The Veeptopus Book: NOW ON SALE - Supplies Very Limited

SOLD OUT!

Update: Wow! I sold out in less than 24 hours. Thank you everyone! 

Anyone who's been reading this blog knows that I've been trying to get my Veeptopus series into book form for a while. While drawing these watercolor/ pen & ink cephalopod-bedecked portraits over and over and over again, I learned something about each and everyone of these vice presidents. Little stories that were not only weird and wonderful but also revealing about both the character of the man (and, to date, they are all men) and the time he lived. I wanted to share all that with you. 

So I painstakingly researched biographical facts about every VP and then I had those facts vetted by noted scholar on the Vice Presidency Aaron Mannes. He not only wrote an introduction to this book but also came up with a great reading list on the Vice Presidency too. 

And then I managed to get Joan Lau to design the book. She's an amazing art director who did all the graphics for the movie (500) Days of Summer, the opening title for the ABC series A to Z and she even had a hand in the opening titles for Mad Men. She's also my wife, so that helps. 

Anyway, I'm really excited about how this book looks and, if you are a fan of strange art, odd historical facts, cephalopods and/or Joe Biden, then I think you'll like this book too.

So here's the thing: I only printed 20 of these books. 

Why did I only print 20 of these beautiful tomes? Well, to be honest, I originally only wanted to print 5. I am actively talking with publishers to get this book out to a wider audience and I wanted to print a few up as a proof of concept, a tangible version of my book proposal. 

But as it turns out, it's about as cheap to print 5 books as it is 20. 

So I decided to sell a portion of this very limited run. Each copy is signed and numbered. 

So if you've been on the fence debating whether you should get a Gerald Ford print or a Schuyler Colfax one, you no longer have to choose. 

Get your copy of the Veeptopus book here.

The True Story of President William Taft's Badger Riding Adventure

People frequently ask me where do I get my ideas for my pictures. Sometimes they come to me from a dream. Other times, they come from a 48-hour tequila binge. But most often than not, they come from history itself. Truth is after all, stranger than fiction. Case in point, the above picture of President William Taft riding a badger was inspired by a real-life evident when William Taft rode a badger. 

The place was Utica, New York. The time was May of 1910. Taft, our nation's heaviest president sat aside a rare giant badger and rode the beast through that city's largest thoroughfare during a local parade. It was an awesome sight and the raucous crowd felt silent when the POTUS passed. Tragedy struck hours later, long after the president boarded a train for Poughkeepsie, when the badger grew enraged and savaged two clowns and a majorette. Badger riding, a brief fad in the 1910s, was deemed cruel and dangerous. In 1972, the last of the Giant Eastern Badgers died and the species was declared extinct. 

Proof of Veeptopus's Growing International Reach

Skynda, fynda! Bilder med vicepresidenter som har bläckfiskar på huvudet. https://t.co/4OjroHbuLS #etsy

— Technicolor (@Techniskeptic) May 12, 2015

So this is a first. Veeptopus got a shout out in Swedish. Thanks Techniskeptic.

Happy Birthday to Charles W. Fairbanks - A Public Speaker Who Can Drive You into Despair

Happy birthday to Charles W. Fairbanks. He was a dull, uninspiring politician whose naked ambition for the White House was the source of jokes among the press. The Nation, one of many periodicals that regularly ridiculed Fairbanks, quipped, “No public speaker can more quickly drive an audience to despair."  He is the namesake for Fairbanks, Alaska, however, so at least he has that.

The Veeptopus Book - Hot off the Presses

So I've been a little quiet on this site the past couple of weeks because I've been focusing my energy on getting a Veeptopus book off the ground. That's right, all 47 veeps in one handy volume. Not only does it have biographical info on each veep but it also has an introduction and a  bibliography by Aaron Mannes, vice presidential historian extraordinaire.  And on top of that, the book was designed by Joan Lau, an amazing art director who designed all the graphics for the movie (500) Days of Summer and had hand in designing the opening titles for Mad Men. She's also my wife, so that helps. All the way around, this is a handsome book and I'm hoping that it will impress publishers everywhere. Stay tuned. Hopefully this tome will be available soon at a place near you.

Happy Birthday to William R. King

Happy Birthday to William R. King, America's shortest service, most obscure vice president. He was vice president only six weeks before dying of tuberculosis. He was so ill that he took the oath of office in Cuba, where he was recuperating. 

He was also the only bachelor veep in American history.  King was reportedly inseparable from James Buchanan, who would become American’s only bachelor president. Make of that what you will. 

Happy Birthday Al Gore!

Happy Birthday to Al Gore. He won a Grammy, an Oscar and a Nobel Peace Prize. He also won the popular vote in the 2000 Presidential Election, but he didn’t actually win the presidency. Long story. 

Veeptopus is Now on Pinterest

Follow Jonathan's board Veeptopus on Etsy on Pinterest.

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New Series: Supreme Court Justices in a Post Apocalyptic America - Chief Justice

Chief Chief Justice dispenses brutal Old Testament justice. 

New Series: Supreme Court Justices in a Post Apocalyptic America

The beginnings of my latest series, Supreme Court Justices struggle to survive in the savagery and chaos of a post-apocalyptic society.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with a robot hand. Don't ask how she got the robot hand. It's a sensitive subject. And you don't want to get her angry.

She wanders the broken wreckage of America on her trusty steed, a dire pig bear named, for reasons only known to our laconic hero, as Spiro. 

The Badger Suit/William Taft Suit Thing Gets Weirder

So I did Taft in a badger suit and then a badger in a William Taft suit. So to follow up on that I did this - William Taft in a William Taft suit wearing a badger mask. And then below, I did the next obvious thing: a badger in a badger suit wearing a Taft mask. What's the next logical step? I'm all ears, guys.

A Badger in a President William Taft Suit: New Print on Etsy

This is just going to get sillier and sillier. You can get the print here.

President William Taft in a Badger Suit: New Print Now Up on Etsy

A continuation of my increasingly silly series involving President William Taft and a badger. No, I don't really understand it either. Here, Taft is taking a load off of his feet while in a badger suit. Is he taking a break from some bizarre Eyes Wide Shut-style festivity? A respite from an underground furry convention? You be the judge. And, if you're interested, you can get a print of this here.

Veeptopus on Huffington Post!

So the talented Ian Spanier came by the Veeptopus International headquarters a couple weeks ago. He took some pictures, shot some video and asked a bunch of questions that I managed to bumble my way through. Here is the final result. 

Veeptopus Art Show!

I am really stoked about this. It will be the first time all the portraits (the originals, not the prints) will be shown in one place. Stop by and say hi. And if you can make it March 1, the pictures will be up until mid-May or so. 

Teddy Roosevelt Rode a Moose, Or Did He?

No, actually. The picture is a fake from 1915. It's still pretty cool though.

T/H Ted Mills

Veeptopus Presidents Day Sale - Save 20%

Today is Presidents Day.  So while you’re thinking about the sage wisdom and great sacrifice of some of our greatest Commanders-in-Chief, perhaps you could also spare a thought for some of our more forgotten vice presidents, men (and yes, they were all men) who came close to the mantle of power but who would remain forever obscure. Men like William R. King.

He died a mere six weeks into his term from Tuberculosis. He was so sick that he couldn’t make it to Washington for the inauguration. Instead, he was sworn in in Cuba, where he was convalescing.

Men like Henry Wilson, who while serving as Ulysses S. Grant’s veep, suffered a fatal stroke while in a bathtub in the basement of the Capitol. Yes, there used to be bathtubs in the Capitol.

And men like William A. Wheeler, who was so colorless and taciturn that his own running mate, Rutherford B. Hayes, had no idea who he was until he was placed on the presidential ticket.

In honor of these obscure leaders, these historical bronze metal winners, I am throwing the first ever Veeptopus sale.

Type in coupon code, VEEPSPRING2015 and get 20% off any item in the store. Act now because this sale ends February 18.

Aaron Burr - The First Vice President to Shoot Someone

Today is Aaron Burr's birthday. He might have been the third vice president in American history but he was the first VP shoot someone. 

Below is hands down the coolest, most hard-boiled cinematic retelling of the infamous Burr-Hamilton duel. Listening to Burr's self-pitying, self-aggrandizing narration, written by filmmaker Dana O'Keefe, he sounds like a character out of a Scorsese movie. 

And, of course, you want to commemorate Burr's birthday, you can buy a print here.

Veeptopus is on Boing Boing!

So apparently Boing Boing blogged about Veeptopus yesterday but I did notice until today. Very, very pleased with this.

74 Years Ago Today, Dick Cheney Came Into This World

74 years ago today in Lincoln, Nebraska, the moon hung heavy in the starless night sky as an unnatural hush fell on the prairie. Dick Cheney was born. Commemorate the event in any way you deem appropriate - cake, whiskey or the blood of puppies.