Sailor Jerry
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sailor Jerry | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | Norman Keith Collins January 14th, 1911 Reno, Nevada |
| Died | June 12, 1973 |
| Other names | Norman K. Collins, Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins, NKC, Sailor Jerry, SJ, $ |
| Occupation | Tattoo artist, Sailor |
 |
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2008) |
 |
This article's tone or style may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. Specific concerns may be found on the talk page. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions. (April 2009) |
Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins was a prominent American tattoo artist.
Norman Keith Collins got his nickname Jerry in his childhood from the name of his father’s obstinate pet donkey.[dubious ]
Contents |
[edit] Legacy of Sailor Jerry
Norman Collins entrusted his artwork to his two proteges, Ed Hardy and Mike Malone, both of whom have become prominent figures in their own right. Hardy, who turned down an MFT scholarship to Yale in order to pursue tattooing, is known for his artistic sophistication and large-scale tattoos. Malone, who also designs under the name "Rollo Banks", is known for his conceptual boldness and distinctive designs.
Norman Collins is buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, a military cemetery located in Punchbowl Crater in Honolulu. His grave site is 124/Section T.
[edit] Sailor Jerry Ltd
In 1999, Hardy and Malone partnered with a small independent Philadelphia clothing company to establish Sailor Jerry Ltd., which produces clothing and an idiosyncratic collection of other items, such as ash trays, high-top sneakers, playing cards, church keys and shot glasses. An anti-sweatshop company, nearly all Sailor Jerry items are produced in the United States and sold via the company’s web site or from the Sailor Jerry Store at 116 S. 13th Street in Philadelphia, which frequently plays host to performances by independent musicians. Links to bands the company supports are a prominent feature of the web site. The company also showcases rising talents with its "Artist Series", which it describes as a way to "keep Sailor Jerry’s legacy alive and kicking".
In 2002, Converse licensed many tattoo artworks from Sailor Jerry to print onto their Hi-Top, Oxford, & SkidGrip Deck shoes.
Sailor Jerry Ltd. produces a 92 proof spiced Navy rum featuring a quintessential Sailor Jerry hula girl on the label. It is based on the kind of rums that sailors used to create by infusing on-board stocks of rum with spices. Sailor Jerry rum is distilled in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Norman's letters, art and flash are owned and managed by Sailor Jerry Ltd.
After his death, friends found the recipe to a spiced rum in Norman Collin's belongings, which later became the base that created Sailor Jerry Rum. Sailor Jerry Rum got its influence from Sailors who frequently travelled around the world collecting barrels of rum from the caribbean for the shipmen to drink during their travels. As the rum was of very cheap quality at the time, they would frequently pick up spices and flavours from the Far East and Asia to throw into the barrels to infuse a flavour much more enjoyable for the sailors to drink.
[edit] Sailor Jerry Tattoos
Other popular symbols include:
- Bottles of booze
- Snakes
- Wild cats
- The infamous “Aloha” monkey
- Eagles, falcons and other birds of prey
- Sparrows
- Motor heads and pistons
- Nautical stars
- Classically styled scroll banners
- Knives, guns and other weapons
- Dice
Essentially anything that can be used as a symbol of what Collins would have called “Man’s demise” can be incorporated into a Jerry styled tattoo. The overall message most of the time is that you cannot win for losing, nothing is going to go your way and of course, hard times have shaped you and made you are hard – and hard to deal with man or woman.
He expanded the array of colors available by developing his own safe pigments. He created needle formations that embedded pigment with much less trauma to the skin, and he was one of the first to utilize single-use needles and hospital-quality sterilization.[citation needed] His attention to detail was so precise that the depiction of rigging in his nautical tattoos was said to be perfectly accurate.[citation needed] Artistically, his influence stems from his union of the roguish attitude of the American sailor with the mysticism and technical prowess of the Far East.[original research?] He maintained a close correspondence with Japanese tattoo masters during his career. He regarded tattoos as the ultimate rebellion against "the Squares".[citation needed] He took the bold line style of tattooing and incorporated what he learned from his correspondences with the Japanese masters, known as Horis. He brought this style to the Sailor Jerry Tattoo parlor he opened on Hotel Street in Honolulu.
'Sailor Jerrys last studio was in Honolulu's Chinatown, then the only place on the island where tattoo studios were located. He thrived in the hotbed of competition. His work was so widely copied, he took to printing "The Original Sailor Jerry" on his business cards.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Honolulu's Chinatown
- History of Sailor Jerry
- Hori Smoku Sailor Jerry A feature length documentary exploring the roots of American tattooing through the life of Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins
- Sailor Jerry LTD
- Sailor Jerry Rum
- Sailor Jerry Music Blog
- [1]
- [2] More info on sailor jerry'
s tattoo shop and life.
