Hi. My name's Rob Schamberger. I'm that guy who paints rasslers. And other stuff. I'm afraid of Americans.

Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942): Give My Regards to Broadway

Watercolor on 9” x 12” watercolor paper

#2 in the 40 movies I haven’t seen from the AFI 100!

Listen, I’m not a fan of musicals so this was a bit of a chore for me. It also has a blackface number in the first few minutes and that zapped my interest immediately. AND it’s a very nationalistic story and that’s not landing for me nowadays, dawg.

Those detractions aside I gotta say that Jimmy Cagney’s performance in this is nothing short of incredible. I had no idea he was a song-and-dance man, only knowing his gangster movie work. He’s like a living special effect and I was wowed several times. The movie is a showcase of this amazing performance, with Cagney being the spectacle all unto himself. The closest comparisons I can think of, where you have to see something simply to witness one actor be incredible would be Robin Williams or Jim Carrey. Not in the song-and-dance way, but in the “You won’t believe that a human being can do this” way. An apt comparable for someone you only know from dramatic roles busting out something like this is Christopher Walken in that Fatboy Slim video.

That said, I wasn’t the target demographic for this flick. I’d say it’s a Yankee Doodle Dud for me (I’m very proud of that pun). Cagney’s doing his best but I don’t think the writer or director were at his level. For wrestling fans, I’d say it was like Bret Hart in WCW: You know this guy’s fantastic but they’re clearly not showcasing him correctly.

I made the painting from the tap dance number in the Give My Regards to Broadway scene as that felt the most magical to me. There’s that moment when the spotlight hits Cagney like a thunderclap and I wanted to play with one of his leaps, showing it through the distance between his feet and his shadow’s feet. I thought initially about going with a red, white and blue palette but that felt too obvious and instead I amped up the sunset and did it all with that palette instead. I also thought about going more experimental with the composition but, like, the movie wasn’t shot that interestingly so that didn’t feel authentic. The focus is on Cagney dancing, just like the film.

Next week: Peter Bogdanovich’s masterpiece The Last Picture Show.

After the past decade and especially the past year and hell the past 48 hours, I realize I’m pretty estranged from society. It doesn’t feel like the right fit more often than not. I think that’s why I’ve slowly been looking at the things from the past that have stood the test of time, whether in art at museums or now with classic movies. It gives me some sort of buoy to hold onto. I can intentionally curate my own experience in a way that gives me a more comfortable fit.

Here’s a preview of Thursday’s new Harley Cameron painting.

Card subject to change.

Rob’s Art on ShopAEW
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Rob and Jason Arnett's novella Rudow Can't Fail!
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Rob’s prints and shirts at Pro Wrestling Tees
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Katy’s book Oldest Kansas City

Earlier this week Katy and I finished up the miniseries The Beast in Me starring Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys. It’s an engaging thriller without much in the way of surprises or twists but some solid character work with Danes’ character. She plays a writer whose life has slowly fallen apart following a major tragedy and an infamous real estate developer who may have murdered his previous wife moves in next door. The two are drawn into each others’ orbits with disastrous results.

Also, I’m the target demo for sociopathic New York real estate tycoons as villains in stories, I guess.

After that we watched the 2018-19 series Sweetbitter, based on a book Katy enjoyed a lot. It’s a shame this got cancelled because it’s a very solid show with a fabulous cast in a story about a young woman moving to New York on her own from the Midwest, getting a job at an upscale restaurant. It leads to her learning about the restaurant business, her coworkers, and ultimately herself.

It also led me to have a dream where the Russian character Sasha and I are tearing it up in the New York clubs and we go back to his house. He locks me in his basement with his giant pet anaconda which is starting to get hungry. Luckily, I found a toy of a Japanese robot on the floor, turn its head around and it grows to human size. It breaks down the back door so that I can escape. I get service on my phone and try to get a cab and while I’m waiting for it I see Batman and Spawn jumping around on the rooftops and they land in the alley behind me and start making out. I woke up as my cab arrived.

So naturally, I brought up that damn anaconda every time the character was on screen.

While I didn’t have any homoerotic dreams about Batman and Spawn after listening to the audiobook for Dead Lions by Mick Herron, I did still manage to enjoy it quite a bit. It’s the basis for the second season of Slow Horses and I think the book told the story much better than the show, and I really liked the show! It’s about what appears to be a deep cover Cold War-era Russian agent reactivating to get revenge, but Jackson Lamb thinks there’s something else entirely going on. A solid spy intrigue story told with Herron’s trademark humor and deeply flawed characters.

Yesterday I finished reading The Warlord omnibus volume one by Mike Grell and man, this book fuggin rocks. It’s a sword and sorcery romp gorgeously drawn by and thrillingly written by Grell that I think would be a massive hit if it were coming out today. That it’s 50! years old speaks to just how far ahead of the curve it was. On its surface it’s a rad comic but below the surface it’s also about Travis Morgan, the titular Warlord, being a Vietnam veteran who has a hard time leaving the war and coming home. It’s Grell himself working through those same things through the book, something he did a lot more effectively later in Jon Sable Freelance and Green Arrow but it informs these stories throughout.

If you’re unfamiliar, Travis Morgan is a spy pilot shot down by the Soviets and mysteriously crash lands in a world that exists inside our own called Skartaris. It’s a mix of One Million BC, Spartacus, Ben-Hur, Lord of the Rings and Edgar Rice Burroughs, all of which gives Grell a zillion opportunities to draw cool stuff. It’s horny as hell with all of the characters wearing as little as possible while fighting dinosaurs and evil wizards. I imagine you’re reading this and thinking, “SOLD!”

The book itself is printed on thick, rough paper instead of a glossy stock and I think it’s perfect for the art. The color looks right on this and there’s a distinct tactile experience to the physical reading of it. I can’t say enough good things about it!

On January 1st Caroline Cash took over my favorite comic strip Nancy and so far it’s excellent. I’m looking forward to how the strip progresses under her. Hopefully Nancy and Sluggo will continue to like ice cream.

More of a vibe week than doing anything representational with these warmups. Although, funnily enough, three of these were sketches for upcoming movie paintings. It’s fun to play around with techniques or color combinations like this with no strings attached.

It’s rough. Waking up to the news yesterday straight up sucked. I’m so angry and I’m using all of my therapy tools to not get overwhelmed.

If you’re in a similar state, here’s something I learned last year that’s helped me out a lot and hopefully it can do the same for you:

Intentionally think about the things in your life that bring you no-strings joy. None of the “Well, I like this thing, except when…” scenarios, I’m talking about the things that you love fully and with no asterisks. For me personally, it’s my cats, gardening and cooking. Spend some time just identifying what those things are, then to the best of your ability have some purposeful time with them.

It’ll take time, but you’ll slowly allow those thoughts and experiences to exist alongside the awful stuff. One doesn’t invalidate the other, all can be true, but in an overwhelming situation often all we can do is take care of ourselves first. We care for ourselves in meaningful ways so that we can be there for others, to the best of our abilities.

So I’m petting my cats and letting my love for them be true while I let the anger over the actions of these sociopaths also sit with me. Both are true.

Love you more,
Rob