Winkin’

Pam’s Pictorama Post: Like most New Yorkers I awoke to a much cooler day today after several days or grueling and punishing heat. And this fellow was looking up at me on my desk when I got here this morning. (Envision my desk, an old drawing table someone gave me, as a living, roiling, mass of things which occasionally coughs up something from a lower stratum. One morning last week it was freakishly an early family photo of Kim’s. I don’t remember having seen it before and have absolutely no idea how that ended up in the mix.)

I purchased this card at the most recent edition of the postcard sale. You would think that it might be embossed with the very textured, woven look of the background (like the surface of an old suitcase), but it is not. This very sporty cat however, who has a hat, high (detachable?) collar and bow tie all of his day. That chapeau (more or less the same blue as his natty bowtie), is at an especially jaunty angle and sized just right for between his pointed ears.

As cat coloring goes, he is a bit nondescript. His hair is sort of a brown mix but without a distinct stripe like a tabby. He’s got a saucy look with his gaze directed, not at us, but toward someone or something to the viewer’s left. While it isn’t all the way to thuggish, his wink isn’t one of affection and I would say he’s a tough guy. (Cats blink and wink with affection and sometimes of course as they get sleepy – which being cats is much of the time.)

This card was mailed from Rotterdam on April 3, 1917 (I needed Google’s help with that) and addressed in a purpleish ink to Mej. W. H. van Etten, Oudshofstraat, Steenbergen. In the same ink and hand on the left, it appears to say something like, Jac. Pat.

So this uncredited artist could be the Netherlands answer to Louis Wain. He looks like he is up for some trouble – I can see him shooting craps or pulling a minor heist. While Wain’s cats can have that quality there is something always a bit scattered about them and there is usually a sly joke somewhere.

The only identifying mark on the card is a stylized PN and the number 2501-4 on the front. While an internet search shows Postcard News as utilizing these initials, they appear to be a later, American card company.

As a kid I had a remarkable tortie named Winkie. I have probably written about her before although not that I can think of at any great length. She was my first cat soulmate, was extremely smart (arguably too smart for her own good), and had several extra toes on each front paw as well as an extra joint somehow which made her look like she was on her tip toes.

*I’m sorry not to have a photo of Winkie available, but here is Cookie Fussbudget Butler.*

She and my cat Otto have left me with the impression that the girl cats are smarter than the boys, although the fellows are more likely to be very affectionate. This plays out a bit with Cookie and Blackie. However, it must be said that lately Cookie has become assertively in need of attention and leaps onto the bed nightly (dramatically jumping over Kim’s pillowed head and mine), lands next to me and begins loud meowing for pets. She has always been the more vocal, chattier of the two cats and now the vocalizations are long, loud and drawn out conversations and I suppose recriminations. Cookie (aka Cookie Monster), the tuxie of the two, is quite a card.

In the Yard with Cats

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Photo Post: I am heading to New Jersey tomorrow for a few days and this card has me in a pleasant mind of backyard time I hope to enjoy. My roses are in bloom and the gorgeous purple-blue hydrangea, both front yard and back, is starting its ascension into its first flowers of the season. The herbs are well on their way and I understand my grapes have finally come back with a will. Strawberries have already made an appearance and the dahlias are shooting up en force!

I will, of course, be greeted to varying degrees by the resident cats there. Beauregard will claim as much lap time as possible while Milty and Gus will shove in where they can. Stormy and Peaches, my girl cats, are my scaredy cats and although they may (or may not – thinking of you Peaches!) be glad to see me.

*The grapevine has returned with a vengeance I am glad to see. All the garden photos are via my friend Winsome.*

If you pay attention to all things cats on the internet, you know that catios are all the rage and you can purchase them pre-made (think screened tent for your cats) and less expensive, or you can build a more elaborate version. Ideally the cats have free passage from house to safe outdoor harbor in the catio, but there are an increasing number where the expectation is that you will plop them in and take them back out yourself. Of course, I have considered these but I am not carrying my precious pusses outside to put them in a flimsy screened enclosure. No, I would have to be one of those folks who built something solid and give them cat door access to it.

Although I grew up with cats that roamed free in the yard and divided their time in and out of the house as a matter of course, this is no longer the way in the area where I grew up and where we now have a house. At some point, keeping your cat inside, or with a collar for brief outside turns, became the way of things. Cats are chipped now in case they are lost, although something about putting that in her cats always made my mother nervous. Although all these cats came from living on the streets, none of them has set a paw outside since.

There is something wonderful however about my childhood memories of cats wandering in and out, more or less at will, without thinking about it. They enjoyed it so much and all the better if we were outside with them. As I kid I would sit outside and play with them for hours. I actually haven’t thought about it for years.

Like this photo we might have had a light indoor chair outside, although it would likely be alongside a bunch of lawn chairs. (My father eventually bought heavy outdoor chairs and tables at garage sales, but I was older by then.) If we were outside at least a few of the cats and the dog would be out with us although, maybe someone was sleepy inside too. There were no particular rules. We just never thought about it. Everyone pretty much came in at night unless for some reason they had a mysterious kitty rendezvous and were off on a toot for the evening. Noted but not a cause for alarm.

*The dahlias are showing early promise.*

Looking at these folks and their cats in their backyard in the dabbled sunlight it makes me think about it. The women are in their long dresses of the day but summer versions and the man, seated behind them, is in a suit with a tie. (One could say he is sort of not quite fully participating.) Those summer cottons which while beautiful must have required difficult laundry and endless patient ironing. Hard to see but the woman in white is leaning on a bit of a chicken wire enclosure behind her. When we look closely there are beds of plants, something leafy and green climbing up an arbor to the viewers left and behind them.

It was clearly a bit of an occasion. Girl kitty (my assumption) is wearing a big bow and looks a tad unhappy about it although not in full on revolt. She perches in a timid way on the chair with a cushion. She is a light-colored tabby-ish kitty, orange most likely? The other looks like a tom and he is in a loving if tightly gripped hold for the photo. Look at the stripes on his legs! Those black bands! Both have white faces and front paws. Handsome fellow!

The yard has a high fence around it as far as we can see, although technically not one that would keep an interested (let alone determined) cat in or out. My backyard is also fenced, but given small spaces as entry points near the ground I have found all sorts of animals back there including a fox who got in and admittedly didn’t seem to know how to get out. (I opened the gate and invited him to take his time leaving.) Cats do come by occasionally – that is how Stormy and Gus came to live with mom. Some of you might remember the stray tom I christened Hobo who we fed on and off for several years.

This photo was never sent and nothing was written on the back. On the back there is a very faded company logo for Central Studio, and an address, 103 College Street, Burlington, VT. It is easy to imagine that this was taken in Vermont, a singular photo postcard and the cats were clearly rallied for the photo opp. It is a wonderfully distilled moment from a long ago summer.

Meanwhile, on my way to the Jersey shore so a Jersey summer specific card to come tomorrow!

Dr. Thomas’ Electric Oil

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: For those of you who have actually entered the doors of Deitch Studio, aka the home of Pictorama, you know that things are squirreled away in everything from flat files, cabinets and bookcases, portfolios which bulge and let’s not get started about under the bed storage! (We went searching for something last week which required taking the mattress of the bed.)

Kim was in the flat files (on the same day) when this surfaced. I have no real memory of where I purchased it although I vaguely think it might have been in France or England. Since this is an American company, I may be wrong although I don’t find many items matted this way for sale in the venues I frequent here. I keep a weather eye for early advertising and some other Victorian advertising posts can be read here and here.

*Evidently the antique bottles are highly prized.*

It is a sort of great but mystifying image. A small, pert cat (it’s a cat, right?), whose bowler hat has presumably been knocked aside by this enormous, angry windbag of a toothless kitty, waves an overdue Rats Bill at him. He says, Come settle up Mr. Howler. His yellow receipt book is on the ground next to him and his shadow leads us down the page. Mr. Howler looks like a giant wrestler, looming over the tiny bill collector. His gaping maw is open to display a mere two teeth! He’s a bit cross-eyed and his ears are flat. His mouth is all red tongue and his fur is a bit frowzy. Above him it simply says, What!

Somehow this is all an advertisement for a patented medicine, Dr. Thomas’ Eclectric Oil. Perhaps the buyer whose eye was caught by this image was one who should have been beware! Our friends over on the internet give an overview of the rather shady history of the product. A sort of cure-all, it was sold all over Canada and the United States, which originated in the 1850’s and managed to stick around until the mid-20th century. (Is that really possible? 1940’s?) Although created initially by a doctor it, despite many promises, evidently had no healing ability.

In fact, it sounds a bit dangerous. Almost half was turpentine and the remaining half was made up of mostly camphor and pine tar or oil of thyme. Evidently the earliest version of the formula did contain some narcotics (opium!) but also hemlock and chloroform. Among the ailments it was marketed to resolve were: coughs, colds, lameness, rheumatism, tooth and earaches, cuts, burns, frostbite and even deafness after only two days of use!

*Not in the Pictoram.com collection unfortunately.*

While I could not find a through line of consistency in their advertising the methodology seemed to be just to get your attention as it does here. The mash-up made-up word Eclectric refers both to electric (a buzz word of the 19th century) and eclectic while saving themselves from any technical misrepresentations. (It is a bit unclear to me if it was originally Electric and was changed at a later date or not. I think yes.) Cats seem to be something of a theme but not a particular cat again and again.

This item, now surfaced here, seems to rate hanging up somewhere. I think maybe my office where for some reason I haven’t hung anything up. For now however, enjoy this advertising tidbit. Kim and I are off soon to the June edition of the Metropolitan Postcard show and you know that means lots more postcards to come.

The Corticelli Kitten

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: Continuing on a bit with our classic cat theme here at Pictorama, this wonderful bit of early advertising came in the door this week. A former IG seller messaged me and asked if I was interested, remembering my feline predilections. I paid up a bit for it, but I think it is a great piece of advertising which I have never seen before.

*Go cats, go! Early print advertising for Corticelli using kittens.*

Evidently the Corticelli kitten began his (or her) advertising career all the way back in 1900, making it in the earlier era of emerging cat advertising. A kitten was stamped as a logo on each spool and advertisements showed a kitten or kittens playing with and chewing on the thread to show how strong it was – also that as superior thread that it was unlikely to tangle. Anyone with cats and threads knows pretty much what is likely to happen when the two are together and, strong or not, I would not want to put any thread to the test.

On the back it reads:

I am the Corticelli Kitten. As Corticelli silk costs you no more than poor silk you are saving your own time and money when you ask the cleark especially for Corticelli silk, because while you may pay as much you are sure of getting more silk, better silk, purer silk, brighter silk, longer silk and stronger silks every time you as for “Corticelli.”

When I Tell You that for over 70 years Corticelli silk has held the World’s Record for Superiority, having won 40 Highest Awards at Expositions at home and abroad,

You Will Know it was not the Corticelli Kitten that first made Corticelli silk famous – it was the remarkable smoothness, length and strength of the Silk itself.

The next time you buy silk for any purpose (sewing, stiching, crocheting or art needlework) JUST THINK of the Corticelli Kitten and the superiority of my silk and tell the clerk you just must have Corticelli or you will go to some other store.

FUN FOR THE CHILDREN. A Cortecelli Kitten given free by any dealer selling Corticelli silk in exchange for 2 empty Corticelli spools or send to us for one. As your mother to save all the Corticelli Spools for you.

Corticelli Silk Mills, Florence, Mass.

*Back of the card. You can see where the bit folds out so it can stand.*

The company, its roots go back to the 1830’s, has an interesting history which includes a period as part of a Utopian commune from 1842-46. It was purchased and in 1852 had a revolutionary development when the company figured out spool silk thread strong enough for sewing machines. The Northampton town where the factory called home was renamed Florence to capitalize on a desire for European millinery.

Meanwhile, the company had a vast expansion in the early years of the 20th century and their products included a line of hosiery. Their apex of their advertising is said to have been a neon sign in Times Square. I share the only image of it I could find. The company folds in the post WW1 years for a variety of reasons, around 1932.

*Corticelli Kitten neon sign in Times Square, undated photo.*

I think it is hard for us to imagine what a major role spools of thread played in the world of 1900. Ready-made-to-wear clothes for the rank and file had entered the public consciousness in this country with the rise of department stores and catalogue buying in the 1880’s but a majority of Americans still sewed either to make clothes, tailor or repair them.

*Reproduction advertising available on Etsy.*

A well supplied sewing box was a necessity in every home – I can remember my grandmother’s (Ann, my mother’s mother – I have written about her here and here) sewing box which was substantial and she wasn’t even an especially good seamstress but could swing a hem, a button or a simple adjustment.

So while today it is hard to even find a notions store, the idea of not being well stocked with thread, needles and buttons was unimaginable for the early years of the 20th century.

This little fellow has a spool of bright red silk thread under his chin, as if he was wearing it like St. Bernard out rescuing folks with a bit of whiskey in a cask. A careful look shows however, that he holds the spool in his mouth by a thread – proving how strong it is! The label is cheated toward the viewer and of course he has this nice, tiny date calendar, still fully intact, on his chest for the year 1909. He is designed to stand up and still does – sort of. The calendar appears to have Clint E.M. written at the bottom.

While my own skill with a needle and thread is extremely limited, I do love the early advertising for thread. I have been tempted by the beautiful display cabinets from stores so we’ll see. If a Corticelli kitten one every came my way I think I would have to snag it.

Commuter Cats

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: There are a few rather interesting things about today’s card – an image I have never seen before but cracked me up. It posits six cats in a flying machine that is both futuristic while still being of its early 20th century time – a nice commute indeed for these workaday kits, I must say. I want to say the flying machine is one part kite on the top and this wing advertises, Why trouble to drive? Aerobus Trips in the Sky. It has, oddly enough, skis as well as wheels. I assume that although no snow currently threatens the bucolic green town below, one has to be prepared for all eventualities and seasons. (Wain is a Pictorama favorite and if you are new to the fold you can find more past Wain posts here, here and here for starters.)

On the side of the aeobus there is a partially obscured inscription, Catlands Branch…and then what likely is Service. The plane appears to be made of something reminiscent of balsa wood, but we will hope for their sake that it is something a bit more substantial. A little put-put propeller seems to be the force behind flight, perhaps helped along with the kite-like design. Just behind the propeller and hard to read is the name of the vehicle, evidently christened Mouse No. 15.

It is a tabby filled load, heavy on the oranges (orange tabbies seem to be a favorite of Wain’s, perhaps their natural tendency toward trouble making), although there are a variety of shades within that, light and dark, and one black and whiter for good measure. A jolly fat fellow is steering, wheel and stick I notice. He sports a cap in case we doubt his official role. The other cats seem to be enjoying themselves, looking at the view. I’m surprised no one is reading the newspaper or coming home with bags and boxes from a shopping trip in town – it could use a middle-aged female cat.

The town below sports a church and a single, very large home, a bridge in the distance and tended fields awaiting crops. There seems to be a sea which drifts almost invisibly into the sky.

Notably, in case you did not know, this card is a contemporary reproduction which was advertised as such online. I was curious and not unsatisfied with the results. After all, the “real” postcards have wide variation from multiple printings as well and what is real when it comes to postcards. The image is sharp and not dupe-y which is what I was most curious and concerned about. There is a somewhat undefinable not oldness about it. There is no manufacturer’s info on the back. It would have originally likely been the product of Raphael Tuck and Sons Ltd.

I have been unable to find versions of the original card online which lead to an interesting thought – what if this isn’t really a Louis Wain but instead a very crafty modern mix up and reassembly of existing and new parts? I don’t really think this card is, but it begs the question about our new world in the not too distant future will be we be parsing real versus actual reinvention?

To me it is also interesting that it is my inclination that I would mail this postcard and I never mail my old ones – too expensive and too fragile. If I give one it is generally framed. At $5 this was about the price of an average greeting card these days, although maybe a bit more with postage. I guess we will just have to wait and see if “new” Louis Wain’s start to appear and then we can judge them on their own merits. However, modern reproduction does bring the possibility of bringing them back into play so to speak and using them again for their original intention. (Does anyone actually even know what a postcard costs to send in the US today?)

****

For those of you who are wondering, Paw Day was a huge success yesterday at the Second Avenue Street Fair here. While the block long Japanese food fiesta might have topped our block marginally, we were packed with interested parties and lots and lots of dogs (and a few adventurous cats) and curiosity. Many existing clients visited with us and our docs but also lots of people with puppies and new pets who were curious. It was fast paced and exhausting but great fun.

A brave cat visitor to our table yesterday and Blackie exacting a lap toll this morning (slowing me down some) for yesterday being mostly a day out of the apartment.

Jack and the Giant Kitty

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: It seems only fair to launch 2026 with Pictorama’s best foot forward so today I share a tatty but wonderful Louis Wain card to help set the tone.

As always, it is impossible to entirely follow Wain’s train of thought. While we all know Jack and the Beanstalk, what might have possessed him on a given day to make a one off cat version? Hard to say, however I will share that frequently as Kim and I go through the world, he pops with one-off ideas that could be one or two page comic strips but because of the nature of his work (long, complex stories) he will likely never use. We might blow them out a bit while we’re walking but know they are unlikely to ever go anywhere. For example I pointed out the other day (we were discussing the idea of a short piece about the orderly way he tends to eat food – I call him a largely linear eater) and he took it down the line a bit of how it could be a comic. That would be if he had a weekly deadline, like back in the days of papers like New York Press, and then he’d be using them all.

Anyway, I imagine Louis Wain, at least at one protracted point in his career, was just grasping at every single idea and utilizing it. Either that or his brain just overflowed with them. Hard to say. (I have happily embraced writing about Louis Wain, his life and work, via a number of items which can be found here, here and most recently here for starters.)

Wain is in his full glory in this card. His humanoid-ish giant cat wields a bread knife with a small potpie in front of him and an oversized mug (stein?) which tiny (rat-sized) sword wielding kitty hides behind. (Would the giant be less dangerous if he had a larger pot pie? Just asking.) The giant has a three-prong fork grasped (awkwardly) in his other fat, white tipped paw. It is a formal table setting and another fork and spoon are in front of his pie. There is a lit candle and, sort of funny, a salt cellar and pepper shaker to his right, our left. A potted plant on a doily is on the other side which is sort of a funny middle-class household look. You can almost imagine Wain added that touch from his own tabletop.

*Early Wain post from ’18. Pams-Pictorama.com collection.*

The giant and Jack are both brown tabbies – a coloring I am not sure is prevalent in the real world of cats. (Putting Bengals aside as I don’t think they were known at that time.) Giant bully kitty has his ears back (same color as the tapestry design covering the back of his substantial throne-like chair so they blend a bit) in a very real annoyed feline fashion. His fangy toothies show in his whiskered grin, but it is the look of merry mayhem in his eyes that tell the tale! Yep, he sees Jack and he’s thinking a bit of extra protein on the run for today.

Meanwhile, we only see Jack from the back, tiny sword in hand. As noted, he is a slightly darker odd brown version of a similar tabby stripe. He’s sort of portly (hang-y kitty tummy) to be our hero – usually portrayed as a kid or in this case kitten. At the top right it just says, The “Louis Wain” Series. Bottom left says, Jack the Giant Killer and Louis Wain. This card is a bit grimy and found its way to me with some folds – there are indentations (although not holes) which might mean it displayed somewhere – hence the grime but also the survival.

The back sports a somewhat illegible postmark but I can make out April 19 and 1907. This was sent in the United States (most I have seen were sent in Britain) and addressed to Miss Miriam Hall, Bangor, ME 395 Center Street. He writes, Dear Miriam, What do to you think of these Pussies? Papa. I think that’s what it says – Pussies looks more like Jussies though. (However, to go off on a bit of a sidebar – have any of you seen the articles about how the post office is no longer saying that mail will be postmarked on the day it is picked up? It is now going to sorting centers where it will be postmarked before distribution, hence days later. So much for a world where there were AM and PM postmarks!)

Despite the card having been mailed in the United States, it was printed in Great Britain by the ever popular Raphael Tuck & Sons company of Wain fame. The card, it is noted, was designed in Britain and chromographed in Germany. It also bears the indicia that Tuck was the fine art publisher to their majesties the King and Queen, and to TRH the Prince and Princess of Wales.

This jolly card joins a growing subset of Wain cards in my collection. Whatever else that can be said about Mr. Wain, more than 100 years later, he always puts a smile on my face.

Wow – it’s Holiday Wain!

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: Today’s post is a fantastic item purchased a couple of months ago and framed up to take to New Jersey. As I write this it is a bit hard to know best to show it to you all. I took these photos before it was framed but not sure I can present it as a whole so let’s see how I do. I apologize for the reflections in the photos – I took some before framing it but the ones I am taking today are better I think.

This is an illustrated Christmas insert titled A Kitten’s Christmas Party in the Illustrated London News from 1886, so early days for Mr. Wain. (For some biographical info on Louis Wain and a few of my holdings have a read at posts here, here and here just for starters.) I believe he did a series of these that go into the aughts and maybe beyond – these were his big break I belied. These are noted as pages 24 and 25 in the newspaper and I assume where a centerspread. At the bottom it reads, Drawn by Louis Wain. (Wain also did extremely well with Christmas card designs throughout his career so the holidays were a bonanza for him.)

*The fold was more evident before framing as seen here. This is a close up of “all who came to the party”.*

It is about 18″ x 28″. Considering the age of this newsprint it is in good condition with just the original fold. I did spring for UV protected glass for this when framing. I am afraid that even in a spot that doesn’t get direct sun that it could fade and brown out quickly.

As you can see, you need to get close to it – obviously it was intended for inspection in a newspaper so that is the viewing range. The sort of montage effect has made it a bit harder to get close up’s of each snippet – which are all listed neatly at the bottom as follows:

We write out letters of invitation to the aristocracy and a lot more besides.
Who all come to the party.
Our preparations are extensive.
The after-dinner speeches were a great success.
And so was the ball.
Some of the party seek amusement under the mistletoe.
Others we invite to a mouse-hunt.
And the fun waxes fast and furious, when we form a ring and play at hunt-the-slipper.
Alas! In early morning we are compelled to sit in solemn council to devise a means to break up the party, as the kittens won’t go. A terrier ghost – the very thing!
Our plan is effectual.
And we retire, worn out, and sleep the sleep of peace and dream of mice and dicky-birds.

*Messy kits! Don’t give cats ink. Look at the one with one eye closed as he writes!*

I am a particular fan of the panel of them writing out their letters of invitation. One cat completely covered in ink at the far left, using the spilled bottle of ink, the thoughtful pose as the white cat contemplates his missive and another examines his. Someone needs a nap (such exhausting work) and one tabby is copying off the other – can’t think for himself.

You need to know that there are tiny numbers in the left corner of each image corresponding to the notes above. I mention this because it does not read like a traditional comic strip from left to right. One, two and three are down the left, you jump up to the top again for four and so on. Kim says that this really is early days of comics so it makes sense that the conventions had not yet evolved fully.

*At the ball. Please note that I didn’t cut this off at the left – it is how it was reproduced.*

We see a bit of tidying up for the party – the aristocrat (aristocats dare I say?) all march in subsequently looking a bit like the cat mafia. The scene of the after-dinner speeches is pure Louis Wain for me with the monocled fellow speechifying. The ball, in the center, is only clearly identifiable by the cat band playing in the background, but we see the kitty canoodling under the mistletoe too.

Kissing kitties with voyeurs on the left and speeches on the right.

I have learned that hunt-the-slipper is a game where you pass a slipper (shoe perhaps in today’s parlance?) or small object and try to fool the person hunting about who has it. (I have finally found a good use for AI – it explained this to me.) And we are a bit appropriately huffy puffy here. We are spared too much gore for the mouse hunt with one cat discretely looking in a trap and we see only a mouse tail – although the expressions on the cats faces peering over are also pure Wain-ness with a fillip and dash of pure insanity.

*Cat Council top and the ghost dog chases the kittens home.*

The tale goes a bit off the rails where the kittens won’t go home and a council dreams up the ghost of a terrier to chase them out – which appears to work. Cats run in horror from a ghostly dog form rising up above them.

*Hunt-the-slipper. Could get rough! Wonder who has it..*.Meanwhile cats on the sidelines watching and something going on around a stage in the back.

We end however with another great image which will become classic Wain, all the kitties asleep in bed (some hiding their eyes and noses) and dreaming of mice and dickey-birds!

*Wain has a later print variation on this idea.*

I was lucky and somehow grabbed this from a live auction in Great Britain for very little money – shipping it here and framing it cost far more although very worth it. It is heading to New Jersey with us in a couple of weeks where I intend to hang it in our bedroom or Kim’s studio – some place where we can get close to see it but where it won’t get too much light – even with the UV glass. I think it deserves to remain pristinely preserved. I hope you have enjoyed your trip through it today.

Poor Fish!

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: This is among the last of my British purchases made on a whim before the Trump tax kicked in and made all my purchases from England (a favored source) more expensive. Postage had already started to get out of control and the extra bit is a combined big bite. That’s not to say I won’t buy from my beloved dealers there, but it is slowing me down, especially on the sorts of thing I buy sort of without thinking much.

Nonetheless, this wandered in a door a while back from the very lovely Stephen Phillips (http://@woodenhilltoys) via Instagram. His videos of the tables sporting his wares at shows all over Britain tend to make me salivate for an alternate life where I live there and drive around following him and others to these various wonderful shows – I guess I additionally live in a wonderful little cottage which is crammed full of all of the stuff I collect. (As opposed to this very small apartment and the less romantic but now much beloved Cape Cod alternate home base in New Jersey.)

The precise question of what exactly this is remains open. It is adhered to a sheet of linen type fabric and there were other bits also attached around it which I have kept but are of no particular interest. Under magnification it appears to be printed. I had some folds which the framer has done a pretty good job of pressing out.

*Hard for me to imagine Mr. Blackie as a murderer of anything.*

*The girls get my vote – I think Cookie is most likely to enjoy a good waterbug now and again.*

Here we have one of my beloved black kits (think Beauregard and Blackie), out in the wilds of somewhere having caught himself a fine meal. The fish is very large in relationship to the cat, it must be said. That fish would have given that cat a run for his money. I would say just this side of not possible.

Playing off the violence of the feline hunter is the pleasant greenery and flowers around him. Pansies and other flowers bloom and trees, green hills and a pleasant cloud filled sky are juxtaposed against this violence against this large carp-type fish.

*Mugshot of Beau – unlikely but not impossible mouse killer.*

However, whoever painted the cat caught the weird combination of feral and fluffy. This is a domestic round, cute and fluffy fellow (or girl as they are the big hunters) for what we can see, yet there is something in the eyes which reminds us cats are indeed instinctual killers and happy consumers of small game. There is also something in his or her look which is the cute kitten look, hoping for approval. Here in our apartment cat catching (fortunately) never seems to rise above large water bugs and the rare mouse in the house in New Jersey.

*Hobo back in 2023. We know he could do the deed.*

Having said that Hobo, our outdoor denizen in New Jersey for several years, was once found adding to his protein consumption by munching on a newly caught rat – a robust population of those in the yard there given our proximity to the water. The caretaker, Winsome, reported this as well as the more recent mouse body in the living room. Very icky! Without knowing for sure I attribute that catch to our feral female Peaches who stubbornly refuses to even be touched by human hands, but who survived as a lost kitten in a basement in a nearby town until she fell down a hole and someone heard her persistent meowing. There are five cats in that house but my money is on Peaches. I have done my best to stuff up any entry points with steel wool. I have to say that it is a pitifully dumb rodent that wanders in there.

*Peaches is the most likely to kill a rodent in my opinion.*

Although I did tell Winsome I thought we had to congratulate Peaches on a job well done – not like I want to encounter mice in my house dead or alive – it is not generally the favorite aspect for most of us domestic cat owners. Of course working cats live in bodegas and in barns with the expectation that both their very presence as well as their hunting prowess will be employed as a deterrent. This newly framed picture will travel to New Jersey where it will serve as a reminder of the other side of the nature of our sweet kits.

As I end this I feel compelled to add that in the time I was working on it I had a message from Steve and sure enough, he has a few cat prints for me. Guess I am not out of it at all yet!

Ukiyo-e Cardigan

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: It’s a rare cat fashion post today on Pictorama! I try not to subject you all to too much feline fashion, mostly the occasional Felix or Kim Deitch t-shirt, but today is a jolly exception.

While I have well documented many interesting purchases via Instagram (it seemed to take hold during Covid) it has been almost entirely restricted to antique jewelry and collectibles. (For some of the other Instagram purchase posts you can have a peek here and here. For a prior t-shirt post you can read it here.) However today’s sweater is an adventure into unchartered territory. I would rate it as successful.

*Me this AM with Pride and Prejudice playing in the background* *and modeling with sweatpants.*

Last Christmas I veered (somewhat regrettably) off this path and purchased mugs with pet pics for my friends and Cookie and Blackie decorated socks for Kim. These had mixed results at best with black cats reading murky on mug and socks – the fluffy white bichon of my friend on a green mug being the winner of that group and Cookie better than Blackie on the socks. The same company is trying to sell me pet photo pj’s this year. (My friends and Kim can rest assured that I am not trying that!) Still, generally being an optimist, hope springs eternal and I could hardly whip my credit card out fast enough for this sweater and I do not regret it.

*Friends and family, you are safe this year! Not purchasing these…*

An advertisement for this cardigan came up in my feed one sleepy morning several weeks ago. When I first saw it I thought it was a one off and as soon as I realized that it could be purchased I snatched it up in the twinkling of an eye. I remain unsure if the company is in Japan although ultimately the order was fulfilled out of North Carolina. It has been about a month and I confess I was a bit worried about if it would arrive or if I would get an email demanding an additional Trump tariff to bring it into the country. However, it didn’t cost a fortune and I figured I would just write it off in my mind if it never came or if it was dreadful once it did.

*Kitty couture has been sneaking into my wardrobe lately.*

It arrived last night and I confess, I think it is a bit whacky but really utterly splendid. And frankly if working for an animal hospital doesn’t give me some latitude on cunning cat clothing than I can’t imagine who has a better job for sporting it. Admittedly, feline fashion has been sneaking into my wardrobe recently – a top with a black cat head, a winter scarf with cat images and even cat headed gloves for fall.

*Sorry I can’t get a better photo but this is another worthy version. Congregating kitties.*

I will confess that it is made of what I would best describe as a “wool-like” fabric, not surprising at the price point it was purchased at. (However, on a cheerful note it will frustrate the moths that continue to plague me.) The sizes (is it considered unisex I wonder?) seem to run a tad large and I think the small will be a bit big on me. Cardigan sizing is of course pretty forgiving. I could say that this is just for weekends but no, I am planning on styling this baby for the office!

Wikipedia tells us the true significance of ukiyo-e lies in its reflection of the transient, pleasurable aspects of life in Edo Japan. This genre offers insight into the aesthetics, values, and lifestyle of a society fascinated with present pleasures and cultural experiences. One site calls the original cat prints the cat memes of the 18th century.

Historic woodblock prints of the kind that inspired this sweater pattern above.

Of course the real stars on this sweater are the kitties. They stare at us, appear to wave, one paw up. they all seem to sport sort of bow-tied neckerchiefs.

Evidently based on historical Ukiyo-e woodblock prints of somewhat anthropomorphic cats, these are a clearly contemporary take. My sweater is called Many Cats Are Watching You. The Japanese writing appears to say things like, Humans are truly useless – sort of like the Japanese cat version of the candy hearts you get on Valentine’s Day.

*I believe the translation is Look at me forever.*

If you too just must have one, my cat cardigan can be purchased here. As I said, it runs a tad large in my opinion and is indeed made of some fabric which might originally have been old soda bottles. The company name is Tokyo-Tiger and their website seems to break down into items by animal type – cat, frog, raccoon. There are a lot of t-shirts of little interest to me, a few other cat cardigans of note however – I could have a wardrobe of them. You can also acquire hats, towels, pajamas and coasters. For me, it is a about the clutch of kitty cardigans however.

Advertised as an “ugly” sweater, I take a bit of umbrage at that. I am thinking it needs the simplicity of a straight black skirt or trousers with either a tank or a turtleneck under it, maybe a belt and perhaps pearls to elevate it a bit. If I did own yellow or hot pink trousers I would be tempted however as well. While the possibilities are not quite endless, for now I plan to wear my cat love on my sleeve for all to admire.

Who’s a Scaredy Cat?

Posted by Pam's Pictorama

Pam’s Pictorama Post: While my timing may miss the mark for Halloween this year, the subject matter in a sense is pure Pictorama. The cat in question showed up from an auction house on Halloween night, having been purchased at an online auction a few months ago. While most auction houses I have encountered actually get items to me very quickly (one called Everything but the House sends out their packages with startling efficiency seeming to arrive within days) clearly some are more pokey. I purchased two things recently, at different auctions, and they have slowly meandered in a few months later. They are both welcome additions and today we start with this kitty – the other is a rather great future post.

*Pams-Pictorama.com* *collection – the office annex. There’s something about his only having three feet on the ground which entertains me.*

This fellow appealed to my black cat Halloween loving sensibility for obvious reasons, although I very rarely purchase contemporary items. I am occasionally persuaded and this cat entertained me. I will say, I won it at auction for next to nothing but they really socked me on postage. I actually rejected what they said the postage was going to be at first and figured if I lost the cat and the few dollars over it so be it. Oddly they came back with something more reasonable and here he is.

It is my intention to have him join another Halloween cat which has graced my office for many decades. I was working at the Met and I don’t remember how this couple knew that I collected black cat items, but they made a gift of it to me one day. Seems their son was a buyer working for Martha Stewart and was responsible for sourcing decorative items for the various holidays which would then be shown in the magazine and probably also sold under her brand. This cat had been a sample among the items he proposed and it was rejected. Somehow his parents saw it and grabbed it up for me.

*More jagged teeth and yellow eyes; he’s missing a bit of paint on his nose sadly.*

It has always been my office black cat if you will. (For many years I also kept the Happy Life wind-up toy, below, in my office because it has a calming and cheering effect on me. I was known to wind it up for staffers under distress, especially while at the Museum. I wrote a post about this soothing toy here and you can see it’s a clip of it wound up as well.) There has been occasional conversation about the scary black cat when he was introduced at various offices and why I have him and I usually just tell the story of his acquisition. However, over time for those staffers who have seen me on zoom from home they have been treated to a small view into the mighty black cat collection and it makes more sense. No one at the animal hospital has asked and I assume that has something to do with being an animal hospital? Or are they just not surprised to find me guarded by a scary black cat.

*New kitty on Kim’s desk. Pams-Pictorama.com collection.*

Both of these cats are made with a plastic arched cat body which is covered in black “fur”. The smaller older one (or one from my office, who knows the age of the additional one) has more wiry legs and you can almost pose him but I have never pushed it. Overall, this new fellow bigger and sturdier. Part of me wonders if he had shown up rather than the other if he would have made the grade with Martha. He is better made, although clearly from the same sort of origin.

The new cat is more substantial in every way. Both have glass eyes and whiskers although both stand out a bit more on the new cat. The office cat has those sort of spindly claw paw toes which are arguably a bit more intimidating than the fluffy feet on the other and his tail is on a jauntier angle. However his red nose is a bit comical and makes him friendlier than the shiny black one on this cat. His ribbon has always struck me as at odds with his overall appearance and if the new guy sported one it is long gone.

Both have been endowed with differently ferociously toothy mouths. The smaller cat has more teeth and the new one has fewer but they really look like they mean business. The many hard whiskers stand up on either side of the gaping mouth complete with a bright red tongue.

This fellow is going to make his way to the office this week now that he has had his baptism by Pictorama post. Unlike my prior offices, I have somehow fallen short of actually decorating this one in a meaningful way. (A post about the black cat sheet music that decorated my office at Jazz can be found here.) My first office for the animal hospital had a terrible leak (think water pouring into pots on the desk and floor) and I refrained from subjecting any of my framed sheet music to it. We moved offices last January and the new office does seem pretty water proof yet somehow I have yet to attempt to brand it much as my own. Perhaps I should be more concerned with the image he projects to staff, yet to know me is to know my love of all black cats – just ask Blackie and Beau!

Pam's Pictorama

All Pam, all the time

cat collectible

Winkin’

In the Yard with Cats

Dr. Thomas’ Electric Oil

The Corticelli Kitten

Commuter Cats

Jack and the Giant Kitty

Wow – it’s Holiday Wain!

Poor Fish!

Ukiyo-e Cardigan

Who’s a Scaredy Cat?