05.31.92 week in revue

The circle theme is used again, as a graphic device, as it targets Bush/USA with the brunt of the funding to, once again, save the Earth. Other major news involved the Strategic Air Command, disbanded to become what sounds more like a video game, the Air Combat Command. Speaking of circles, Ross Perot’s mouth is open again, too.

05.24.92 week in revue

The Indianapolis 500 dominates the week, although I am not a huge fan of people going in circles. The 500 image anchors the page and the repetition of two major headlines forces the eye from top to bottom, left to right. At this point, you may create your own pun if you feel led to do so. Ironically, Leno started and ends his reign as host during the same week. There we go in circles again. And Limbaugh proves you cannot lose weight sitting 15 hours a week.

05.17.92 week in revue

Many in the media tired of Carson in his later seasons, complaining that his material was routine, old and stale. Not unlike David Letterman in recent years, he seemed to be on auto pilot as time passed. Carson borrowed comedic characters from other entertainers, of course, like Steve Allen and Jonathan Winters, yet he remains an icon of class and comedic talent of the highest order. Other entertainment news centered around barbs between “Murphy Brown” and Vice President Dan Quayle. And the bubble finally burst for The Champaign Music Maker.

Murphy Brown dominates the design by shear size. But the Carson montage sprinkles down into Lawrence Welk and the eye returns back to Brown. The Quayle photo and two other text blocks, one of which indicates a difference of opinion between Hollywood and "everyone else," balances out the page.

05.10.92 week in revue

For many, the big news of the week was the space walk and retrieval of a wandering satellite. Ironically, this week in 2009 has another dangerous space walk mission. The graphics play off this theme. Sadly, Percy Dovetonsils had no part in the historic space walk. For those familiar with the innovative Ernie Kovaks, a pioneer in satiric skits and characters long before SNL, Percy was the soused poet in stunning eyewear who loved to share his poems, giggling all the while between sips of his martini. In another bazaar portrayal, here in the states we saw a lot of Barry Humphries, alias Dame Edna Everage. Humphries’ long-standing comedic character brought international fame.

The layout design works fairly well here. Where English is the standard, we tend to read top left to lower right. The visuals here help take the eye on that journey. There is repetition in the horizontal headlines and the circle theme. The earth graphic and the square, space image offer a balance on the page.

So Sew Tailor

This pencil illustration was for a www.libertyridge.com mailer. The campaign was promoting tailor-made living and just as a tailor custom fits formal wear, this community offers amenities to suit every senior’s lifestyle. My wife posed as the hand and measuring tape model. The face was created from another source. I chose a hairstyle and dress from mid-twentieth century in an attempt to establish a relationship with the prospective senior. Not sure how much the drawing helped the campaign in the short term, but the community has established itself as one of the most successful senior communities in the midwest.

05.03.92. The Week in Revue.

Alright. Enough with the teasing. Go back seventeen years near the midway point of the year. I start there because the first Sunday in May is the 3rd for both 1992 and 2009. What started as a whim turned into a full year obsession of sorts. Scrambling to find the right image got harder as 1992 came to a close. Burnout. But as I look back they still make me smile.

This week’s focus is on the U.S. Postal Service’s efficiency, a UN maintenance worker tidying up and another attempt to keep Congress from raising their own salaries. Teddy is not pleased. If you have seen the classic movie included here, you know the script includes a political machine bent on destroying an opponent.

A frequent inclusion for this montage will be the obligatory celebrity obituary. Obscure news, like the ban on bungee jumping in Florida or the ban on water cannons in Boston, will also be included in this revue. Hope you enjoy this 52-week mystery tour.

So if you were born before 1975, maybe you can say, “Oh yeah…I remember that.” Or, “Dude! This is all pretty obscure.” if you were born in 1990.