'Tis The Season

Gentlemen,

'Tis the season for articles on the world of straight razor shaving. I understand Playboy has published a piece in which our own SRP member Bluepriciple (Steve Dempster of the Invisible Edge) is quoted. I have not read the article yet, but I am sure it will be topnotch. Also, Steve is a fine gentleman and the man behind Thiers-Issard's Spartacus in England.

My own article on the world of straight razor shaving just came out in a Milwaukee-based alternative newspaper called Shepherd Express. The publication has national ties with other alternative newspapers; therefore, we might get some national play, too. Also, I managed to mention SRP.

The article, titled "Straight Razors: Bringing Joy to Shaving," is geared toward the general public. I had an 800-word (little over three typewritten pages) limit, and thanks to Lynn Abrams, I found myself with plenty of material. Read and enjoy.

I am hoping this link will work. Otherwise, I'll get in touch with the newspaper and see if they can provide the link.

Straight Razors: Bringing Joy to Shaving

Regards,

Obie

Great article. Keep up the good work.

Congrats Obie, very nicely done:)

Obie, if you ain't a pro writer you ought to be. A very well written piece that covers why many of us are devoted to the art of shaving with a straight razor and will undoubtedly bring some new blood, if you'll pardon the expression, to SRP. :tu

Very well written Obie! :tu

Congrats Obie, a great article and well written!

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Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Obie, if you ain't a pro writer you ought to be. A very well written piece that covers why many of us are devoted to the art of shaving with a straight razor and will undoubtedly bring some new blood, if you'll pardon the expression, to SRP. :tu

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Hello, Jimmy,

Bless your heart for the kind words. Thank you so much.

Yes, I am a professional writer. If you visit my website (obieyadgar.com), you'll see my books there. One is a novel, a gentle and sentimental love story, and the other is a collection of humerus anecdotes and little stories from the world of the great composers.

I had a dual career as writer and radio announcer. My professional writing career started as a U.S. Army combat correspondent in Vietnam. Since then I have written hundreds of pieces, everything from personal profiles and features articles to documentaries and radio commercials. Currently I am working on my second novel, as well as doing other writing.

Although no longer in radio, I spent 30 years behind the microphone, in commercial classical stations and NPR, in San Diego, upstate New York, St. Louis, Milwaukee and Chicago. In those years, I was fortunate to land some fabulous radio interviews, as well: John Updike, Vincent Price, Judy Collins, Mel Torme, and a host of other artists and celebrities. They were good years.

I still do some voice work for documentaries and audio-visuals.

This article was close to my heart, since it dealt with the world of straight razor shaving. Lynn gave me an excellent interview. Also, I had a chance to mention SRP, where I have come to know and respect many gentlemen, including you, my dear Jimmy.

Thanks again.

Regards,

Obie

Obie,

What a wonderful article! A fasntastic summary of our little morning joy without making us sound like a bunch of old kooks and weirdos (not that we dont' have our share of old kooks and weirdos of all ages!!)
Thank you for sharing it with us.

Well done! That is a beautifully crafted article.

Good stuff Obie, way to go!

cool article, thanks for the link!

Obie - you nailed it!

"For many of us, the straight razor also carries a distinct element of sweet and sentimental romance. Remember the old-time barbershop on a Saturday morning, where a haircut and straight razor shave came with all the day’s news and commentary by the locals?"

Put me down as a romantic.

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Originally Posted by Obie

I understand Playboy has published a piece in which our own SRP member Bluepriciple (Steve Dempster of the Invisible Edge) is quoted.

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Which issue?

Hello, Wolfger,

My understanding is the current issue, January's, or perhaps February's, I am not sure.

The gentlemen who have read it might know. I would love to read it.

Regards,

Obie

@ wolfger -- there was a thread about the Playboy issue here:
Playboy January-Febuary 2010 Issue - Straight Razor Place Forums

@ Obie -- great article. Congrats!

@ everyone else -- I'm sure the site tracks hits but post a comment as well in support of Obie and straight razor shaving. Comment links are at the bottom of the article. :)

thanks for writing that. if i would have read it before I discovered straights, It would have sent me looking for them. I do have a question about this:

For those plagued with in-grown hairs, razor bumps and razor burns, straight razors arguably help reduce, if not fully alleviate, the problem by cutting stubble above the skin rather than below, as multi-blade cartridge razors are believed to do.


well, do multi blade cartridges really cut below the skin or not? and, if they really do, how exactly does something cut below the skin?

Hello, Mr. dear Toplin,

Thanks for the kind words. The article was a lot of fun to write, because the subject was dear to my heart.

From what I understand — although I am without scientific proof — in a multiple blade razor, the first blade lifts the hair and the other blades slice it off by dipping below the skin. Now, this hair has to grow out again.

Sometimes it will grow the wrong way, or curl and twist around itself — and suddenly you have an ingrown hair and a razor bump. Whereas a sharp straight razor will cut the hair flat above the skin, without creating any obstructions for its replacement.

Of course, there are all kinds of arguments for and against this.

In the locker room at the gym, this character was boasting that he had found the greatest razor on earth.

Oh?

I guess it is something new with five blades. For heaven's sake, can you imagine five blades mowing down anything standing on the face? We're not talking five feathers. Five blades.

"You should try it," he offered.
"Well, I'm cheap," I said. "I think I'll stick with one blade."

The question is this: how does your face feel after your shave, provided you've used all the proper preparation and straight razor shaving technique? How does your face feel the next day? With a straight razor you can easily determine how well your skin feels.

Also, don't forget the spiritual value, the romance of shaving with a straight razor. Shaving with a straight is an an art, a craft, whereas mowing your skin down with a row of blades . . . Well, what can I say?

Regards,

Obie

Obie,

That is a wonderful article. It was a pleasure to read such an outstanding work.

Lu

Nice article, Obie. Treading the line between information and propaganda (and I naturally mean that in a good way) very finely indeed.

Great read as always Obie. Look forward to more.

It's really great to see the straight razor renaissance in action. (Though maybe we won't like it so much if everybody starts doing it? ;) )

Good job on doing your part to spread the word!

Had I read that article before you submitted it, I probably would have suggested you leave out the colloquilaisms which are used pretty much exclusively here on the board. The "baby-butt-smooth" one was okay (minus the abbreviation), but I would have omitted some of the other jargon a casual reader might find to be a little too cliquey. Your article's main focus is clearly to educate, and I think it does that pretty well, especially by referencing some of the popular online vendors and highlighting how a freshman just getting into the hobby can do it pretty affordably. I also like how the title hints at how straight razors bring joy to your shave, which is something your average, miserable Mach-3 user will definitely find appealing! Certain parts of the article, however, don't strike me as being very accessible to the average Joe who has simply stumbled across it while thumbing through the pages, you know?

Other than that, it's cool. Some of the phrasing is kind of awkward, though, which made me raise an eyebrow a couple of times throughout. At the beginning, for instance, when you say, "Grandpa most likely went straight every morning. Straight razor, that is." That just doesn't flow - and you need that opening paragraph to grab the reader. When you tack those two little blurbs together in your mind, you think, "So...grandpa went...straight razor? Uhm." You know what I mean? It's perfectly clear what the intended meaning was, but a bit of its punch was lost in the syntax.

Anyhow, I hope I've not been too critical. All in all, I enjoyed the read, and I'm going to have to check out that article in Playboy I've heard mentioned a few times already. If you want me to read or edit anything you write in the future, don't hesitate to send it my way! :)

That's a great article. I posted a comment. Thanks, Mack

Every single person in this thread got a "Thanks!" from Obie except for me! :(

Sorry if you thought I was plucking at your laurels, but wow, I was simply trying to give some constructive criticism. I said I found the article to be an enjoyable read overall and even pointed out specific parts that I liked. I gave you what I thought were some helpful hints and even offered my time in the future should you wish to run something by me, and yet...I was skipped over.

Can't count the times I have been skiped over. Sometimes it is not personal. Just happens.

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Originally Posted by Blade Wielder

Every single person in this thread got a "Thanks!" from Obie except for me! :(

Sorry if you thought I was plucking at your laurels, but wow, I was simply trying to give some constructive criticism. I said I found the article to be an enjoyable read overall and even pointed out specific parts that I liked. I gave you what I thought were some helpful hints and even offered my time in the future should you wish to run something by me, and yet...I was skipped over.

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In fairness, think about how you would have reacted.

You're a professional writer, and you spend a long time crafting an article, doing interviews, writing and re-writing to get it just the way you want it. This article is professionally written and is published in another professionally produced publication.

Then you post a link to that article on a public forum of a group of people who you think may be interested.

Then one of those people (who may not even be a writer himself) posts a pretty blunt public critique of your article and suggests at the end that you send any future work to him for review and editing.

Seriously? Would you have thanked someone for that?

I dont usually comment on these sorts of things, but personally I found your post to be condescending and rather insulting. I appreciate that you may not have meant it that way, but please bear in mind how your posts could be construed before you post them.

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Originally Posted by Blade Wielder

Every single person in this thread got a "Thanks!" from Obie except for me! :(

Sorry if you thought I was plucking at your laurels, but wow, I was simply trying to give some constructive criticism. I said I found the article to be an enjoyable read overall and even pointed out specific parts that I liked. I gave you what I thought were some helpful hints and even offered my time in the future should you wish to run something by me, and yet...I was skipped over.

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And someone asked about why a person would get banned from here.......Sorry guys but there is nothing innocent about these posts and they will stop here. Please don't thank me........

Lynn

A huge thanks to Obie.. People writing these articles and spreading the word is what SRP is about. I'm proud to have Obie as a member here.

Great Post . Wonderful.AAAAAAAAA

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Originally Posted by Stubear

In fairness, think about how you would have reacted.

You're a professional writer, and you spend a long time crafting an article, doing interviews, writing and re-writing to get it just the way you want it. This article is professionally written and is published in another professionally produced publication.

Then you post a link to that article on a public forum of a group of people who you think may be interested.

Then one of those people (who may not even be a writer himself) posts a pretty blunt public critique of your article and suggests at the end that you send any future work to him for review and editing.

Seriously? Would you have thanked someone for that?

I dont usually comment on these sorts of things, but personally I found your post to be condescending and rather insulting. I appreciate that you may not have meant it that way, but please bear in mind how your posts could be construed before you post them.

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You're right, I suppose the post could be construed as condescending.

Obie, if that's the impression I left on you, I apologize. I don't have any articles of my own about straight razor shaving to post, so who am I to say anything?

Once again, an enjoyable read.

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Originally Posted by dwessell

A huge thanks to Obie.. People writing these articles and spreading the word is what SRP is about. I'm proud to have Obie as a member here.

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I agree. It always impresses me how new shavers are constantly coming here. I stumbled across the "Introduce Yourself" thread a week or so ago and there were new posts all the time. It's not just the guys these days, either. I've noticed all kinds of women getting involved. (Which is great!) Hopefully Obie's article wrangles some new recruits! :D

Thanks for the article, Obie.

And I admit I also Googled you.


And sure enough...you do have a Hollywood face!:)

My dear Seraphim,

Ah, bless your heart for the kind remarks on the article. Thank you. The subject matter was great. I just wish I had had more space instead of the 800-word limit. In the meantime, a couple other SR/SRP magazine story ideas are floating in my head and I will have to play with them for a while.

I am glad you acknowledge my Hollywood face. See what I mean? I keep telling everyone. The 30 years or so I spent behind the radio microphone, I always thought I had the perfect face for radio. Now that no longer in radio, I thought I needed a makeover. Handsome devil, don't you think? Yes, sir, Hollywood all the way.

As an aside, Seraphim, this reminds of an incredibly handsome face I met in Vietnam. It belonged to Sean Flynn, Hollywood star Errol Flynn's son. The younger Flynn, if I remember, was working as a cameraman for one of the news services. Was it AP, UPI? I forget. We spent the night together in the Central Highlands with several other civilian war correspondents. Of course, I was a combat correspondent with the U.S. Army.

Sometime after that, the younger Flynn, as I understand, was lost over in Cambodia and no one knows what happened to him. What I especially remember about him was that perfect Hollywood movie star face. I mean the guy was really tall and handsome. Well, he was Errol Flynn's son.

Lots of bittersweet memories of that war.

Thanks again, my dear Seraphim, for the good words.

Regards,

Obie

Just realized there was a link to Digg. I submitted the article but I don't think I have nearly enough following to get it on the front page. Digg it up if you have an account -- every little bit helps!
Digg.com : Straight Razors - Bringing Joy to Shaving

Hello, Commiecat,

Thank you for your public relations flair. You have a good eye for opportunities and a good sense of promotion. Good for you. Every bit does counts, how right you are.

Tell me about Digg. I must admit, this is the first I have heard of the site.

Many thanks.

Regards,

Obie

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Originally Posted by Obie

Hello, Commiecat,

Thank you for your public relations flair. You have a good eye for opportunities and a good sense of promotion. Good for you. Every bit does counts, how right you are.

Tell me about Digg. I must admit, this is the first I have heard of the site.

Many thanks.

Regards,

Obie

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My pleasure, Obie!

Digg.com is a social news site, which basically means that the user base submits stories, images, and videos and then the rest of the user base votes on them. If you like a story, you "digg it up" and it gets a point. Then there is a "front page" with all the most popular stories. It's similar to Reddit if you've ever heard of that.

It started as mostly tech-related articles and as the site has grown it's become more general, including current events, politics, and funny/ironic images and videos. Here are some Wikipedia links:

Digg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reddit - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I'm not much of a Twitter and Facebook user but it'd be good to link your article to them as well. Hopefully it'll help you out with future writing endeavors, which you certainly deserve!

Hello again, Commiecat,

Thank you for the explanation. Yes, this does appear like a good promotional venue. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Thanks also for the kind remarks.

Regards,

Obie