How many of you outdoor guys are still around? By the way, this requires a forty footer folks. I know I'm not alone and there may be a few of you that just lurk on occasion but maybe you have a story or two.
CrazyJack
Posted by mike meyer (Member # 542) on :
I did only a few back in 80-81 in da colc-cold vinter here Jack. Are you talkin' Outdoor Billboard Painters? PBR me ASAP!
Posted by jack wills (Member # 521) on :
Yeh Mike, Sometimes when we had a sixty foot board to do we would take the stage out for that piece. What took me back to this topic is... I,m restoring a few sketches of old boards that were done in the 30's and 40's. A business man in Auburn,CA., has a collection of color sketches (around 30) of Foster & Klieser stuff.
CrazyJack
Posted by Mark Yearwood (Member # 2723) on :
Jack, I worked for Western Sign and Outdoor in Clinton, OK from 1987-1995 and painted billboards as well as doing scale drawings.
When I left, there were big flat file drawers full of hand drawn and painted scale "sketches" done by myself and many old ones by Bob Pitzer, the original owner, dating back to the Fifties.
Many of Bob's were done on showcard stock with watercolors. He has since passed on and I wonder if any of those are still there.
I actually miss painting on a large scale sometimes. So many of the bulletins today are printed on the vinyl material...
Another trade that is fading away.
Posted by Glenn S. Harris (Member # 2190) on :
My boss Al Lorio's first job was at LAMAR.
That's how he learned sign painting.
Posted by Jeff Ogden (Member # 3184) on :
I've done a few BB's...my family's business in NJ did one or two a week sometimes, and that's part of what I did starting out, helping my Dad with the rigging, keeping brushes cleaned out and wrapped, filling in letters as he cut them in, holding snap lines, etc. Did water tanks too.
In my later years down here in Fla, I had a spell of about 10 years, where I did quite a few of them. One outfit I worked for had me doing boards for a nude cafe on 1-75. They had almost 40 boards at one time, from the Georgia line to Wildwood. Having to go to the club everytime there was a new layout, to try and discus the job at hand amongst a room full of naked women was hard, I want you to know, very hard work indeed.
I still do a BB once in a while, but for the most part, my outside painting is mostly walls, now. And the fewer ladders the better. I got spoiled painting those 1-75 boards....they gave me a bucket truck to work out of. That would spoil anyone. Posted by Michael Boone (Member # 308) on :
Im a ole schooler bin paintin since 72 but I dont do heights Im so afraid a heights... I dont like bein 6 feets tall still standin.....low!
Posted by Jackie B (Member # 186) on :
While they are not billboards, my favorites are the old Burma Shave signs. When we held our election for a tax assessment increase for the fire dept., we used the same concept. It was fun coming up with slogans to fit on boards. Traffic got a little slower along our mountain roads - for awhile anyway! We won the election too!
Posted by Don Hulsey (Member # 128) on :
I've never had the opportunity to do a bulletin, but I have done my share of water towers, smokestacks, and grain bins.
I think the highest I have been while working is several water towers at 195 feet. Tallest lettering to date was an intertwined "O" and "G" in a Roman style 22' tall, 65 feet up. Does that count?
Posted by Don Hulsey (Member # 128) on :
Oops
[ November 27, 2003, 08:16 AM: Message edited by: Don Hulsey ]
Posted by Don Hulsey (Member # 128) on :
Well, I tried to delete the extras, but I'm not a forum leader, so I guess I'll just have to apologize for the last two.
[ November 27, 2003, 08:15 AM: Message edited by: Don Hulsey ]
Posted by Rick Sacks (Member # 379) on :
I remember the old timers showing me some absolulutly beautiful scale color paintings they did to sell the boards. I never got any of their paintings, but always wished I had a collection of some. Herb Fisher had many. He started Hollywood Signs. Those depression era boards could be a standard for us to aim at today in areas of slower traffic. There were many that were on the edge of town on on vacant lots in the city that were built a few feet off the groung, with a painted lattice work structure completely framing the board. These were not cheap signs in their day.
Posted by PKing (Member # 337) on :
Still here...but working out of 100'booms Included on this job was Francisco Vargas and Nancie Phillips. Grew up on walls in South Fla. Lots of "swinging" stage work in Savannah Ga. Water towers and BBs all over U.S.A.
Loved it then Love it now
Posted by Kent Smith (Member # 251) on :
Still have my stage, brushes, pots, calluses and brush elbow (like tennis elbow from swinging large cutters) as well as lots of memories.
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