In this post, two previously unpublished images from the early days of Mitchell's 'Cowboy Folio.
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| Mitchell - Talk or be Branded! |
A cowboy is stripped and tied to the posts of a horse stall in a barn. He is being
threatened with exceptionally painful persuasion if he continues to remain silent about what he knows.
But, even with the heat close behind his cheeks, he remains defiant.
His tormentor seems to be nursing an inappropriate response to the situation.
I used this horse-stall, restraint arrangement again in the whipping image, presented in the previous Cowboy Folio post No 3. The captive's private parts here are discreetly obscured by the dilapidated stall structure. If I redrew this today I'd probably show more, but I still find this sort of teasing concealment erotic.
The situation speaks for itself here but I've always been dissatisfied with the 'arms length' pose and the captor's lack of emotion in his face or body (if you don't count what's happening with his jeans).
The captive too seems unreasonably calm considering his predicament.
I was experimenting with more varied faces here to indicate who is the goody and baddy.
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| Mitchell - Cowboy Branded at the Big 'H' |
The 'Big H' is also the location for this image, but it's rebranded itself (pardon the pun) from being a horse-breeding establishment to a house of ill-repute for frustrated cowboys who can't get what they want from the gals who ply their trade at the local town Saloon.
The decline of traditional ranching has thrown a lot of mature cowboys out of their jobs and many have been forced to turn to less glamourous ways of earning a crust. Those that turn up at the 'Big H' are attracted by the highly professional, business approach of the management which means they always get paid and don't get beaten up (unless they sign up for that). It's also one of the few establishments that offers mature men. It's a niche market, but a well-rewarded one.
The flip side is a system of control that ensures only the selected few can carry the 'Big H' brand which is the customer's visible guarantee of quality when he get's down to brass tacks. It's a proper brand! The loyalty of the service providers is also secured by that mark of ownership that effectively prevents any moonlighting or defection to other establishments. Prevents them from changing their minds too.
This is a later drawing and shows more energetic and personal grappling which is closer to the reality of cattle branding. I originally drew the recipient pants-less and with his legs tied together like a steer, but reworked it for this publication to make the 'persuasion' more subtle. Once again his naughty bits are hidden, but from his reaction I imagine there's not much to see presently!
Both these images date from the 80's as you might perceive from the moustache. The humorous slant is necessitated by the subject matter to some extent but also owes something to that era, when all gay magazines had cartoons, even the ultra-macho 'Drummer.' That characteristic was illustrated here at mitchmen recently in the mini series 'The Smithy' by Bud which also features a branding.
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