A TILLIE FROM 1939, HOLIDAYS PAPER DOLL BY CHARLES VENTURA

12/31/1939

CHARLES VENTURA 1993

KATY KEENE NEWLETTER ISSUE 6 WINTER 1981/1982 

'Til next time.....


                                                                    ALOHA!!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

     HAPPY HALLOWEEN 

KATY KEENE NO. 24 DECEMBER 1987

KATY KEENE NO. 24 DECEMBER 1987

KATY KEENE NO. 12  DECEMBER 1985

KATY KEENE NO. 12  DECEMBER 1985

KATY KEENE NO. 24 DECEMBER 1987

The above puzzle did not have an "answer page" either in the issue or the following one in 1988.

Hope everyone has a frightfully fun filled Halloween!!

'Til next time....

                                                    ALOHA

A KATY KEENE PINUP FOR CHRISTMAS

FASHION BOOK NO 15 WINTER 1956/1957

Til next time....


                                                              ALOHA!!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!

                HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!!!

KATY KEENE NO 6 JUNE 1952

CHILD LIFE JULY 1929

Til next time...

                                                        ALOHA!!!

3 MONTHS IN...

Katy Keene No 21 March 1955

Where did February go? I had meant to post pretty much every day but that went by the wayside. I have been busy though. I've been trying to get more paper dolls finished and I'm working on a commission for a friend that has to be finished by September. I've also started a vlog of sorts over on Youtube as well as get things around the house that need to be done completed. I do my best to stay off my foot but things need to get accomplished and in all honesty I'm tired of looking at the things that need to be put in their proper places. 

I've pretty much sold all of my Katy Keene comic books. I'm down to three more to scan of the 1980's run and all that is left to sell are the various other comics she appeared in like Pep Archie and Ginger as well as three more Annuals and all 13 of the Pin Up Parades. I also have some of the magazines and newsletters from the 80's to post for sale. While most people like to have the original paper dolls, I don't mind having copies. Digitizing the collection takes up less space and unless the external hard drive gets wet or damaged somehow, I'll never have to worry about my collection getting ruined. Not to mention the fact that I'll have endless photos to post on this here blog. 


I just finished a really good book by Arnette Lamb entitled: Maiden of Inverness.  I honestly didn't want it to end.  I could understand why Meridene did not want to go back to Scotland but loved how she came to terms with not only her destiny but with the people of the country she'd abhorred for so long. I would have loved to read more about some of the other characters in the book like Summerlad McQueen and his betrothed Serena and I would have enjoyed seeing how Gibby turned out. 'Tis a shame Lamb passed away before she could write any more stories around these characters. The book, along with The Chieftain and Hark the Harold (a short story in the book A Holiday of Love and about Elizabeth Gordon and Randolph McQueen who was the elder brother of Summerlad) all take place during the reign of Robert the Bruce.  I loved the book cover for this one too, love double covers! I'm considering doing a paper doll set featuring costumes from romance book covers. 

I will be posting another installment of the Star Wars comics within the next few days.




Til then...

                                                   ALOHA!!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!

Not to much to post today but wanted to post something. :)  Here is a pin up from an early Katy Keene comic.  The pin up below appeared on page one of the comic and both the pose and the overall design were by Kathryn Watkins who lived in Wichita Kansas. 

KATY KEENE NO 16 MAY 1954

 Converted to black and white for those who like to color. 

Since I haven't posted anything in a few days, I thought I'd post a couple of Valentine related Katy's today. I haven't posted much in the way of Katy Keene's, either pin ups or paper dolls. I've been getting all my files organized. Matching all the Katy's in the same pose that were in the comics with the clothes for each doll. Quite an undertaking believe me but it's getting easier now that I have each doll that is in a different position in individual folders. I'm rather excited about it because eventually I will post one doll and ALL the costumes for that doll on this here blog. Katy's wardrobe rivals Barbie's in how many costumes were designed for her since her appearance in Wilbur No. 5 back in 1945. 

Having the pin ups and paper dolls of Katy organized also helps when I'm creating a new paper doll and want to find costumes to put on her. Some of the outfits created by Katy's fans over the years are truly magnificent and while they didn't always appear for the paper doll they did appear within a story or on one of the numerous pin ups that graced the pages of various Archie publications.  Eventually I'd like to do the same thing with my Jane Arden, Boots and Toots collections. 

KATY KEENE NO 7 SEPTEMBER 1952

I tried to find a Katy paper doll that had at least one dress or ensemble that featured a heart. The one below is from 1954 and the designs are from Katy's "island fans". Most of the outfits are from budding designers from Hawaii. This was before Hawaii became a state. Of course I had to look up some of the address listed to see if the houses still existed since the island has changed considerably since the mid-fifties. In some cases the buildings are no longer there having been torn down and a bank, apartment complex or parking lot put in it's place. I always feel so saddened that the house that once resided on a spot has been demolished. I suppose one does have to make way for progress but it's still a shame. Only one home in Honolulu still exists, as does the home in Wahiawa. The address in the Philippines  is also still there but I couldn't tell from the satellite view whether it was a house or a business. There was no street view in that part of Manilla.  I sometimes wonder what ever happened to the young designers of her outfits. Did they go on to pursue a career in the fashion industry? What are the doing now and are they even still alive. 

KATY KEENE NO 17 JULY 1954

And just for fun, here is a coloring/design activity from the Katy Keene Fashion Book No. 2 from 1955 I'm posting both the original as she appeared in the comic and a "cleaned up" larger version. She was on the small size originally. 

FASHION BOOK NO 2 1955

                                    ALOHA!!

PART CAT, PART FERRET

Recently I took some photos of Indy and he's going to be one very long cat. He reminds me of a ferret in the photos. I got down on the floor for these to take them on his level while he was enjoying some sun that was coming through the front door.  All the photos were taken yesterday, the 7th of November. 

He's still growing. I figure by the time he's grown, he'll be able to reach the door knob like our cat Flaky could. 

Such a handsome boy!

Taking advantage of the last bit of sunlight.

Warming his tushy. 

I finished reading The Saint and have started the next book The Recruit. I'm just into the first few pages where Janet, Mary's sister, has come to bring her and her young son David back to Scotland. Mary's husband, Lord Atholl (based on an actual person) has been executed for treason and Edward II's men have come to get her and the boy. But Mary fears that once again she will be separated from her child so decides to go ahead and escape with Janet. 

While the new covers on modern romance novels are nice, I miss the illustrated ones from bygone days.  The cover for The Recruit is gorgeous and the model used has one nice looking chest but I think it would have been more appealing, at least for me, to show the entire man along with the heroine of the book. Sure do miss those Fabio covers from the 80's! When I try to find some of the older novels that I'm missing from my favorite authors, I try to find the old books with their original covers not the reissues that have, in my opinion, very boring covers. I suppose it is cheaper to pay a photographer money for a photo cover rather than an illustrator since it does take awhile to do a painting of a cover verses a photograph such as that used for the cover of this novel. Sometimes I do wonder if the old school way of creating images is on it's way out and will become a lost art. After all, there are only a few people who can forge swords the old way and is also a dying artform. Computers can do so many things these days, including creating the human form without the artist doing much of anything. There are programs for virtually everything these days. 

Katy Keene Fashion Book No. 22  Fall 1958

I didn't have any paper dolls for todays date so will have to post one for this month instead. Here is Alix by Lucy Eleanor Leary published in November of 1952. Not sure what date though. This is off a CD I bought from Ebay that a seller had put together of the Leary paper dolls she'd sold. I wish the quality was better, a scan instead of a photograph but beggars can't be choosers. I am thinking of doing my own version of this paper doll like I did for Briget and for Kathleen, my two St Patrick's Day paper dolls. 

Until next time....                                               ALOHA!!