#betsy davids

[uwmspeccoll]

Staff Pick of the Week

Today’s Staff Pick is Mimi Pond’s delightful book Half Off. Pond is a dedicated cartoonist, graphic novelist, and writer with writing credits that include The Simpsons, Pee Wee’s Playhouse, and Designing Women. She has also been a longstanding cartoonist for the Los Angeles Times and won an Inkpot Award in 2014 after her the release of her graphic novel Over Easy. 

Half Off presents witty observational stories centered around swimming at the YWCA, bargains shopping at Woolworth’s and Capwell’s, and Pond’s years as a waitress at Mama’s Royal Café in California. The stories are accompanied by relief engravings in Pond’s distinct illustrative style and exuberant color palette. Published by Rebis Press in 1981, Half Off was designed, printed, and bound by Pond and Rebis partner Betsy Davids in an edition of 115 copies signed by both the artist and publisher. The book is joyously finished with a half-shower cap binding and bubblegum pink fishnet overlay. Of the 115 copies made, Special Collections holds number 97, signed by the artist and publisher.  

View more Staff Picks.

-- Jenna, Special Collections Graduate Intern

[garadinervi]

Artists’ Books: A Critical Anthology and Sourcebook, A Special Digested Edition, Edited by Joan Lyons, Texts by Dick Higgins, Richard Kostelanetz, Ulises Carrión, Lucy R. Lippard, Shelley Rice, Barbara Moore and John Hendricks, Susi R. Bloch, Betsy Davids and Jim Petrillo, Felipe Ehrenberg, Magali Lara and Javier Cadena, Robert C. Morgan, copublished by Gibbs M. Smith, Inc., Peregrine Smith Books, Visual Studies Workshop Press, Rochester, NY, 1985 (Monoskop pdf here)

(via Tony White)

[rabidfoxes]

thinking about the possible interactions we could get between neil and jeremy with neil's "overly nice people are unsettling and have something to hide" mentality and between andrew and jeremy with andrew's history of getting along well with and respecting kind people who choose to be good in spite of all the bad things life throws at them (renee, betsy, wymack)

[incorrectaftg]

[hands you these] part 91

[you-know-i-get-itt]

you know what. i am so proud of andrew minyard. choosing actively to do his best to get better after being incessantly told that it was hopeless. coming to terms with his sexuality after years of trauma associated with it. learning to trust people to be kind to him after a lifetime of being hurt by the very people who were supposed to protect him. finding it in himself to trust wynack, and abby, and bee (especially bee). allowing kevin to promise to give him something to live for. letting his walls down long enough to let someone he loved behind them. letting himself love. letting himself be loved in return.

i am so proud of him.

[detectivebambam]

hello and welcome

ignore the ones with dates i forgot to change, i didn't want to redo them

[owlarchimedes]

I don't get why some people think Andrew wouldn't get along with Jeremy? Look at how he treats kind people, kind people who've gone through their own hardships but in the end chose to "be a bad person trying very hard to be a good person" (Renee, Wymack) or just people who are always kind and try to help (Bee, and Abby to an extent).

The point is Andrew would take one look at captain sunshine and just know he'd get along with him (even if he doesn't show it in a traditional way)

[knox-knocks]

Do you think the adults ever looked at neil and andrew and just remarked about how young they look? 18 and 19 at the beginning of the books. they’re like Babies compared to them.

Like imagine betsy listening to andrew tell her about how he feels responsible for the safety of his family. and he’s just. so so young to have this much weight on his shoulders.

And abby tracking neil’s scars with her eyes. sure she’s seen a lot while working with the foxes, but this… not to mention wymack picking neil up from the airport and noticing how small he is when he’s cradling his broken body in his arms. how he has more scars and bruises than unblemished skin

[imperfectcourt]

OK I had this in the tags of a different post but it needs its own

Andrew and Wymack get tipsy together on Wymack's lumpy couch. They do this once in awhile to commiserate on Neil and Kevin and life in general. It's cathartic and they're assholes to each other and about the foxes and complain a lot and if feels kinda like the opposite of therapy but is surprisingly helpful for both of them.

And one time, Wymack confesses that one time he, Abby, and Betsy got drunk together and got a little Silly. Something that you can't do too often after a certain age but the rarity of it makes it all the better. We're talking ordering deliver from two different places by accident. Bad karaoke into Abby's TV remote. Using an entire box of bandaids on each other because why??. And Wymack, wobbling a little and smiling in a way he doesn't often but is infectious in their inebriated state, shows Andrew a shaky cellphone video of Betsy with 6 bandaids on her face, holding her phone close up to her face slurring out "did- did'jyou know... you c'n adopt an adult in south crarolinna? I'm gonna.... I'm gonna adopt that little blonde punk"

Andrew chokes on his next sip and is so so lucky to still be in the euphoric stage of drinking bc if he were in any other mindset that would have cracked him in two

[fairvstairs]

FOXES HEADCANONS!

Nicky watches soap operas when they are in the bus/plane/travelling to a game. The other foxes learned everything they know against their will but it's actually a good way to spend the time. Kevin keeps saying he hates them ("It always takes so long for secrets to get discovered" "Says the guy who waited years to tell his father his truth") but he's the only one who actually remembers the names of the characters. Every time an evil twin comes into the screen Neil laughs and points at Aaron . Every time someone lies about their identity Aaron laughs and points at Neil.

Neil has amazing hair but hates to take care of them. Andrew washes them with curly hair product, Allison cuts them (he lets her near him with scissors!!!) and Matt braids them during the summer.

Aaron can't study anatomy around the foxes because they scream "BROKE IT!" every time he mentions a bone they broke.

On the anniversary of Seth's death, the foxes and Wymack gather at Abby's place to have dinner together. They don't really talk about him but they leave one seat empty.

Neil found a injured rabbit during one of his runs, he brought it back to the dorm and the foxes successfully hid the pet for three weeks. One day they came back to their dorms from classes only to find Wymack there, holding the rabbit in his arms. This imagine becomes Abby's lock screen and the rabbit goes to live with Bee.

Matt is an amazing cook but Aaron finds his meals way too spicy. When he first said this around the others, Dan looked at him dead in the eyes and said "White trash," only to continue eating like nothing had happened.

Renee loves puzzle but she only does them in company so she usually sends a puzzle emoji on the group chat and whoever is free just goes to her dorm to spend quality time together.

Allison can't watch criminal shows around Andrew because he always spoils her about who the murderer is. He hasn't watched the shows, he just knows, and when she asks him how he knows he gives the stupidest answers. ("He was wearing a red tie," "He said 'good day' instead of 'good morning,' "He has a mole under his eye.")

Dan and Renee love Halloween and they always get matching costumes with Matt and Allison but not the couple kind. So far they have done the Ninja Turtles, the Fantastic Fours and the Teletubbies.

The twins wear each other's clothes on Halloween. Nicky, Katelyn and Neil are the only ones who don't fall for it. Neither does Wymack but he just lets them be without saying anything.

[aftgsecretsnowflake]

AFTG Secret Snowflake

How does it work?

When signups open (late August, early September), participants will fill out a form specifying what they are wanting to create and what they are wanting to receive. I will assign people a secret snowflake to create for based off the best aligned answers on the form.

Throughout October and November participants will have a chance to communicate with their secret snowflake (without revealing who they are) to get a better idea of what to gift them, brainstorm, and create their gift.

The posting period will start in December where everyone will post their gift for their secret snowflake and reveal who are they and who they had.

You are required to make and post a gift in order to a receive a gift. Please do not sign up if you are unwilling to create something

Anon asks must be on. Your secret snowflake has to have a way to communicate with you. If you are unwilling to turn them on or turn them off at some point during the event please accept that it is unlikely you will be gifted something that fits your wants.

Signups will open August 25th and close September 14th

I will send you a dm with the username of your secret snowflake and their interest form by September 30th at the latest

Please feel free to reach out with any questions about the event before the signup period! I would love everyone who wants to be participate to be able to and want to communicate as clearly as possible

[zegalba]

The apartment of Betsy Theodoracopoulos designed by David Hicks, Athens (1970)

[konchitsya-leto]

phrases and dialogues i saw floating out there in the internet as foxes!

-

Neil: i'm going to go and get the healthiest 6-8 hours long sleep. i have 2 hours to do so

-

Allison: yesterday i saw you with a boy

Andrew: it's my friend

Allison: you were kissing

Andrew: my very close friend

-

Dan: after an argument some people feel they might have been too rude. i always feel like i've had to be ruder. like, maybe, starting a fight might've been of a not so bad choice. at least i should have kicked that moron's ass just once.

-

Aaron: ach du heiliges aufmerksamkeitsdefizitsyndromkind

-

Nicky: Seth, hi! i have a favour to ask of you. can you laugh less? you know, they say laughing prolongs your life, and i'd like you to die sooner. sorry for being rude

-

Wymack: for fuck's sake, Andrew Joseph Fucking Minyard! where have you been? we called in every hospital and morgue out there, they said you're admitted to EACH OF THEM

-

Matt: don't aim to do the whole task in one set. break down your main task into subtasks. then break down every subtask into micro-tasks. then break down every micro-task into nano-tasks. and then,

Renee: boom! there are no tasks; everything has dissolved into an existential hole as if it has never existed at all; however, what's even real in this perishable flow of being?

-

Kevin: hi

Aaron: ...hi

Kevin: how are you?

Aaron: good

Kevin: hmm, why not bad?

-

Seth: i have two moods: 1) the fuck you think i'm joking. 2) i'm joking

-

Allison: i haven't completely fallen in love yet, so in my stomach there are caterpillars

-

Aaron: the smartest ones made the smartest move: they died last year

-

Kevin: i drink alcohol and they say i'm alcoholic but when i drink fanta they never say i'm fantastic

-

Neil: i've lost motivation. i need some life goal, my life energy has burnt out

Andrew: i can accomodate you with kicking your ass

-

Nicky: bonjour, motherfucker

Kevin: adios, bitchacho

-

Wymack: don't worry, don't cry

Kevin: drink vodka and fly

-

Renee: do you believe in god?

Andrew: no

Renee: you're such a nice looking guy!

Renee: and such a wrong thing is in your head

-

[during a session]

Betsy: have you ever tried screaming?

-

Andrew: i put the 'hot' in psychotic

Betsy: it's... Totally not how we handle it

-

Allison: sorry, i have no mental resources for that

Aaron: just as how it was yesterday

Allison: just as how it'll be tomorrow

-

Andrew: i like tall men. you walk next to them and can't hear what they are blah-blahing up there

-

Abby: we can't giggle here

Neil: but why?

Abby: well, it's a crime scene?

-

Abby: i'll tell you, jail is no fun

Wymack: you've been in jail???

Abby: once. in Monopoly

-

Abby: you are all really well behaved today. what did you do?

[mitorry]

Jean Moreau I am so sorry for everything you have endured.

[incorrectaftg]

[hands you these] part 87

[lokislittlelad]

Wymack and Abby might be the only parents who truly don't have favourites. That being said Bee's is Andrew and we all know it.