drewprops.com Bad boy Atlanta designer with so much time on his hands that he wipes it on his pants.

Several months ago my friend Barbara asked me to design a T-shirt for her husband (my former propmaster) Dwight and his prop crew, busy on the set of the remake of that Bacon-infused 80s dance hit “Footloose”. I confessed to Barbara that, while I knew it involved dancing and people wearing Chuck Taylors, I’ve never actually seen the movie. I looked at stills and screen captures from the original movie and I dropped by set of the remake a few times. Despite having “done my homework”, inspiration didn’t strike until the film was very nearly wrapped and let’s face it, the design you see here is pretty simple: just the word “Footloose” spelled out by one particularly long shoe string attached to a classic Chuck Taylor sneaker. As long as the movie has been around I can’t help but think some artist has done this same thing at some point in the past, but it was new to me! Since I’d had recently used discharge ink for another shirt design with great results that’s what we decided to do with the Footloose Prop Department shirts. I understand folks on the crew liked the design. What do you think?

Update: there were only 20 of these shirts made, so they’re super rare!

I’d like to introduce you to a new product that I’ve only just recently invented called the “Love Ladder” – the newest erotic aid for loveplay since the…. um, well, I don’t know. But it’s a darned cracking sexy looking device, don’t you think? The box says that it’s fun for him and her! One size fits all! It’s hypoallergenic!! How can ladies resist? It’s runged for her pleasure for gosh sakes!!! Rrrrowwwrrr!!

“How do you get one of these things!!” you’re probably asking!!

Well, see, that’s where it gets kind of complicated.

Why don’t I tell you how I invented the Love Ladder first….. Continue Reading

Updated Sept 5th, 2010 at 7:02pm – thanks to all of you who have contributed to the discussion!

It’s the Sunday morning of Dragon*Con 2010 and I’m spending my morning recuperating from having walked 5 or 6 miles around the East Coast’s fan-driven answer to Comic-Con yesterday. I woke up thinking about how much my beloved nerdfest has changed over the past five years and thought that I’d jot down some notes for later discussions with my friends who are also attending this year.

Truth is, I suppose the old girl has been changing ever since I first started going in the late 1980s, but lately it’s becoming hard to see what first made me fall in love with Dragon*Con. During a stopover at Trader Vic’s I participated in an impromptu panel called “Dragon*Con Might Just Suck” regarding how this year’s convention has been particularly lackluster. My fellow panelists Carl, Joseph and Timmy made some very good points and I’m distilling that conversation into the following five points:

• Invasion by Non-Fans
• Economy & Events
• Social Networks
• Scale
• Age

Before I elaborate on what the ‘con has become, let me Continue Reading

I’ve recently joined the ranks of people brought to the crossroads of a life decision after being exposed to the squirm-inducing cable television program Hoarders. While grubbing around for my model-making tools I ran across a giant metal spider; the remnant of a plot by my friend Alice to Continue Reading

(Please Tweet this if you get a chance) Last night I went to see the new hit comedy horror film “Zombieland” with a bunch of my friends who were on the crew and I must confess right up front that I’m extremely jealous that I didn’t work on this show; what it lacks in plot it makes up for with style, and it’s certainly going to look great on their resumes. I am, however, disappointed about one thing this film left out:

Katrina Rice didn’t get a screen credit.

Now, those of you outside the film industry need to realize that this is something Continue Reading

I made the accompanying USA Today style illustration to show the location of my scars without grossing anyone out, and to tell the story of how I decided to let a surgeon and his robot use tiny little surgical tools inside of my body.

In the fall of 2008 I went to my new primary care doctor for a physical. My PSA levels were high so we ran a round of antibiotics to see if it was an infection of some sort. After two weeks we re-tested and the levels were just as high so I went to see a urologist, who suggested that everything pointed toward the need for a biopsy. I opted to wait until after the holidays.

On January 27th of 2009 I went into the hospital for a surgical biopsy. Three days later the doctor was on the phone telling me that I had prostate cancer. Somehow I knew that I was going to get that call, but it still shocked me to my core. On the way home that night I called an old friend to tell him the news, still trying to make sense of it myself. Later, I wrote a letter to a friend living out of state as I didn’t want to Continue Reading

I’m a huge Tongo Hiti nerd and can’t wait to stop typing this entry and drive down to the Atlanta Trader Vic’s to see them perform live and in person…. the video posted here is from last Thursday night and it’s *amazing*….. I’ve personally watched this thing 40 times and I’m sure I’ll watch it 40 more…. totally mesmerizing…. your journey begins with the powerful beauty of Celine Dion and ends in dark majesty. Sit back and enjoy Tongo Hiti at the Atlanta Trader Vic’s as they weave the most magical performance ever seen on YouTube at this particular time of the day (or night)….

Last Thursday I met up with some people at Trader Vic’s for Mai Tai Thursday and a dosh of the ultra-hawaiian courtesy of Tongo Hiti. This time around I shot a bunch of great videos, including this mellow island version of Joe Jackson’s hit “Steppin’ Out”. Enjoy!