Bill Kresse Modern 1950s Cartoonist

Something different today. A piece I wrote for my defunct Vintage Sleaze blog over ten years ago. If ever there was a cartoonist from the 1950s deserving a retrospective showing at the Drawing Center, it would be Bill Kresse. As modern as a Herman Miller Eames chair and just as timeless, his early gag work for sleazy digests stands out for many reasons. Lush and creative, the women all sharp, angular shoulders and heavily detailed dress, the fellas all whirring, confused and excited motion, fevered and flushed. All players in a Kresse panel are happy to be alive and participating in this retro-human game. Fingers and heels like spikes on the dames, gunboats as wide as shoeboxes on the guys. Several things distinguish a Kresse cartoon from the 1950s...One, he always took time to put glass over the modern art on the wall (as if he aspired to the same treatment, which he now deserves) and the large, undulating ribbons of bold black ink which surround his characters in elegant swerves. Surprisingly, his work has not been anthologized much that I can tell. Bill Kresse published a book way back entitled "An Introduction to Cartooning" with the subtitle "It's a Magic World" and in his case, it must have been. Although drawn and sold to over the counter girly cartoon pulp digests, these figures are always clothed (in dresses Lady Gaga could only imagine, if that) and although emotions are at a peak, for the guys anyway, the gags are always harmless, human and honest. Great work from a great artist. Kresse went on to do panel work for New York Daily Papers and had a series for which he became well-known, "Super Duper" and even worked with Terrytoons. An under appreciated master who created work which looks better today than it did 50 years ago. When he saw this tribute in his retirement, he sent me package of drawings and articles before passing away in 2014. by Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb A nice note from Devlin Thompson adds the following : Kresse also did work in ARCHIE'S MADHOUSE in the mid-'60s, which stuck out like a sore thumb stylistically. I never learned his name until reading an article about his newspaper work in an issue of HOGAN'S ALLEY. #cartoonist. #cartoons.

Colorful Schoolchild Crayon Drawings from 1939

As promised, the rest of the Schoolchild’s abstract crayon drawings 1939 Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Schoolchild Crayon Drawing with much Color and Form

One of four magnificent child’s crayon drawings recently obtained from the most highly recommended antiques (and simpatico) dealers on the web, Kate at CRITICAL EYE ANTIQUES. Google it up and I believe you will see, love and purchase something too!Whether this third grader in 1939 knew how good he/she was,I can’t say. We might not even agree on the gender of the artist (Joan or John? I love it and the 3 others I was lucky enough to purchase as well. Beautiful and my mind kind of thing. It’s a very good and very colorful thing and I had to have it. I’ll post the others soon. Schoolchild’s abstract crayon drawing 1939 Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Halo 3 Publication from Venus D'ailleurs

I am proud to be included among the contributors to HALO 3 the French Publication HALO 3. Scroll down for credits and a video of the content! HALO n°3 – VENUS D'AILLEURS https://venusdailleurs.fr/?page_id=4696

Handmade Postcard 1913

Part Two. Original hand painted postcard mailed from Long Island City to St, Joseph, Michigan in 1913. One of a set of four. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Handmade Church Raffle Tumbler in original blue paint

A church raffle tumbler in original blue paint. Door opens and closes with clasp, crank wheel on one side spins the chamber. This piece mimics commercial tumblers pretty closely. Mid 20th c. Raffle tumbler. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Vintage Lottery Advertising Rug Gambling ephemera of the legal kind.

52” long rug I rolled up and carried out of the market Sunday. State lotteries started in the US in 1964. The piece is a little misleading. 35% to 40% of funds played are lost by consumers. That is the same odds as the “numbers” or “policy racket” run by the mob in the good ol’days! Still, I guess it’s for a better cause. In fiscal 2025, 1.6 BILLION dollars went to fund public schools in Michigan alone. I stood on a ladder to take the pic. This would be called "point of purchase" advertising, but I guess I call it deceptive. Graphic Lottery rug, circa 1970? State unknown, found in Michigan. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Dull Tool Dim Bulb update for Spring/Summer 2026

Dull Tool Dim Bulb Spring UPDATE! When you follow the faceebook page, LIKE a post once in a while. My posts fade from your feed if you don't. Like or Follow. The blog on google version is approaching 6 million page views (!) and I never took out an ad, never “monetized” it or any of my other blogs. It’s a hobby. There is a major Magazine / book piece coming out in June hopefully, that will be fun and I’m real happy with it. I’ve had to slow down my Sewer Tile Folk Art Sculpture page as I can’t find ones I like much anymore. They’ve grown unaffordable, but I hope to find a few with the summer season allowing some travel. Several of my books remain in print. The last one was a modest little book on a Texas Polio survivor who painted with a brush in her mouth. A brief bio with 40 pieces illustrated. My publishing platform Is BLURB and you can search them up, or see the sidebar on the Dull Tool Dim Bulb blog with links with free previews. The ebooks are affordable, the books are printed on demand and too expensive. Chose the ebay books, I profit little from either. Other books with my involvement turn up on eBay sometimes. There was an ENORMOUS bio of me done on GROKIPEDIA which knows more than I do! Repetitive but with a huge bibliography/footnotes section. I still do a post a day on my Primary blog and strive to produce a few Facebook posts as well, but their AI is touchy. Very. Such is life. Sewer Tile pottery large frog collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb. THANKS for following and participating!

Celebration at the Puppy Bar New Orleans c. 1945. Original photograph Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

From reporter Blake Ponchchartrain writing for GAMBIT “the Best of New Orleans” I was able to identify this great photograph location! It became the Puppy Bar in 1940, so my speculation this was of cebration of the end of WW2 is likely correct. The place was hot..looks like no air conditioning to me. Maybe they shared a bottle of Champagne? If you search “the Puppy Bar” this great article will show up. Here’s the summary:  According to a 1975 column by Howard Jacobs in The Times-Picayune, The Puppy House actually was the second name for the club located at that spot. Owner Frank Ferrara opened a club there called The Circus in 1938. The name change must have come soon after, because a 1940 story in The New Orleans Item called it The Puppy House. By 1948, Ferrara had changed the name of the club to the Sho-Bar.   He retired in 1958 and sold the Sho-Bar, though it remained a fixture on Bourbon Street for decades. Among performers who took the stage there were Cupcake and Candy Barr, Sally Rand with her "world famous fan dance," Lili St. Cyr and Rita Alexander, the striptease artist known as "the Champagne girl." The biggest star of all, Blaze Starr, even drew the attention of Louisiana Gov. Earl K. Long.   In his book Bourbon Street: A History, Richard Campanella points out that Long's limousine could be seen parked outside the club several nights a week beginning in 1959. "That's where he fell head over heels in lust with the buxom Appalachian girl who went by the stage name Blaze Starr," Campanella writes. "The sensational story of the 63-year- old governor and the 23-year-old dancer helped make Long, Starr, Bourbon Street and Louisiana all the more delectably notorious to the national consciousness."   In the 1980s, the Sho-Bar moved to the 300 block of Bourbon but has since closed. As for the original club in the 200 block, it was Deja Vu Showgirls for many years but is now Hunk Oasis, a club featuring male dancers. Original “”Nightclub photographer” 8 x 10 glossy photographs, c. 1945 Collection Jim Linderman Dull Tool Dim Bulb the Blog #trueburlesque. #burlesque. #candybarr. #theshowbar. #SallyRand. #neworleans.

Subway Drawing Unknown Seeking Information on the New York Artist 1958

I am seeking information on the artist of this 1958 New York artwork produced by Frank Desio or Frank De Sio? Any help out there? Correct way to spell the artist's name? Vintage Folk Art New York City Subway Car Painting Drawing by Frank De Sio 1958 Collection Jim Linderman Dull Tool Dim Bulb the Blog

Pennzoil Petroliana ! A folk art house and family made entirely of Pennzoil Oil Cans. Real Photo Postcard c. 1930 Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb the Blog

An entire folk art environment made of Pennzoil Oil cans! This amazing roadside attraction of Petroliana includes a house, a man (with a rifle!) the wife and the family dog. A real photo postcard made not long After the ubiquitous cans began appearing in 1921. Pennzoil derives from Pennsylvania. A favorite of the many oil can collectors still. I date this rather extraordinary RPPC to 1930 or so…maybe a bit later. Pennzoil house and family constructed of oil cans. Tin Man and his Family. Real Photo Postcard c.1930 - 1940 Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Heed the warning signs and SLOW DOWN this Memorial Day Weekend

For my Memorial Day driving friends, please be safe. Despite sky high gas prices, I’ve noticed no giant pick-ups slowing down to a safe speed. I drive 60 if I can and get 40 miles a gallon. Go ahead and pass me! Comstruction sites are particularly dicey. Miniature homemade road signs. Circa 1940. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb.

Looking for Big Guns?

Original press photo 1953 Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Detail Photos of an African-American Concrete Sculpure of a Man and Woman

Detail photographs of a man and woman African-American made Folk Art Sculptures of Concrete. Early 20th c. if not earlier showing traces of original paint and considerable wear. I believe I first saw these sculptures, among others MANY years ago, and when i managed to return they apparently had been removed and purchased. Fortunately, this couple made their way to me. They are seated figures fishing (!) and quite large. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb

Large folk art Whirligig Fragment of a man sawing wood Sculpture which Survived.

A very large “fragment” from a traditional folk art whirligig of a man sawing wood. Likely the most common theme of hand built whirligigs. This fellow survived the outdoor weather, but the rest of the piece, which would have been of considerable size, is all that remains today. The man is approximately 18 inches long. Dull Tool Dim Bulb the Blog Archives.

Real photo Postcard of a make-do folk art Horse c. 1920

A perfect real photo postcard of a make-do folk art  horse.  I suspect the head comes from a stick horse…but it has been affixed to a box body. With tail.  I hope these lovely girls were able one day to own a real horse. Likely near Memphis, TN  RPPC Late 19th, early 20th Century.  Collection Jim Linderman /Dulll Tool Dim Bulb #make-do. #horsetoy. #folkart. #realphotopostcard #rppc

Handmade Handpainted Antique Postcard by Bill. Mailed 1913

Original hand painted postcard mailed from Long Island City to St, Joseph, Michigan in 1913. One of a set of four I have. "Bill" made others as well. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb #postcard. #handmade #bear

Rare early folk art drawing of John Brown Abolitionist. Collection Jim Linderman Dull Tool Dim Bulb

An extremely rare early hand drawn portrait of an historical figure. John Brown of Kansas. One seldom finds early drawings of controversial figures like the rebel abolitionist. Said possibly to be a ledger drawing with Native American origin, but I think it more likely A mid to late 19th century drawing made by a child being taught in a schoolroom. The caption reads “I will take the law into my own hands” and he certainly did, This ledger drawing measures 6" X 3.25".  Brown is identified along the right side of the paper. A controversial early piece. Folk Art Drawing of John Brown with caption. Mid to late 19th century. Crayon and pencil on ledger paper. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb. #john Brown. #abolitionist. #slavery. #folkart. #folkartdrawing. #dulltooldim bulb. #collectionjimlinderman

Beautiful restoration of Potter's Field Cemetary

It is an odd benefit, but as a walker it is a lovely benefit. Several years ago a rehabilitation project with dedication plaques appeared on my route. The newly dedicated “Potter’s Field” was beautiful. I’m not revealing the location, as privacy and quiet is to be preserved. I can say when the cemetery first opened, Lot 22, aka Potter's Field, was part of the original cemetery plot. The first burial was a cigar maker named Jeremiah Smith. He was originally buried in Potter's Field, on September 17, 1873. Smith drowned when a ship sank in Lake Michigan off the shores on September 15, 1873. His remains were later moved and currently rest in Block 28. When the relocation of the cemetery began, the city council offered reduced rate lots for "all those bodies removed and reburied by relatives and friends" to incentivize civilians to move loved ones themselves to the new cemetery. In just twelve years, Potter's Field was full. Nevertheless, burials of the unidentified and poor continued in other areas of the Cemetery. Almost all were buried with no fanfare or notice, though the cemetery thankfully kept records of each one. There are now 852 burials in the newly dedicated potter's Field. Although some records were lost in a fire, research suggests there may be as many as 1,400 buried in this plot. Hundreds and identified an /or now with respect, dates and more. Photos Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb #Cemetary #graves. #gravestones

Walter Baetz and his Gas Tank Outstanding Designed Vintage Toys

I tow this behind my car in case I spot any gas deals. So far, no luck. Manoil Brothers manufacturing 1930 - 1940 “pot metal” and made with a “slush” technique with and wooden wheels. Their sculptor was Walter Baetz and He created some amazing automobiles. Walter Baetz, perhaps the most distinctive dime-store toy products. I’ll show a few from the web. Manoil toy Gas tank on wheels. Collection Jim Linderman / Dull Tool Dim Bulb #vintagetoys.