April 1980

I have suddenly been gifted with a ton of my own original art from 1979-1980, plus a ton of my old published comix. The original art dates back to when I lived in Burlington, Vermont and in Seattle, Washington.

Your Morty blog will be in public view for a little bit while I scan and post these never before published or posted drawings. Many many more to come and I feel like I am discovering most of them for the first time!

The following three drawings were created in Seattle in April 1980, only a month before the eruption of Mt. St. Helens. These pencil works were obviously using photographs as models.

That Wonderful Souvenir Strain : Fox Trot Song

When I was a teenager I loved going to record stores and thumbing through the LP albums just to enjoy the graphic design of the covers.

But before my time, there was commercial sheet music and I find myself enjoying the cover graphics of this music-related medium in much the same way.

This piece appears to have been published in 1922 or 1923, and is local!

Army of Motorists at Pacific Beach, 1913

An article from the Seattle Sunday Times, August 10, 1913, written in the days when long-distance automobile travel was a novel thing. This is a fascinating piece about early day motor vehicle travel from Seattle to the Coast almost a century ago. Note that the trip took all day.

Morty Comix # 2673

Morty Comix # 2673 was folded and wedged into a cupholder slot at Safeco Field in Seattle during a baseball game. The Oakland As defeated the Seattle Mariners, 9-0.

Phone photo 2911

Storm coming in to Elliott Bay and Puget Sound from over the Olympic Mountains

Seattle, Washington

Phone photo 2910

Downtown Seattle on the eve of a big storm

Phone photo 2909

Is this great or what? My nephew Zach got to announce the players in the middle of the first inning!

Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

Phone photo 2908

Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

Oakland As won, beating the Mariners 9-0

Phone photo 2907

 

Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

Phone photo 2905

Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

Phone photo 2904

"The Crowd" by Gu Xiong

Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

Phone photo 2903

Bronze statue of sportscaster Dave Niehaus, Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

You realize, of course, this is really weird. Right?

Phone photo 2902

Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

Phone photo 2901

Safeco Field entrance, Seattle, Washington

Phone photo 2900

Safeco Field entrance, Seattle, Washington

Knife Blades Found in "Human Ostrich"

From the Ellensburg Dawn, Apr. 7, 1908

This is the second character I found in Washington State who billed himself as the "Human Ostrich." The other man, who was around at the same time, was James Fitzgerald, who was said to have two sets of teeth. Like Harrison, Fitzgerald had to eventually undergo stomach surgery.

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

 

"Olympic Hotel, Seattle, Wash."

From the 1920s (when the Hotel was brand new) judging by the cars in front

The Olympic still stands today as a Seattle icon

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"Lake Washington Floating Bridge - World's longest bridge constructed of concrete pontoons is an engineering marvel. Constructed and financed by tolls, it is now free and carries U.S. Highway No. 10 directly east from downtown Seattle and on through Snoqualmie Pass to the east."

I'd guess this dates from 1959-1960

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"The University of Washington Stadium in Seattle, home of the Huskies, has a seating capacity of 56,000. Its unique Lake Washington shore location permits access not only by conventional transportation but also by boat and seaplane. The lower campus is in the foreground and the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge in the background."

1970s. The bottom half of the image was part of the site for the Alaska-Pacific-Yukon Exposition of 1909.

Postcard - Seattle, Washington

"University of Washington at game time. University of Washington Stadium -- Home of the Huskies. With a seating capacity of 58,000, the Stadium's open end overlooks Lake Washington and the Cascade Mountains beyond. Five thousand fans travel to football games via boats, which dock on the Lake Washington perimeter of the campus."

1970s.