I Don’t Know What’s Real Anymore – Two B’s And A Good Old Rant
Whats real anymore? mmm is that a Model 99?
I am in a state of tortured hell. And yes, I know, it’s mostly on me. But I’m obsessed with bringing back the original feeling. Not just how it appeared, but how it felt. That’s the torture. The difference between is measured in emotion, which is subjective.
Its real.
Yesterday Rabbit went on a bit of a rant, and I loved it. He put words to what’s been driving me crazy. Here it is:
“Rabbit loves this rabbit hole! Especially since I’ve spent my entire career in advertising and design.
But allow me to go off on another tangent: the names on our transoms. I see too many perfectly restored boats that lose all historical accuracy when it comes to the name on the back. The font, the scale (usually way too big), the flourishes—they don’t match. The boat is 1939 and the transom is 2026.
It’s easy to stay accurate. Just look at historical photos of your boat and match the fonts, scale, and style. And if you’ve invested real money in the restoration, invest a little more in real gold leaf, aluminum leaf, and paint. Thankfully, a few craftsmen who can still do that work are still out there.”
Thank you, Rabbit, for the clarity. This is what great creative directors do: they cut through the fog when there are too many choices. As the old joke goes:
How many art directors does it take to change a light bulb?
I don’t know—show me a hundred light bulbs and I’ll tell you.
Over the top.
The WEE DON look. A simple design.
Or is it, Smaller. Yes,. Too skinny? Small details can effect the look. Still working on that.
AND! The Metal Letter from the factory look. Don’t laugh, this makes a crap load of sense, and feels right. It’s the lack of drama and utilitarian idea that hits home. You can see the OG owner needing a name and sick of the varnish over the name part. As clumsy as it is, it’s like the satin finish. Restraint, and not perfect to todays design standards.
You got to admit, This is how we could have found it in a barn. Simple and picks up the copper bronze paint, and the size helps the proportion of the boat.
The only real way to capture feel is to wait. To try things. To see what hits you in the gut. We can slick everything up now. With AI, we can even fake history. Like the statue of Liberty in las Vegas. It’s not the statue of Liberty. It’s a big xerox.
Image -Trip Advisor, wait is that also the Eiffel Tower?
But our interpretations are always shaped by the moment we’re in. Everything is an influence. In the 70’s all the films, like THE STING, look like a 1970’s version of the 1920’s.
THAT FONT! AHHHHHHHHHHHH! It’s a visual record scratch
Color and texture matter. So does restraint, lots of it. You have to keep pulling things away until nothing false remains. Every tiny detail is either a truth… or a small lie.
The project is only finished when the orchestra of those details finally plays in harmony.
Like this Meme out there of what Gillian’s Island would look like today. AHHHHHHHH
Ginger’s big Kardashian ass cracks me up! CRACK? Get it? UGH, Sorry Rabbit.
And yes, thats Wayne Bombs Whaler that he restored and its wonderful. Looks brand new. We have some before pics. It had been sitting outside for years!
The metal B really does look & feel right.
The Kardashian butt on Ginger is a riot, but Maryann is still looking fine in her, not quite, Daisy Dukes.
Maryann was always the real hot one. She is the metal Letter VS the fancy type.
What tramp stamp would Maryann have had? Skipper should have had a big ass anchor on his forearm. This one would have been on Gilligan.
The cast of Gilligans Island. Had too much class to be all tattooed up like a bunch of modern day barmaids
I don’t know what your hull card says, but “Chris Craft” was originally on my transom which is why I left Chris’Craft on it. What about putting this on your transom and a matching B font under it
They dressed up back in the day, suit coat, starched collar, tie, and fedora. That’s a great black and white.
Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder!
yes it is
I think the brass “B” in a little bit larger size would be good if not perfect. No need for Noel Weber inspiration on this every man’s boat. You’ve transformed it back to its original purpose.
OK – I understand the premise of “period correct font” but really – where are we going with this? Are any of our boats now exactly as they came from the factory? According to the hull card for my boat back in 1941 it came from the factory with ” Miss Patt” on the sides and stern but how long did Miss Patt actually own the boat? Also, the boat now has an Iva-Lite but how do I know Miss Patt didn’t have the dealer install it when she took delivery?
Being that Miss Patt had the boat personalized when she became the owner, I’m reasonably sure that 84 years later she won’t mind me making my own personal changes to the boat. I’m all for originality but there also needs to be some practicality to all this. If it’s your boat and you want to do something different to it after all these years them go for it!
Hull Card
I am so confused…best Go Boating! John in balmy Va
… and all these years I thought this was supposed to be a fun, relaxing hobby.
I like the metal. And I always liked Mary Ann better. That’s why I married one.
Couldn’t pass this opportunity up!
I would like to see this discussion in 83 years replacing Chris Craft with Whaler.
A while back, I was trying to explain to my wife how difficult it was when, at the age of 13, I was trying to figure out whether it was going to be Ginger or Mary Ann for me. Ginger or Mary Ann. Hmm. A once a week logic problem. My wife looked at me and asked “Why not both?” WHAT? It never occurred to me that was an option.. BOTH? Are some of us born monogamous? It still bugs me to this day.
Pictures can be timeless. WW II bombers had beautiful “nose art”. Perhaps our boats need “tail art”? With the proper image, the font just fades into the background. I digress.
Love the modern Gilligan’s Island meme.
I just now figured out Thurston and Lovey Howell on the upper right. Lovey (Natalie Schafer) and Sherwood Schwartz, producer, were the actual millionaires from the show. She invested her least paid actress meager income into Beverly Hills real estate and Schwartz got his from decades of reruns. Lovey left her estate of millions to her poodle and it rolled over to Motion Picture Guild. I know way too much about nothing, but I grew up in the Dobie Gillis, Maynard G. Krebs era.
I like my “B” on my 1948 20′ CC Custom. “BEAUTIFUL DAY” font came from my sign painter lady’s head. Not so pointy like WEE DON.
I purchased my Skiff Craft, and it had NIMROD in big beautiful letters on the transom. My wife said “you’re going to change the name aren’t you?” I told her that I’ve heard that changing the name of a boat is unlucky and besides, the name fits me perfectly. I’ve had the boat 30 years and she is still the NIMROD.
Did a transom refinish and also had to explain to my wife that it is bad luck to Change a boats name. My friend the sign painter recreated the name that had been on for many years. She wasn’t thrilled about it but she got over it.
My favorite part of today is how Mary Ann and Ginger hijacked it all. I LOVE the comments
Late to this chat due to NZ time. The small metal 3-D ‘B’ is perfection. As another Creative Director on this there is no doubt in my mind at all that this is the best. Simple, humble, looks like no one even thought about it, utilitarian. It’s so utterly correct. Done. Let’s go to lunch.
The last “B” in yesterday’s post looked the best and not over the top, not basic bland like everything shown today.
No reason someone couldn’t have done that in the 1930s. Just because basic block letters was common doesn’t mean you can’t have a nicely done name.
And if historical accuracy of a name is that important, you better have the right screws used throughout.