Mickey "The Toy Bulldog" Walker
Name: Mickey "The Toy Bulldog" Walker
Favorite Book: "The Moon and Sixpence" by W. Somerset Maugham "This was a book and movie based upon the life of the French painter, Gauguin, in Tahiti. I didn't know who Gauguin was but I read some of Maugham's earlier books. I met the writer at Billy DeBeck's apartment years earlier during The Roaring Twenties. The picture had a strange effect upon me...I envied this guy who could paint so beautifully. I envied his way of living. I pictured myself in his place. If only I could paint like that. Suddenly, I wanted to be an artist...That's the way it was in those days...I jumped from my seat...and headed straight for Kramer's art store on Bond Street...I wound up with an easel, palette, canvas sketch board, oil tubes, and a fistful of brushes...It set me back about $200. As I was about to leave, I turned to the clerk. 'Don't tell anyone about this...or I'll break your jaw.'" ("Mickey Walker--The Toy Bulldog & His Times", p. 275) |