1 Day 'Til KICKOFF!

In the spirit of the season, and in anticipation of tomorrow, I have decided to post some tidbits to get everyone fired up. Like this classic:


And one of my personal favorites:


Who can forget this?


Or.....

And, although I know it's not The Crimson Tide, it's still football.... kinda.....


Hopefully, we can look forward to many more highlights and good memories of ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE FOOTBALL....!
ROLL, TIDE, ROLL...!

2 Days 'Til Kickoff!

Well, here we are, only 2 days away from ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE Football...! I am very excited, and can hardly wait! Tonight, SEC Football premieres on ESPN as the highly-overrated LSU Tigers visit the Mississippi State Bulldogs in a nationally-televised much-expected spanking.I sure hope that Sylvester Croom's Bulldogs can make a game of it. I would like for them to win, but that is highly unlikely.
PREDICTION: LSU 41, MSU 14

The Crimson Tide will take to the field for an expected drubbing of a cupcake opponent in a PPV telecast Saturday night. At least now we as fans don't have to be apprehensive about games we're SUPPOSED to win....! The Nick Saban era will begin, and hopefully will bring back the confidence and optimism in the team and program that has been missing.

Injuries and suspensions aside, The Tide simply will be too much for an out-manned and out-muscled Catamounts squad
PREDICTION: ALABAMA 49, West Carolina 7

Out of respect for tradition, I am also posting the Classic Alabama Logo, the one with which we ALL grew up, and my brother had prominently displayed in our bedroom when I was a kid:


ROLL TIDE!

PRIORITIES

Well, only 4 days 'til kickoff! (Only 2 for SEC college football, as ESPN will have a Thursday night SEC game featuring LSU and Mississippi State...!) As an ardent fan, I appreciate "All Things Bama", and wanted to share with you an image from someone whose priorities are CLEARLY in order.
Luke Coley, a University of Alabama Law School grad, got married recently. Below is a photo of his groom's cake:


I WANT ONE! Not necessarily a 'groom cake', but I like the idea of anything chocolate with a big ol' BAMA Logo! (Not sure how it will go with the customary beer and sausage on the menu Saturday, though.....) Maybe I'll get a cake decorating kit and start making and selling them.........!!
ROLL TIDE!

Everybody's Jealous-- And That's FINE...!

Well, it's official. Nick Saban is on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and everybody's gunning for THE University of Alabama Football Program. (Note the capitalization of the entire title!) This strikes me as kind of hypocritical, since EVERYone was proclaiming The Tide's 'irrelevance' not long ago.

Say what you want about the man or the program, but you can't deny it. Once again, Tuscaloosa has become the center of the universe. And rightfully so. Everyone hates us because of our arrogance and perceived superiority. (Decades of winning and expecting to win will do that to a fan base.) Sure, we became lax and had a few down cycles. But we were always 'this close' to victory.
Just ask last year's national champion Florida Gators, who we played oh-so-close but gave away a fumble on a tying/winning drive. Or the Arkansas Razorbacks. Or the Fat Orange In-breds up in Tennessee. All of these games weren't in reality won by those teams as much as given away by ours. Now that we have a legitimate championship-caliber coach, and kids who want to play for the man as well as the program, things are looking up.
No more '3 runs up the middle and punt'. No more sitting on a 1-point lead and 'hoping' for the best. The fire is back. We're going straight for the jugular.
6 Days 'Til Kickoff. I can't wait.

8 Days 'Til KICKOFF....!!

That's right! Only 8 days until The ALABABAMA CRIMSON TIDE kicks off the 2007 Football season and the 'Saban Era'...! Hopefully, he can bring the program back up to where we're supposed to be!
Going out to dinner with my lovely wife Alice to meet my equally lovely stepdaughter Michelle and her boyfriend, who are driving in from Birmingham!
I'm still job-hunting and working on designs for my upcoming:

And will be posting some goodies, such as character designs and some limited animations before long!

Recommended Reading

For anyone interested in the history of Disney Animation, there is a relatively new book that you should see:


"Disney's Nine Old Men and the Art of Animation" by John Canemaker is a fascinating look at the artists behind the ORIGINAL Magic: the Animated Film.

Also, I HIGHLY recommend this book for an in-depth analysis and breakdown of the Disney process and style of animation:

"The Illusion of Life" is a joint effort by two of the afore-mentioned 'Nine Old Men', Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston.
Soon, I will be putting up some sketches and images for your enjoyment! Until then....9 Days 'til KICKOFF! Roll Tide!

Goodbye, Gretchen!

Sadly, I had to say goodbye to a long-time partner.


The debacle that is the Michael Vick dog-fighting episode is so tragic on so many levels, and I thought I had seen and heard it all.
Then I saw this:

ANYthing that has comic or cartoon dogs is funny to me. And I need cheering up, since I had to put my 2nd best friend (after my beautiful wife Alice) Gretchen down yesterday. Gretchen was a 13-year-old Doberman we had since she was a puppy.
She was hard-headed, loyal, and a beautiful specimen. Not built like the standard vision of the breed, she had a square jaw, a thick neck, and muscular build. She loved attention, and petting-- especially from little kids. A lover of beer, she also had an affinity for spicy food. And cedar siding.
She kept the Democrats out of the yard. Heck, at our previous residence, the meter-readers stood in the neighbor's yard with binoculars..! Her long-time companion Fifi (also a Dobie) is almost as sad as I am.
I'm sure she's chasing squirrels and opposum up in 'doggie heaven'.

Phineas & Ferb 2nd Highest-Rated Cable Show EVER!

Disney's 'Phineas & Ferb', co-created by my friend DAN POVENMIRE with Jeff 'Swampy' Marsh, premiered following 'High School Musical 2' Friday night. HSM2 was the HIGHEST RATED CABLE SHOW EVER. Apparently enough of the HSM2 audience stayed put, making P&F the SECOND-HIGHEST-RATED CABLE TV SHOW EVER!
Congratulations, you guys! Great job!
Oh, and only 12 days 'til kickoff! ROLL TIDE!

BACK AGAIN!

Yes, Here I am again! Apologies for the lengthy hiatus! I have been finishing up Mardi Gras floats and soliciting work. AND job hunting. AND working on pitch proposal designs for an upcoming project! I will be posting updates and character designs, as well as thoughts!





Did everyone catch the sneak-peek of Dan Povenmire's "PHINEAS & FERB" on The Disney Channel last night? It was on right after Disney's 'High School Musical 2'. Created and produced by Dan and Swampy Marsh, it looks to be a promising addition to the Disney lineup! It will premiere in January 2008, so here's wishing them good luck!

I donated some caricatures of Alabama Legend JEREMIAH CASTILLE and JOE KINES for the L'Arche Benefit.