December 16, 2010 by JP - 4 Comments

20TH CENTURY AVANT-GARDE ICON | TSY STYLE HALL OF FAME JEAN COCTEAU

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“An artist cannot speak about his art any more than a plant can discuss horticulture.”

–Jean Cocteau

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Jean Cocteau. Quite possibly the most important art icon of the 20th century, who could seemingly do it all, and with great style– painter, poet, playwright, novelist, actor, film-maker, the list goes on and on. But he was first and foremost a poet at heart– and a truly incredible one at that.

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Stunning photo of Jean Cocteau by Irving Penn. Damn, the man had style. Borrowing a page out of The Duke of Windsor’s book– perfectly pairing classic menswear patterns with elegance and ease. “Penn made this portrait of Jean Cocteau during a 1948 trip to Paris for Vogue. Each thread of Cocteau’s tie, vest, and suit is etched in light and shadow; the patterns and the texture pop out in vivid, tactile detail. The drape of his coat over an extended arm adds drama and balance to the composition. Cocteau is dressed in the sartorial attire of a dandy, which, by all accounts, he was. There is an air of flamboyance about him, until you look at his face. His dead-serious expression registers the fierce intelligence of a keen observer, as if he is taking our measure while deigning to allow us to take his.” –Philip Gefter via

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August 1955, France– Picasso with Jean Cocteau at a Bullfight –Image by © Vittoriano Rastelli/Corbis Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau knew one another for nearly fifty years. They met in 1915 following Picasso’s departure from martre, where Cocteau’s friend, the poet Max Jacob, had shared an atelier with the painter– one using the only bed by day, and other by night. Picasso made an immediate and lasting impression on Cocteau, who considered him as one of his three masters. via

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Jean Cocteau sketching model Elizabeth Gibbons in a Chanel dress in his hotel bedroom (Castille in the Rue Cambon), surrounded by posters of his latest theatrical productions, photos of friends, medicine bottles, books, stage sets and pencils, 1937. –photo by Roger Schall via

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December 14, 2010 by JP - 35 Comments

1980’s OLD SCHOOL BMX RADNESS | FREESTYLE FLYIN’ & STREET STYLIN’

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Full disclosure — I was the kid with the crappy bike. No Haro, no Redline, no Mongoose. Not even a brand new POS Team Murray. Mom bought me a brand new bike from Pep Boys the summer before 5th grade. I picked it out. I didn’t know diddley yet– I was a kid from Rochester who listened to Van Halen. I just knew it had red rims and looked like the bikes the cool kids were ridin’. It had that tiny sprocket that couldn’t keep up. Tiny sprockets suck. No worries, it was stolen.

I didn’t get schooled in bikes until we moved to Anaheim in 1980, and it was all about BMX… and Blondie. Thought I’d finally made it when I bought my friend’s used Rampar with heavy duty rims. Damn bike was stolen three days later while I played Tron in the local Fry’s.

No, I never was that fly freestyle guy with the rad bike. But I can still dream.

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Kettering, 1986. via

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“The Condor” Mat Hoffman, mid-flight, Oklahoma City. –All rights reserved by TenEyck Media. via Snapshot from the old Hoffman Bikes HQ in Oklahoma City. Hoffman’s contests were an annual pilgrimage for serious freestylers back in the day. Between competitions, Hoffman would get towed via motorcycle up to speed, hit the giant quarterpipe and soar. Everyone in attendance held their collective breath until he landed.

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December 2, 2010 by JP - 1 Comment

DAY 8 | THE WORLD THROUGH THE EXCELLENT EYES OF ALFRED DUNHILL

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Renowned artist Chris Dent was commissioned to create a jaw-dropping Dunhill-centric cityscape.

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In this world of endless blogs, online magazines, and internet noise, comes a refreshing and fascinating brand experience from an iconic English label whose heritage and importance goes largely unnoticed and under-appreciated here in the US– Alfred Dunhill.

DAY 8 is the deliciously Dunhill view of the world around us. I appreciate their seamless blend of narrated films and curated pictorals with such varying subjects as artist Chris Dent’s Dunhill cityscape, the precision and passion behind their coveted Chassis leather collection, and a tribute to Chris Milk’s global collective art masterpiece, which no surprise I love– The Johnny Cash Project.

Just days old, DAY 8 already delivers the perfect blend of creativity, elegance, travel, culture & intelligence that makes the short list of daily reads. More so, it reinforces that in the world of luxury, not all brands are created equal. Those who honor their heritage and allure of the past, and tell it through relevant and innovative design and dialogue, like Dunhill, are rare. Color me impressed.

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The Johnny Cash Project is a global collective art project that you (yes, you) can participate in.

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November 4, 2010 by JP - 6 Comments

PHOTOGRAPHY OF MATTHEW PORTER | PORTRAITS OF FROZEN ENERGY

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It’s shocking to me that I missed these incredible “created” images by Brooklyn photographer Matthew Porter when they came out. These epic Muscle Car shots are the stuff of every machinehead munchkin’s daydreams, and have the ability to still give a grown man that “hell yes, fist-pumpin’ feeling.” They’re pure unbridled fantasy of the best kind. Interviewer Rosecrans Baldwin described them as, “…a studied spontaneity, a way to make portraits of frozen energy, of time put on pause.” Indeed.

Let’s cut the crap here and boil it down– bitchin’. There’s also a captivating series called “High Lonesome”, which Porter describes as, “sort of an absurd mash-up between the Hindenburg and the American West.” Here’s the interview and images from The Morning News–

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Burnout #2, 2006 –image © Matthew Porter

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In many of the pictures, there’s an affection for wide-open spaces and grandeur, even myths: big skies, flying cars, floating blimps, cowboys. Do you find photography well suited for capturing big ideas?

Overall, I would have to say no. I’ve had to use quite a bit of Photoshop and travel to different parts of the country to make those images. It would be easier if I could make the work from scratch, or appropriate the imagery, but because I’m interested in authoring my own source material, I need access to the subject. Sometimes I feel like photography is not the best medium for the work I’m making, but I’m determined.

The flying cars have garnered a lot of attention. Where did they start for you? Are you still interested in them?

I was inspired by ‘70s road and car chase movies to make something with muscle cars, but I couldn’t get away from a documentary style project. Then I happened to see the end of the Starsky & Hutch remake, where the car freezes in mid-air while lens flares splash over the hood, and I realized that’s what I wanted. Then it became a problem of how to do it on a small budget.

I like them because they represent iconic moments that have very little with telling a story. No one ever talks about how Bullitt is a police procedural, but I see stills from the car chase reproduced all the time; the imagery is vivid enough to remain, and they play directly to the imagination. When I get an opportunity to install work somewhere, I like the flying cars to function the same way, so they should never be shown all together. I’ll probably continue to make them, maybe one every year for a while.

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Blue Ridge Parkway, 2008 –image © Matthew Porter

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Empire on the Platte, 2008 –image © Matthew Porter

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August 12, 2010 by JP - 17 Comments

“WE’LL DROP A HEMI IN THE REAR– AND RUN LIKE HELL.” | HEMI UNDER GLASS

Promo ad sketching out George Hurst’s concept that gave birth to the epic– ‘Hemi Under Glass” via

That’s the way the whole thing got started. A Barracuda with a nasty 426 Hemi stuffed where the back seat used to be. A Barracuda, the likes of which had ever been seen before– with Hurst-designed hi-performance chassis, suspension, driveline components– and naturally a 4-speed stick. This beastly Barracuda was christened “Hemi Under Glass”— a black & gold bomb that appeared at main events across the country. It would rock awestruck crowds back on their heels, as the Barracuda’s front wheels pitched high into the air and screamed down the strip with its nose pointing to the sky.

This was the hard part– fitting the 426 Hemi through the Barracuda’s front door for the first time. With the aid of a cherry-picker, Hurst personnel jockey the mill prior to making primary measurements that result in the Hemi’s final location. — Hot Rod, circa 1965, via

The “Hemi Under Glass” was a Hurst Shifters’ promotional project (designed by George Hurst & Ray Brock) that performed at drag strips and auto exhibitions across the country throughout the mid ’60s and ’70s. Hurst hired-on professional driver Bob Riggle to race the Hemi-powered, mid-engine ‘Cuda in front of testosterone-laden crowds who loved the spectacle of seeing these over-the-top wheel-standers scream down the strip at well over 100 mph down the track. Over the years 9 different “Hemi Under Glass” autos have been built, all based on the Plymouth Barracuda. Riggle himself drove the epic Mopar wheelster up until 1975 when he hung up his racing gloves after a serious accident, and moved back home to Arizona.

“Hemi Under Glass” was largely forgotten about until Bob Riggle decided to resurrect the drag strip icon in 1992, at the urging of “Miss Golden Shifter” herself– Linda Vaughn, and began building a replica of the ’68 model. Bob once again toured the country’s drag strips and auto exhibitions– drawing new fans, and tickling the old-time reminiscers as he and “Hemi Under Glass” sped down the strip full-tilt, still bringing everyone to their feet just like old times.

“Hemi Under Glass” was originally designed in 1965 by George Hurst & Ray Brock to be a competitive racer. They soon encountered a problem– the mid-engine placement of the extremely powerful 426 Hemi caused the front end to jerk up into the air quickly at acceleration, which became a huge hit with spectators, so they embraced it and made it arguably the most iconic 1/4 mile wheel-stander of all time.

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June 30, 2010 by JP - 18 Comments

TWO-LANE BLACKTOP | UNDER THE HOOD OF THE EPIC 1971 ROAD FLICK

“The whole idea of the road, of going from one place to another, is essentially American.”

—Two-Lane Blacktop Screenwriter, Rudy Wurlitzer

Esquire magazine printed the entire screenplay in its April ’71 issue before the movie was even released and boldly declared Two-Lane Blacktop as, “The Film of the Year.” Set largely on old Route 66, which had seen better days, filming locations stretched from California to Tennessee, and the project was wrapped up in two months for mere pocket change– $950,000. And while it wouldn’t quite live up to Universal’s expectations (who did little to promote it) and become a commercial success by anyone’s standards– it would survive the test of time to become a cultural icon, and one of the most loved road films ever made.

There still a lot of love for Two-Lane Blacktop— even after all these ears. Sadly, there aren’t a lot of great studio stills that have survived– finding decent pics on the internet was slim pickings. I’ve had a few squirreled away for a spell (courtesy of Performance Pontiac Magazine, go figure) and so out they now shall come– along with a few tidbits from behind the camera.

“I saw a picture of James Taylor on a billboard on the Sunset Strip promoting his new album. I thought his look was right for the part of The Driver. Regarding Laurie Bird, I took a trip to New York to meet with Rudy Wurlitzer, and, while there, met with a number of modeling agencies just to explore that field. When you’re looking for someone that age to play that role, it’s impossible to find someone who is established, so I anticipated finding an unknown. I checked out modeling agencies and met with people in L.A. as well and she was recommended. Laurie was so inexperienced it never occurred to me that I would actually cast her. She seemed so typical of what we had in mind for the character, however, that we used her as a prototype. Rudy and I did a three-hour taped interview with her; she became the template for the character. I still thought I could cast an actress who could play the part, but I couldn’t. Someone then had the bright idea of screen-testing Laurie.” –Director Monte Hellman

“Dennis Wilson (of Beach Boys fame) was the last one to come onboard, after I ran through every actor and some other musicians. As a matter of fact, we even met with Randy Newman. Fred Roos, the casting director, finally suggested Dennis. If memory serves, I saw Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, and James Caan; I think I saw every young actor in Hollywood. Dennis was very easy going. The only problem was that he was having so much fun that it was hard to find him when we were ready to shoot because he was off somewhere playing all the time.” –Director Monte Hellman

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March 21, 2010 by JP - 41 Comments

1969 DESERT TRIPPIN’ | GRAM PARSONS, ANITA PALLENBERG & KEITH RICHARDS

Gram Parsons and Keith Richards first met back in 1968. Gram was with the Byrds; touring Europe to promote their landmark Sweetheart of the Rodeo record. When Gram told Keith the band was headed to South Africa, Keith was like– “Man, we don’t go there.” The sanctions and the embargo were on. So Gram quit the Byrds, right there and then. Gram, with nowhere to stay, crashed with Keith in London and fed his friend a steady diet of classic Country music– which would seep its way into the Stones’ sound soon enough.

As a songwriter, Gram worked very much like I do, which is knock out a couple of chords, start to spiel and see how far it can go. Rather than sitting around with a piece of paper and a pen, trying to make things fit neatly together, if you just get on the microphone, things come to you. Lines come to you that you wouldn’t dream of, because they have to come to you in a split second. Gram liked to do that. But he would also work very hard — harder than I ever did — on honing it down. It’s difficult for me to pick one of his songs as a favorite. ‘Sin City’, on the Flying Burrito Brothers’ first album, is great. I love ‘I Can’t Dance’, on GP. But you’ll never get a full portrait of him from one or two songs.

–Keith Richards

In 1969, Keith Richards, Gram Parsons, and Anita Pallenberg took a trip (quite literally, I’m sure) to the Joshua Tree National Park. (The amazing photos of that epic trip were taken by Michael Cooper.) Joshua Tree was a place Gram Parsons was quite fond of. He’d spend days there on LSD getting lost, chasing UFOs, whatever. Tragically it was there that it all ended for Gram.

The drugs and drinking — he was no better or worse than the rest of us. He just made that one fatal mistake — taking that one hit after he cleaned up, still thinking he could take the same amount. And it was too f*cking much. But he didn’t get into dope because of us. He knew his stuff before he met us. I think he was just getting into his stride when he died (In ‘73 Gram Parsons fatally overdosed from a lethal combo of morphine and alcohol). His actual output — the number of records he made and sold — was pretty minimal. But his effect on country music is enormous. This is why we’re talking about him now. But we can’t know what his full impact could have been.

–Keith Richards

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November 1, 2009 by JP - 18 Comments

YEAH, WELL — SOMETIMES NOTHIN’ CAN BE A REAL COOL HAND

Cool Hand Luke, brother. Enough quotable anti-establishment mantras to ink an entire tattoo sleeve. Enough chambray & denim workwear to choke the toughest clothes horse.

Can’t find your spine? What? You left it at Starbucks, bro? Pick up your shovel and let Lucas Jackson show you how to find it at the bottom of Boss Keans’ ditch. Sometimes a man enters a fight with nothin’ but his will, and where he came from — and that can be a real cool hand. Watch and learn. Any man who passes up– spends a night in the box.

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October 12, 2009 by JP - 4 Comments

BOB WILLOUGHBY, GREAT AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHER | JAZZ LEGENDS

Bob Willoughby is a legendary Hollywood photographer whose incredible work includes many now iconic images of Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Jane Fonda, and some of Jazz history’s greatest artists. Willoughby’s career started out with him on duty as a commissioned Hollywood studio portraitist– and through his sensitive, perfectionistic eye, he created (some say even invented) the art form of photojournalistic motion picture stills.

How ’bout I just shut my pie-hole now, and let you enjoy these stunning images by great American photographer Bob Willoughby…

Cole Porter in his Beverly Hills home, 1954 --Bob Willoughby

Sinatra & frIends (Peter Lawford, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin) - Sands sign --Bob Willoughby

Chet Baker --Bob Willoughby

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September 26, 2009 by JP - 19 Comments

REQUIRED VIEWING “BULLITT” | THE GRANDDADDY OF CAR CHASE SCENES

To say that Bullitt had a car chase scene is like saying Steve McQueen was a good actor. Both are arguably gross understatements. The history-making car chase from Bullitt is still considered the gold standard for which all such scenes are held to today.

McQueen hadn’t planned on a driving double– in fact, he firmly insisted on doing all the Mustang stunt driving himself. But that all quickly changed– while shooting an early scene (that can be seen in the film), he missed a turn pretty hard and nearly lost it. The studio exec’s immediately pulled the plug on McQueen’s plans and tapped professional stunt drivers with a little more practical experience and skill. As fate would have it, main driving duties were handed over to none other than McQueen’s good buddy (and auto and motorcycle racing legend) Bud Ekins.

The story behind the filming of this ground-breaking scene (I hate to say it) is more fascinating to me than the whole of the film itself. Read on for great behind the scenes details on how history was made in pulling-off this incredible piece of work– the likes of which had never been attempted before.