Morty Comix # 2509

 Morty Comix # 2509 gets to travel. Let's let Fate decide where it goes.

I decided to once again employ a monkey part in the method of choosing a new home for a Morty Comix.

Charlie and Dreamer decided right away they were going to "help."

Then I took out a clamp that is humorously shaped like dentures. Ha ha! And I tied a string to it. Charlie and Dreamer had to inspect this as well.

This novelty was clamped to one of the blades of my oversized living room ceiling fan.

 On the other end of the string I tied the monkey part.

At this point I brought out a recently acquired puzzle map of the United States. Since I plan on developing and perfecting this Fatalist method of releasing Morty Comix into the world, I thought it would be a good idea to invest in this. Entertainment for some, a tool of serious art distribution for me.

Tipping the puzzle box on its side with the pieces barely balancing on top of my comfy chair, the other half of the box waits below to catch the chips that will fall where they may.

I turn on the fan, the monkey part circles the room, gaining momentum and height. Meanwhile, Dreamer plays with his new catnip banana.

 In short order, the monkey part hits the box, knocking the puzzle pieces asunder.

 Five states landed in the other half of the box: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Louisiana, and New Mexico.

So I propped up each state with a cup and waited to see how long it would take for a cat to knock over at least one. Within a minute Charlie obliged.

 He knocked over the two great states of California and Louisiana.

So I set up two on a small table and shot foam darts until one of them was knocked out. And California it shall be.

The dice were rolled, and the number three took me to the Golden State's third largest city, San Jose. This is very strange. This is the second time San Jose has been chosen at random! The first occasion was with Morty Comix # 2403. Actually, this is sort of deliciously bizarre but it kind of mildly freaks me out too.

In looking at a San Jose street map, I zeroed in on Lundy Avenue. Why? My middle name is Londy, but it is pronounced as if it was spelled Lundy. Back in the family stomping grounds in the Cumberland Mountains of Virginia, Lundy is not an unusual name. My grandfather, Londy Willis, gained that unusual spelling because he had a twin brother, London Willis (there were three sets of twins in that family!)

So, Lundy Avenue was my choice. I used the Google street view and at random chose a label business.

 

So off you go, little Morty Comix # 2509. Have a great trip!

Phone photo 914

Topnotch Tavern and Willis Motel
Raymond, Washington

The story I've been told is that the Topnotch was founded by my grandfather's twin brother, London Willis, in the 1930s or 1940s. London was an old moonshiner/bootlegger in the 1920s who apparently attempted to drive to Japan and had a little trouble once his vehicle hit the salt water. It is safe to say alcohol was involved.

Moonshine: How It Works

A diagram I drew under my Dad's expert supervision about how to make moonshine. He built an authentic still as a display for the McCleary Museum many years ago. He's gone but his exhibit is still with us to this day. Illegal booze was a very big part of the history of McCleary, Washington.

The Willis family were involved in the trade both in Dickenson County, Virginia and Pacific County, Washington. Dad served as a lookout for his older brothers in Virginia.

Bootleg

A poster I drew for the 1989 production of Bootleg, a play written by my brother.

The content of this dramatic work was partly based on the exploits of the Willis family concerning their activity in distilling illicit booze and then employing a very libertarian philosophy in the free market distribution of said product, both in Dickenson County, Virginia and in Pacific County, Washington.

Bezango, WA 985 #4

1st ed., Mar. 18, 2002, 40 copies (20 green, 20 blue).

2nd ed., June 2, 2002, 15 copies, blue cover.

3rd ed., July 21, 2002, 5 copies, parchment cover.

An unknown number of copies were available as print-on-demand for a short time starting in Aug. 2002.

1st Danger Room Reprint Ed., June 2005. 5 copies (1 pink, 1 yellow, 1 red, 1 green, 1 blue).

I forgot to mention when I wrote the initial intro to this series that our comix comrade Mark Campos performed a visual reading of selections of this series at Seattle's Bumbershoot in August 2003. I think I have a photo from that and I'll include it here.

This special earthquake theme issue is based on the fact that we have a lot of quakes in this part of the world. Most of them are pretty mild, but occasionally we get a real corker.

Trivia: Page 3: Olympia once had a Christmas Island. I included it in a recent column for Olympia Power and Light (attached). Page 6: He's very real. Page 8: Around 1959 I once visited a Santa like this, in the top floor of Olympia's Mottman's Mercantile. It was one of the events that started me on the road of disbelieving much of what I saw. Pages 11-12: There really is a Zuba but her name isn't Zuba. Page 13: Fabiola lived just across the Columbia River in an Oregon town. Page 14: Marion Zioncheck was a very flamboyant Washington State member of Congress in the early 1930s. And there really was a kid named Greg who was Mars in a 3rd grade play about the planets I participated in. I believe I played Saturn. Page 17: She's still around. Page 18: This fellow is based on a guy I heard about in Raymond, Washington. If you visit Raymond, the Top Notch Tavern, which is still there, was once owned by London Willis, my grandfather's bootlegging twin brother.