![]() Sounds cool, but like a lot of things– you tend to idealize it when you’re on the outside looking in. We didn’t exactly fit into the norm, nor did we to care to. Let’s just say it wasn’t a typical childhood, and we got a lot of stares. ![]() I was not invited to a lot of sleep-overs either.Įasyriders magazine was a part of growing up, and exposed me to a lot of… you know, art. Yeah, there’s other stuff in there too that a kid shouldn’t see, but I was fascinated with the illustrations by Dave Mann– and still am. They’re incredible.ĭave Mann’s dad was a lifelong illustrator and active member of the Society of Scribes in London. The younger Mann was born in Kansas City, Missouri. In 1957 he first drew pencil sketches of hot rods while feigning attention in high school. His crude sketches opened the door for Dave’s first job, pinstriping cars for Doug Thompson and Ray Hetrick’s custom car shop in Kansas City. The wild allure of the West Coast drew Dave and buddy Al Burnett to Santa Monica, California. While cruising the seaside community he stumbled across Bay Area Muffler, an area custom car house, and there discovered completely insane chopped Harleys. They projected freedom, power and mobility with every chromed curve. He was immediately hooked.ĭave Mann returned to Kansas City and bought his first new bike, a ’48 Panhead, for $350. At the same time he created his first painting, “Hollywood Run.” It represented the wild, unleashed, Hollywood outlaw lifestyle. Riding his customized Harley with his painting tucked under his arm, Dave entered the ’63 Kansas City Custom Car Show. That car show launched his artistic & biker career. Dave Mann had the only custom-bike entry in the show, so for his creative efforts the judges initiated a new class and trophy specifically for him.ĭave Mann painted several posters for Big Daddy Roth, the California custom car creator and publisher of the first chopper magazine. In ’65, he went to work in the mailroom at Scheffer Studios in Kansas city, where he met an architectural renderer, Dave Poole, who taught him technical drawing. ![]() By ’67, Mann developed into an architectural renderer, having studied at the Kansas City Art Institute. Then in 1971, Dave discovered a new magazine- Easyriders. And the rest as they say, is history– the two are now forever inseparable in any hardcore biker’s heart and mind. “I’m building a really boutique company that can reposition or reset some beloved brands.Easyriders was the first full-fledged, lifestyle-related bike rag. And more acquisitions of troubled but quality assets are likely, although Foster is not looking in the apparel space. If that wasn’t enough for a company that’s only a few months into new ownership, Foster, who seems naturally excitable, is already looking at TV deals for the brand. Easyriders is looking to host six events this year, which Foster foresees as a kind of “biker Coachella,” offering a mix of camping, riding and music performances. ![]() restaurateur and consultant known for the Roxbury and Pig & Whistle. There’s potential in an events business and Foster has hired Chris Breed, an L.A. And Easyriders new chief executive officer is Charles Perez, a veteran apparel manufacturer in L.A. Foster is already looking at licensing Mann’s work for socks and underwear and is thinking about other brands like Vans, a popular shoe for West Coast riders. But his goal isn’t to merely operate a niche quarterly magazine for the fun of it.įoster sees significant business potential in licensing the Easyriders name as well as the earlier art that appeared in the magazine, l like that of the late artist David Mann, who painted on the biker lifestyle. The magazine previously printed 600,000 copies a month. It sold out online in three days, Foster said. He printed 10,000 copies for the first 140-page issue (with no advertising pages), featuring actor Norman Reedus on the cover and a big spread with Erin Wasson inside. He was just in Italy, London and Japan, all with motorcycle cultures of their own, and was excited how many people he met there who knew Easyriders and thought well of it.įoster immediately decided to make the magazine a quarterly, upgrading everything from the photos and styling (his wife Vanessa is the creative director) to the paper stock and printing, and create a sense of scarcity with distribution. He said the magazine still has major brand recognition, globally, too. He also said his phone “has been ringing off the hook” lately with brands and companies (some “major”) calling to see how they may be able to work together, be it a collaboration or an advertising deal. A new web site is set to launch next month. The first thing was to overhaul Easyriders’ social media, and it’s already back up to almost 27,000 followers on Instagram and Foster said it’s growing by a few hundred a day now. Model Erin Wasson in Easyriders magazine 2020.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |