "Sweatshirt Monsters" episode of Leave It to Beaver?
In it, Beaver and his school pals all buy the cool monster sweatshirts that
they see in the shop window.  They make a pact to all wear their sweatshirts
to school but when the Beave is the only one to show up in his sweatshirt,
well, let's just say, hijinks ensue.

Serious hijinks!
Crawling in search of blood, to "terrorize y'all's neighborhood."

The "Sweatshirt Monsters" episode appeared on television just the other day and immediately I was inspired to see how well I could make my own monster sweatshirt.  Still unsure about what to pack for our trip to Japan, I decided that the incredible monster sweatshirts I was about to create would be the ideal garments for dealing with Japan's unpredictable, autumn weather patterns and for distracting an unsuspecting Japanese public from the horrors of my own monster face.  Didn't they suffer enough from Godzilla's attacks?

Works in progress
Because I have absolutely no experience in the art of monster portraiture,
I decided that my best bet was to imitate the monster faces from the show.
Using stills from the episode, I drew the faces freehand on tracing paper and
then I transferred them directly onto the sweatshirts with a ballpoint pen.

I am not often plagued by undue confidence, especially when it comes to painting/crafting, but for whatever reason, I felt like I would have no problem painting weird faces on polyester-blend sweatshirts.  Whatever misplaced confidence I had in my ability to execute the painting, I lacked in my ability to choose a suitable location to document my "art;" I settled on a local park because of its brilliant, life-size, cement sculpture of a jet fighter.

For this piece I took elements of a few of the sweatshirts
and combined them in one.  I am probably over-thinking
it, but I like the imagery created by a dagger stabbing
through the oozing, worm-infested brain of a devilish heart.

While some folks think that the Leave It to Beaver sweatshirts were products
of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth's Studios, I couldn't find any substantiation to that claim.
Nevertheless, they are  kool, kustom, 60's-inspired designs and now I have some
duds for the Halloween season and beyond!

For this piece, I tried to get as close to Beaver's sweatshirt monster as possible.

As an aspiring underwear model, I wish I could say that I managed to find this pose on purpose.
Instead, my not-so-graceful dismount/slide onto the wing of the jet contorted
my body into this position; I guess I am what you would call a "natural"...

Well, what do you think?
It was a conscious choice to leave off the squiggles and waves.
Feeling pretty good about the outcome, I didn't want to ruin the
whole thing by messing up on a few squiggly lines - ever a rebel!

For those who choose to abandon the glories of television, I say, "To each his own."  For me, TV has been a consistent source of inspiration and education for my entire life.  Then again, I don't really watch reality TV...

Leave It to Beaver - "Sweatshirt Monsters"
Original air date: June 2, 1962


Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

*p.s.  Obviously, she needn't be worried.  If you noticed, I didn't make a single improper reference to beavers throughout the entire post.  She better be proud!

29 comments:

  1. Seriously, you are talented. You will be the ONLY person on the planet let alone Japan rockin the rebelious moster sweatshirt. Love it!

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    1. Thanks pal!!! I hope they like it and don't get offended!

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  2. haha! i always have to make sure when I saw "I don't watch current tv" to add that "but I watch TONS of tv, just all on netflix or online. " I love tv, I'm just behind on everything.

    I also love those sweatshirts on leave it to beaver! how cute! yours turned out SO WELL! I especially love the red guy with his brain out. you are going to be the toast of japan in those!

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    1. Hahahaha!!! I'm not REALLY offended by non-TV watchers; more than anything I am amazed that it is a possibility. I rarely ever just sit and watch TV (sewing, cooking, cleaning, blogging, etc. at the same time) but it is always on. Thanks!!! I hope the Japanese people like 'em too!

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  3. Please tell me you'll be selling these in your Wacky Tacky shop...

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  4. Amazing!!! I am seriously in awe. Japan better appreciate you!
    TV is awesome! It's taken me all over the world, to different eras and made me laugh when no one cared. TV! TV! TV!

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    1. Thank you, thank you! Isn't TV great?! I'll be the first to admit that there is plenty of programming with no redeeming value, but it doesn't discount all of the great stuff. Seriously, I blame most of my interests and education on The Disney Channel (when it was still old Disney films and cartoons), PBS, and the old movies that used to be played on broadcast stations. I traveled (geographic and time), cooked, created, and made music...all with that magic box in the family room!

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  5. MR. TINY! Aaahhhh!

    I love your blog, as many of my comments have suggested. I do not know if I love it more because of the interest of the blog (if I found a shop called Wacky Tacky, you KNOW I'd frequent it, in fact I'm sure Mr. Tiny would be one of my most favorite shopkeepers) or the setting of the interest. I grew up pretending to fly the pictured airplane. It's like nostalgia on top of nostalgia for me and better than meatballs or sour gummi worms.

    You have great talent, Mr. Tiny. These sweatshirts be awesome. And by awesome I mean: well designed, well executed and needing to be replicated.

    Thank you, sir. Thank you.

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    1. WOW!!! Thank you so much for all of your kind words! You are too, too kind! I hope we can find a way to make more of these sweatshirts for everyone! Thanks again!

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  6. I love how niche this sweatshirt is. Although I watch a metric shit ton of TV new and old, I don't remember the sweatshirt monster episode of beav. However, I know you just made a bunch of people day/dream a reality. I have never understood people that don't watch TV. It's such a foreign concept to someone that was such an indoorsy child such as myself. My sister's boyfriend lived in Germany most of his childhood and never really watched American TV growing up and still doesn't watch much TV. I think I ask her once a week, "so what do you all talk about?" Seriously. So many conversations/relationships I form are somehow contingent upon a similar obsession with something TV wise. I feel like I would lose part of my identity if I lost TV. That's pretty pathetic isn't it?

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    1. The first thing I do when I walk in the house is turn on the TV and wash my hands; this may have a lot more to do with OCD than my need for entertainment, but the TV is basically ALWAYS on at my house - usually as background noise while we accomplish a lot of other tasks, but it is always on unless I am reading (and honestly, sometimes even then). Sometimes I wish I wasn't so attached to the TV but then I realize how I don't really get upset when I miss shows; my attachment is more to the noise and its ability to distract me from my brain that doesn't seem to shut off otherwise. When Rae & Travis were here, I kept referencing television shows; TV plays a bigger part in my life than I realized!

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  7. LOVE the sweatshirt -- so well done. Yes, you must sell these!

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    1. Thanks Peter! Given the kind response, we might just HAVE to!!!

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  8. Amazing! They're as good if not better than any fancy 'designer' sweatshirys you see in snooty boutiques! I agree with the earlier comment - I would definitely buy one of these from the Wacky Tacky shop.

    And what's with not watching Tv? I just don't get that...

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    1. Thank you so much!!! Its nice to know that there is already interest in these sweatshirts! If it happens, I will let you know!

      As far as no TV goes, I get it as an abstract concept, but in practice, I NEED the distraction!!!

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  9. I want a sweatshirt with Beaver's bug-eyed monster on it! You MUST sell them! That was always one of my favourite episodes, although my 1980's kid brain couldn't figure out what the adults' big deal was about the shirts!
    I don't understand people who don't do TV. My boyfriend is one of them. His dad didn't allow them in the house when he was a kid (for reasons I don't KNOW, but I can guess...let's just say his Italian dad has a bit of a...ahem...'shady' background). He's grown up without it and, even though he'll watch it every now and then, he still thinks it's a waste of time you could use to be doing something 'productive'. Pffft to productivity, I say! You learn a lot from TV. Plus it's a way of connecting with people you've just met when you find a show you both enjoy. It's like finding out you have a mutual friend! It's frustrating when you make a joke or an observation about something related to a TV show that simply EVERYONE knows, and the Anti-TV Brigade don't get it at all while they judge you for wasting time and brain space on such trivialities. Of course, I get the same reaction to other people who go on and on to me about Honey Boo Boo or X Factor or The Voice...or American football. I get the same blank look on my face and look down my nose as I smugly say, "Oh, I don't watch THAT."

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    1. I mean, I know it's Leave It to Beaver, but isn't it odd to see the violent reaction the sweatshirts get in 1962 when they are pretty tame by today's standards. I can't repeat the slogan I saw on the t-shirt of a twelve-year-old kid the other day but I will say that I was shocked (and so was everyone in my group). Plus, the kid was with his mom - indicating that she approved of the craziness! It is funny that it is so easy to be snobby about television programming when most of it is pretty lame. Nevertheless, I do feel a certain level of misguided superiority for not watching those reality shows! Hahahaha!!!!

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  10. These are SO freakin' cool! Sell them, sell them, sell them. :)

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    1. Thank you!!! Hopefully, we will figure out a way to do just that!

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  11. Oh my god. You are SO COOL. I remember those shirts! Your creations are dead-on too. It's so fun to see them updated in color. I wish that there was a way that you could sell these. I'd be ALL over them. Please? Won't you? Huh?!

    That shot of you posing on the plane is FLY!!!

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    1. I'm so cool???? You're SO COOL!!! Thank a million Eartha! We're going to try and find a good way to produce them and then make them available! "FLY"...you slay me!!! Thanks again!

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  12. Mr. T~
    You did an awesome job on those sweatshirts!!! Wow! You are one talented fella, I can't say that enough! I didn't happen to see that episode in 1962 (I think I was too busy drooling over the guys in Route 66 and that Corvette! LOL), but if it's reminiscent of 1962, then it's a piece 'o my heart!!!

    XO Sandie

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  13. I remember that episode well. But I take issue with the cornball comment. Leave it to Beaver only appears corny in retrospect to people who never took family values very seriously. In its day the show was very popular and much loved by kids my age at the time. My brothers and I never missed an episode and enjoyed it even more in reruns. Some people dismiss TV portrayals of families like the Cleavers as unrealistic. To me, they were the ideal, not what I experienced in reality, but they made me feel good. When Beaver got reamed out over the sweatshirt incident, I would envy him for having a father that would take the time to take him aside and care enough to make sure he understood why what he did was wrong. How many kids today even have a father at home, let alone one who would go through all that trouble? It's cool though that you would take the time to commemorate those gloriously gruesome sweatshirts.

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    1. PS. I didn't mean to leave the impression that I didn't have a father at home. I did. But my dad worked nights and wasn't around often enough to clobber us kids or straighten us out. My mom handled most of those unpleasantries.

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    2. I'm with you. I think many of us need an example of what to strive for as a family. While Ward and June are a little dull (and just a little corny), there is definite comfort in their solid parenting and obvious love for their children! Thanks for commenting; I'm glad you like the sweatshirts!

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