I talk to a lot of people about SKIN & INK's content. Sometimes it's at a convention or a gallery show. Maybe it's a note via e-mail or a handwritten letter on lined paper.

Jack Rudy says the first thing he reads is Captain Eddie. I'm sure that makes Bruce Litz happy. And I'm sure Holly was thrilled that Lyle Tuttle read her Diggin' the Dirt column as soon as it arrived in the mailbox. The late Felix Leu was a Danny Fowler fan. Amidst the controversy over his Tattoo Science column (was Danny a genius or just shuckin' and jivin'?), Don Feliz sent us a letter stating Tattoo Science was his all-time favorite.

More recently, C.W. Eldridge is praised for focusing on tattoo history. Both old-timers and newcomers tell me that C.W.'s Living History articles are what attracts them to SKIN & INK. Another reader favorite is The Wit & Wisdom of Tennessee Dave. It doesn't hurt that he's one of the great storytellers. I also get lots of feedback about Travelin' Mick and just how lucky we are to have him. It adds a whole new dimension when Mick talks about some far off village in a hidden jungle somewhere. It helps us all feel connected to the greater tattoo universe.

Thanks to Danielle, her Spotlight on new artists introduces us to major talent that we might have overlooked, while Terisa Green's What Tattoos Mean is a must read for both artists and collectors. The thing that impresses me most is, although Dr. Green has written an extensive dictionary of tattoo meanings, she cares enough to write new ones every time for SKIN & INK. And, of course, C.G. Morris. It's always intriguing to learn about tattoo celebrities from a slightly different angle. Ten questions: What a great way to find out about someone. Hey, one of these times we'll have C.G. interview herself!

A funny story: Right about the time we had a change in Art Directors a few issues ago, I got a call from our publisher, Chris Perretta, back in Paramus, New Jersey. Chris wanted to add a 16-page outsert to the January issue. An outsert is a free-standing magazine that's included in a plastic bag along with the regular issue. The fact is, at that moment in time, I had no Art Director to put it together, so I researched frantically through my files. Just in the nick of time, I discovered a stack of sexy girlie photos by Hollywood photographer Ashley Fontenot. It was slated for an entirely different project. The only reason I hadn't published it was, I didn't know where to put it. SKIN & INK is, after all, a serious tattoo magazine that has been likened to National Geographic. To give my readers 16 pages of young women wearing nothing but tattoos — that wasn't representative of our magazine's philosophy. At least that's what I thought.

To make a long story short, I received more positive response from the Ashley Fontenot outsert than any feature we have ever published. I got scores of phone calls and mail. Among the comments was one from a well-known historian: "Convention coverage be damned. We want more of the girl on page 8."

Her name is Masuimi Max, by the way. And yes, I get the message.

Bob Baxter
Editor in Chief

skinandink@hotmail.com
www.skinandink.com