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Hey fools, little contribution here from the good Mr. Mike Rubendall, interview from about a year ago, same time as the ol' Grez interview. Great dude, great Q+A, read it or die. All the best...

Just wanted to let everyone here know that Grime Part 2 is now up! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRBYVdYp9xo watch here: Grime Part 2 - Tattoo Age | VBS.TV

This is a picture of my friends dad from the early 70's showing off his mustache and Pinky Yun Tattoo. He also had some Lyle Tuttle tattoos.

Another option is Dominic Vasquez at Flying Panther I've seen this cat rock out some good stuff.

^^ hahaha I was looking at that photo and going through the list Juggalo Tattoo - check WWE Shirt - Check "Ass Kickin' Home Grown" Shirt - Check Pregnant Missus with Possible meth sores - check And then i realised this photo needed a mullet to be complete. At first i was saddened by the no mullet situation... and then I looked in the right corner behind the prime candidate for mother of the year and behind the stripy shirt guy - win.

These two where on a guy who came in the shop who was pretty wasted. He said he got the dagger in Lake Geneva at Greg May's first spot "you know by the train tracks before he moved upstairs" that had to be in the late 60s, he said it like it was common knowledge.. not sure about the Playboy bunny

So heres 3 tattoos by Ralph Johnstone done at what i figured was the 400 S State Street shop that he and Tatts worked until they changed the law to 21 in 1963 and everyone closed shop.. This guy said he was pretty young when he got tattooed by Johnstone but said he was always very nice to him despite the super scary guys that hung out there. He said Johnstone introduced him to some mob guys that used to hang out in the shop when he was there claiming that one of them was Capones brother.

That made me smile.

It's not just border towns, it is everywhere that a "good drawer" with a 50 dollar kit get rent shop space. Just had ANOTHER one open a block and half up main st. from me, tattoos and tattoo supplies and piercing and these people are still working at WalMart, no kiddin, their website shows they've been tattooing for 10 years, etc., on THE DAY they received their business permit I got a little turd who popped in and asked "What do ya think of the new tattoo shop that just opened downtown?", WOW! probably an hour after they got the permit the trash talk begins, ha! Jake has the answer, just keep the old nose to the grindstone and keep puttin smiles on peoples faces and your work will shine out, I have lost count of all the shops that have come and gone in the last 32 years tattooing but like it has been said here before, "Anyone can sell snake oil on a Sunday" no matter how small a town can be. This is history repeating itself and the only worry I have is what they will do that will be labeled to us, the one shop around the corner that came and went was so well known for it being a "front" that people would come in and naturally figure that we sold drugs too. The worst "feeling" that I have is that I came out of the old rep when I started and beat down the stereotypes and over came all of that and now I have tattooed long enough to see the match lit that will burn us. It's so closely related to the "Harley Rider"/"Biker" parallel, Harley wanted nothing to do with the "Biker" image until they figured out how to shrink wrap it and market it into billions of profit and now the guy lookin like an Alaman Bos. band member that paid their dues in the biker subculture gets laughed at by the checkbook biker. But make no mistake that tattooing will always carry on and survive.

I'm not a sir.

This was a great read Gouge! Thanks for sharing. Can't wait to get to his new shop soon.

Friday September 9th - DOWN @ the SF Regency Ballroom 25 Bucks. and... November 11th - GWAR W/ Ghoul, Everytime I Die(Uhhggg really?) @ the Regency Ballroom SF.

You can also check out Tyson & Chris@ ? Passage Tattoo ? 416-929-7330 Toronto Ontario Canada Chris Wellard Tattoo Stuart Archibald Tattoo Scott@ Sugar Shack Tattoo

This is a map of every pizza place in Manhattan

This nice nice little scorpion. Tattooed by Frank Carter, who is guesting at Frith Street ATM. Quite an awkward place to tattoo (and photograph) as it wraps around the wrist.

I keep forgetting to ask what magazine this fashion shoot was in. "fine, funky tradition of needle-and-skin trade" hahaha

Man I've been wanting to make it out to your shop to get tattooed by Uzi, his shit is off the hook.

I'm just too goddamned handsome to fuck it up with a face tattoo!