Save the Frog
![johnston.bmp]()
After reading
this:
This time, the controversy is not about business, but rather a frog.
It's a silent hello, a greeting that brightens the day of people who
walk by.
"Oh, it cheers me up. It's silly and fun and I think, it's a good
touch even on a bad day," resident Elizabeth Kirkindall said.
Daniel Johnston, an alternative musician, painted the mural on the
wall of Sound Exchange a decade ago, but Wednesday, the "Hi, how are
you?" frog will croak for good.
"All the older Austin businesses get pushed out for the smaller chain
restaurants and I think it's kinda' sad," resident Adam Norwood said.
I was actually kind of relieved to read
this:
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Baja Fresh Mexican Grill
today announced its franchise partner in Austin, Texas will spend his
personal money to Save the Frog, a mural that for twenty years has
adorned the walls of the building that's housing the newest Baja Fresh.
John Oudt, a Texas entrepreneur and franchisee, is working with the
community to preserve this culturally important art. John responded
quickly to "do the right thing" when numerous students and citizens
scaled the wall yesterday in protest against its demolition.
But it's still sad that another stupid chain is going up where a local
business once stood.
Posted by DruBlood at January 7,
2004 07:11 PM |
TrackBack
http://www.livejournal.com/community/austincommunity/976569.html
They've saved the frog. I guess the news hasn't been updated.
Is it really a frog? I think someone just started calling it that for
some weird reason. But it actually resembles the aliens that often appear in
Daniel Johnston's artwork, usually with more than two eye-stalks and
sometimes with big bulgy muscles. Well, I guess it could be an alien frog.
I've just never thought about it that way.
Did you know that Baja Fresh is using this as a PR thing now? They've
released a national press release about it. Basically the guy who owns the
franchise is spending the money to save the mural (which sounds weird--I
mean, saving the mural just means NOT PAINTING OVER IT, which you wouldn't
think would cost money), but their supposed point is that he shares the
supposed priorities of the company (after which they go on and on about the
"values" inherent in providing burritos specially designed for people on the
Atkins diet and so on blah blah blah).
The full text of the press release is on gawker at
http://www.gawker.com/archives/deranged_freakshow_press_release_of_the_day.php
if you're interested. It's icky.
You know, come to think of it, I wouldn't be surprised if they were fully
aware of the controversy that would arise from tearing it down, and
purposefully let it drag out until the last minute to take advantage of the
publicity.
What do you think, jaded blog readers?
