Joseph Mugnaini: Ray Bradbury's illustrator, friend

The Halloween Tree is one of my favorite stories and always makes me nostalgic for that time of year. The story is great and gothic but still, very much for kids. Joseph Mugnaini was once again called upon by Bradbury to illustrate the story and he did a fantastic job. His illustrations, besides the original cover, were scattered throughout the book. I believe there were nine or ten of them. Enjoy.



"As an author, illustrator and teacher, he inspired hundreds of Southern California artists. In addition to writing four arts instruction books, he received many awards for paintings, graphics and book illustrations. Best known for his work with science fiction writer Ray Bradbury, he earned an Academy Award nomination and the Golden Eagle Award for his paintings for the film Icarus, a Bradbury collaboration, He was also the primary illustrator for many of Bradbury’s books. His paintings and illustrations are held in the collections of the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institute, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art." -from Otis:College of Art and Design(famous alumni)

Joseph Anthony Mugnaini passed away January 23, 1992.

Theda Bara: actress, first sex symbol of film?

Theda Bara (born Theodosia Burr Goodman) (July 29, 1885 – April 13, 1955), was an American silent film actress. Bara was one of the most popular screen actresses of her era, and was one of cinema's earliest sex symbols. Her femme fatale roles earned her the nickname "The Vamp" (short for vampire). The term "vamp" soon became a popular slang term for a sexually predatory woman. Bara, along with Broadway turned film actress Valeska Suratt, and the French film actress Musidora, popularized the vamp persona in the early years of silent film and was soon imitated by rival actresses such as Louise Glaum, Nita Naldi and Pola Negri.




Theda & Aleister Crowley would have made a nice pair...

Le néophyte, one of my favorites.

Le néophyte. (The Neophyte). c. 1877. Etching. Béraldi 55. 23 1/2 x 28 3/8 (sheet 26 1/2 x 33). Printed on cream chine collé mounted onto a heavy white wove paper support sheet. Unsigned.


"The central figure is the young monk, Frère Angel, from George Sand's novel, Spiridion first published in 1838. Doré made a lithograph of the figure in 1855, and subsequently executed 2 oil paintings. In 1875 he did another lithograph of the subject. The etching above went through several trial plates."

"Gustave Doré was a celebrated 19th-century French illustrator. He displayed artistic talent from the age of five, and at fourteen, published his first album, Les Travaux d’Hercules. He debuted at the Salon in 1847 with two drawings, and was hired by Charles Philipon to produce caricatures for the Journal pour Rire. Already well-known by the age of sixteen, he continued his high school studies at the Lycée Charlemagne, copied paintings at the Louvre, and studied prints at the Bibliothèque Nationale. In the Salon of 1864, he exhibited paintings as well as religious sculptures, and also began to submit cartoons to publications such as the Journal pour tous, Cariacature, and the Le Charivari. In all he produced some total 10,000 lithographic illustrations. At the age of 23, Doré turned from print journalism to making wood engravings for classic texts, and would illustrate some twenty editions between 1852 and 1883. He had a gift for dramatizing his subjects--a talent that was complemented by his incredibly vivid imagination and speedy execution."

Allinson Gallery Inc.

The Meditation Room

Love the eerie feeling of these. As far as I know their both examples of French lodge meditation rooms, a hundred years ago...

"The 'meditation room' where a candidate for freemasonry is left alone before being conducted to the 'Lodge' in order to be initiated into the first degree. Just before he 'recieves the light' the candidate, who is regarded of being still 'profane' must draw up his philosophical and moral testament - language on the skeleton's apron is French"

*both pictures and quote from www.bilderberg.com

The Fraternal World

Fraternities. They get a bad reputation. This can likely be attributed to members ignoring the founding principles set forth in their rituals. Each fraternity ritual is created to serve several functions. The teachings of it should mirror the morals and character of the founding fathers and the ideals they wished future members to exemplify. Ritual puts this into action. Ritual also creates a connection that spans time as all members go through the same initiation.

The fun part is the esoteric nature of these ceremonies.
The revealing of the fraternities "secrets". Among these secrets are entrance passwords, secret mottoes, a grip(secret handshake) and explanations of the fraternities true name, symbology and purpose.

If the ritual is good it can be life changing and even a deeply spiritual experience. My initiation left me with a feeling of purpose and helped teach me to be a better man. I've collected some illustrations of Greek Fraternity symbolism from early University of Maine yearbooks. The artwork is fantastic, and truly macabre. Most of these were steel engravings. Enjoy.


What's with all the death imagery?
Well... to be reborn(a brother, or anything for that matter) first you must die.
Also, symbols of death illustrate the seriousness of admittance into the organization and that revealing secrets is often "punishable by death". The imagery also reminds the initiate that life is short and worth living to the fullest.