Page 62 - Flathead Beacon // 1.22.13

62 | JANUARY 29, 2014 SPORTS
FLATHEADBEACON.COM

LURCHING FROM ONE
NEAR DISASTER TO ANOTHER. Warren Miller
Art for Sale

I
F I HAD TO MAKE A LIVING This led to a $200 set of murals in
with my artwork, I could do better Chuck Helm’s ski shop in Ketchum. Not

with a cardboard sign and a beard at bad, when the monthly salary of most
a boulevard stop somewhere.
people in the Wood River Valley in those
When I was only 10 years old and liv- days was about $150 a month.
ing with my grandparents and my great At Squaw Valley in 1949, while I was
uncle, I used to watch him make wonder- teaching skiing and starting to produce
ful pen and ink drawings in his diary. I my irst feature length ski movie, I was
tried in my own crude way to copy what also busy creating a pen and ink cartoon

he was drawing. Rather unsuccessfully, I every day. I was still selling them for a
might add.
dollar each and doing pretty well.
Several years later, that all changed On a night of from showing a ilm
when my grandmother gave me a book in Boyne Mountain in 1954, I went to a
on cartooning. “Fun With a Pencil” was mountain top restaurant party.
written by Andrew Loomis.
It was a brand new place with newly
Within a month I had dropped out painted white walls. Before I knew it, it
of my mechanical drawing class and en- was after 1:30 and I had one wall almost

rolled in a commercial art class. I was completely full of my ski cartoons. I only
drawing cartoons on anything that was had colored Sharpie-type pens to work
put in front of me.
with so I igured in the spring they would
When I went in the Navy in 1942 I all get painted over and the lodge could
started making cartoon sketches of what revert to its elegance. They are still there
Navy life was all about. Before long I pub- today and covered with plexi-glass so no
lished a book, “The Navy Goes To Col- one can deface them.

lege.” I had the local junior college print John Kircher, who grew up skiing
shop do the work for me and I bought the at his father’s ski resort, Boyne, and re-
paper and paid for the binding. It took membering the cartoons I’d drawn at the
almost a year to double my money, but it restaurant at the top of the hill, asked if
was proitable and I never looked back.
I’d do a set on the walls in a new restau-
Soon, I snagged my irst commission rant he was building at Crystal Mountain
to paint walls full of cartoons. I wanted near Seattle. Laurie knows how long it
to paint them in the skier’s dining room, takes me to paint a mural on a wall and

but my idea was taken over by the art- she suggested that I have large decals
ist in residence at the lodge in Sun Val- made of the cartoons. While I was at it I GOLF PASS
ley, Max Barsis. As compensation for the had a smaller set made for our home here
idea, the general manager, Pappy Rogers, at the Yellowstone Club in Montana.
let me paint cartoon murals on the em- The last four books I have published
ployee cafeteria walls. He gave me a sea- have been full of my cartoons and my
son’s pass and free meals as long as I was book on wine terminology is nothing but EARLY BIRD SALE!
still painting them. Those cartoons were
cartoons.
only taken down about 10 years ago. A Unfortunately, my eyesight is going
friend who is still in Sun Valley took pho- away and my ability to draw is going with
tos of them all and printed them out for it. But I have often been lucky in having GOING ON NOW THRU FEB. 28, 2014
me as a reminder of those fun but lean fun on the walls of a lot of places that I
years.
have visited.
It was beginning to look like the If I can get some of my eyesight back, See our 2014 fee schedule at www.golfbuffalohill.com
paintbrush was mightier than the ski I hope there will be more fun days at the

pole.
drawing board to come.
RANGE • CART • GOLF ON 27 HOLES

For more of Warren’s wanderings go to www.warrenmiller.net or visit him on his Face-
Individual Golf Passes for juniors, students book page at facebook.com/warrenmiller. For information on his Foundation, please
visit the Warren Miller Freedom Foundation, at www.warrenmiller.org.
and adults ranging from $99 to $699
l
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Business Ofice: 756-4548
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175 HUTTON RANCH RD, STE. 110, KALISPELL. 406-257-7518