Sailor Jerry on the Rooftop

Saturday night found me on a rooftop in the Gowanus section of Brooklyn watching the film Hori Smoku Sailor Jerry, a documentary about the legendary tattoo artists Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins.

It was part of the Rooftop Films free festival, yet another amazing benefit of living in New York City. That and hearing a guy with a cowboy hat playing "Silent Night" on his harmonica on the subway in August.

A bit about Rooftop Films, what a great program. I encourage everyone in New York to take advantage of (and support) this series, now winding up it's 14th year. The program champions underseen independent films in spectacular locations.

Saturday's show was atop the historic Old American Can Factory.

 Here was my view, initially:

and then when I moved up to the front row:

We were treated to some music from a band called Cheeseburger.

Prior to the film starting, we were introduced to the producer/director of the film, Erich Weiss. He explained that the film has been a three to four year process. It was initially shown at the 2008 South by Southwest Festival and, after a limited theater run, found its way to DVD in late 2009. "I've met a lot of interesting people," he told the audience, and he also asked us not to talk to him after the movie about our own tattoos and the story behind them. Clearly he's heard more than his fair share of tattoo stories.

The film itself was wonderful, and echoed what I consider one of the best tattoo books I've ever read, Sailor Jerry Collins: American Tattoo Master.Much of the book is the actual correspondence between Sailor Jerry and a young tattoo artist named Don Ed Hardy. The film intersperses snippets from the correspondence, typed out across the screen, with a voiceover representing the artist's voice, with interviews from Don Ed Hardy, along with a veritable Who's Who of Old School tattoo legends like Lyle Tuttle, Mike Malone, Zeke Owen, Bob Roberts, and the scene-stealing Philadelphia Eddie Funk.


Because Sailor Jerry was so suspicious of "outside forces" (i.e. the media), he never gave interviews, and the only exposure we get to him are still photographs and a rare recording of his voice from a radio program.


I found the film doubly interesting because Sailor Jerry was based in Hawai'i, my home state, and I really had an understanding of the Hotel Street area of downtown Honolulu where the tattoo shops were located, and I remember how seedy that part of town was, even as late as 1984. I also loved the one artist speaking pidgin, "Eh brah, wheah da five dollah poke stay?" This, of course, translates to, "Excuse me, where can I go for a five-dollar tattoo?"


The film illustrates the man for who he was, warts-and-all. He was a political conservative who thought Nixon was too liberal. He exhibited what today would be considered racism, but back in the Fifties, Sixties, and Seventies was considered a typical prejudice toward Asians that was molded by experiencing World War II in the Pacific. Yet, through this all shone his artistry and his commitment to the craft of tattooing. The fact that he has been dead for 37 years certainly allows one to focus more on his contributions as an artist, and less on what many would call his shortcomings.


After the film, Erich Weiss did a brief Q and A, with the audience. He seemed to channel a bit of Sailor Jerry, as he continued with his polite rant against people who want to talk about the stories behind their tattoos (sounds like he would not be a Tattoosday reader!). He railed against "tattoo snobbery"  and said he "loves the fact that my tattoos are so shitty". 


What Weiss was saying is that tattoos are art and the personal aspects should be just that, personal. He cut his teeth with this film dealing with old school tattoo artists, many who have seen their art form go from an exclusive club to a worldwide fad. About Sailor Jerry, Weiss said, "I think he would have hated what tattooing has become in our society," referring to the tattoo-reality shows and the trendiness of the art form.


The irony of the event being co-sponsored by Sailor Jerry Rum was not lost on me. I could almost see Norman Collins looking down from heaven (or up from hell) and shaking his head at the spectacle.

Speaking of rum, there were free drinks after the event and an after-party in the building courtyard. I had a cup of rum and ginger and looked at some of the beautiful flash that was being displayed in huge frames. My favorite was this one:

The whole experience was quite enjoyable, but the star of the show was Sailor Jerry. I recommend the movie to anyone interested in the art of American tattoo, and encourage people to check out Rooftop Films and support this amazing program.

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Colin's Left Leg is Traditionally Flash-y

I spotted Colin one afternoon while I was waiting for another tattooed individual to get off of her cell phone.

(Not only have I come up with individual terms for things that are associated with inkblogging, but I follow a code, as well. One of its tenets is to never bother someone talking on a cell phone.)

Colin ambled by and I bounded after him, stopping him and asking about his tattoos.

His left leg is covered with traditional flash, from swallows and bombs, roses, death's head moths,


and a pin-up girl, done in the Sailor Jerry style.


He explained that the sleeved left leg is a result of being "overzealous and excited" about tattoos.
Usually I try to talk about one or two pieces, but because most of his work is just flash, I captured most of his calf.

No fascinating stories to tell, just tattoos.

Thanks to Colin for sharing his ink with us here on Tattoosday!

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Izzy's Ink: A Tatt-alog, Part 1

On occasion here on Tattoosday, we go a little ink-wild. Someone I meet will show me piece after piece of great body art, and I will snap away and scribble notes as quickly as I can.

And when I share a half dozen or more tattoos from one person, in one post, I call it a tatt-alog.

I was heading home later than normal, having attended a New York City open house on applying to public high schools when, after one stop on the R train, a few people boarded at Pacific Street.

I noticed the woman first, and a bicep covered with flowers, and then I nudged Melanie (my lovely wife) and drew her attention to the back of a man's calf:


So I had no intention of letting that piece exit the train un-documented by yours truly, I quickly got up and introduced myself, but the woman knew who I was, I think she said "It's the Tattoosday Guy!"

She, of the flowered bicep, was Lauren, whose Mastodon tattoo was featured here back in June, and her boyfriend Izzy had a ton of ink (approximately 16 pieces). What follows are 5 of the more noteworthy tattoos. For the sake of brevity, I have a few more saved for a later date.

The first piece Izzy talked about was this Sailor Jerry-inspired monkey. Legend has it that the original Sailor Jerry had a pet chimp upon which he tattooed the letters "A L" on its left buttock and "H A" on its right. He then trained the chimp to bend over and look at someone through its knees. The resulting message "A L o H A" was visible thanks to the extra letter provided by the monkey's nether orifice. Sailor Jerry designed flash to commemorate the trick:


Izzy's homage to the monkey replaces ALoHA with BROoKLYN:


This was tattooed by Josh Everett who, Izzy explained, quit tattooing to run the family business.

Everett was co-owner of the now-defunct Macdougal Street Tattoo Company, but it's worth checking out this article here from The New York Times archives, in which he is interviewed about giving free tattoos to 9/11 rescue workers.

Everett was also responsible for the incredible Jimi Hendrix tattoo on the back of his right leg:


Definitely worth a second look.

Remember, we're talking and the camera is flashing on the R train, so we certainly were drawing some stares. Izzy moved on to this intriguing tattoo:


"Ever hear of a band called Pantera?" he asked.

Melanie laughed, the tattoo made sense, I knew what the crux of it was immediately - Izzy had the autograph of Pantera guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell forever inked on his flesh. Sadly, for those who don't know, in 2004, Dime was murdered on stage in by a crazed fan.

Above Dimebag's signature is the logo CBH CFH from their debut album Cowboys from Hell and below it is a guitar drawn by the legendary musician.

Izzy met Dime about 11 years ago, outside of the building where Howard Stern was broadcasting his radio show. Dime drew it all on with a Sharpie and an artist named Eric tattooed it in the back of Bleecker Bob's Records.

Moving to his left arm, Izzy shared this design:


Although not immediately apparent, this tattoo is also an autograph-turned-tattoo. This was drawn on Izzy's arm by Slash, former Guns N' Roses guitarist, backstage at a Velvet Revolver concert.

As a guitarist in a rock band (God's Green Earth), I can understand why Izzy might want the autographs of two of the most influential rock guitarists from the last twenty-five years permanently inked on his being.

Since meeting Izzy, I also have met a guy in our neighborhood with Paul Stanley's autograph inked on his calf. See here for previous examples of "signed tattoos" appearing on Tattoosday.

Further up his left arm is this amazing belly dancer tattooed by Joshua Lord at East Side Ink:


Izzy and Lauren rode with us all the way to the end of the R line, definitely winning the honor of being the subject with whom I have spent the most amount of time (about 30 minutes).

I am eternally grateful to Izzy for sharing his work with us here on Tattoosday and for doing so with such genuine excitement.

Be sure to check out his band at their MySpace page here.

And stay tuned for some additional shots of Izzy's Ink!

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