Original Cabinet Card - CC014 Alien Arm

Ezekiel “Zeke” Brodwater of New Tacoma, Washington Territory, was a pioneer in more ways than one. Not only did he stake a claim during the great lumber rush of 1887, he also staked a claim on being the first man in the Pacific Northwest to develop a full, working, tentacular limb.

The official story—told at town socials and poker nights—was that Zeke lost his right arm in a logging accident and had it replaced by “something I found in the tidepools.” The unofficial story—whispered in saloons and carefully ignored by clergymen—was that the arm found him.

Far from hiding it, Zeke made the most of his alien appendage: fishing without bait, stirring massive pots of stew, and once winning a tug-of-war against the entire crew of the Mary Ellen. The tentacles could write in impeccable cursive, shuffle cards like a riverboat cheat, and apparently “smell fear.”

This portrait was taken to commemorate his engagement to Miss Adeline Carroway, who famously told the town gossip, “He’s a gentleman through and through—except that arm. That arm has its own ideas.”

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Colin Batty is an artist from Manchester, UK. He has worked on countless cool projects including Tim Burton's, Mars Attacks, the Oscar nominated short, The Sandman, Eddie Murphy's, The PJ's and many, many more. Colin has contributed to Freakybuttrue for many years and graces this site with his amazing designs, incredible sculptures, comics and his world famous cabinet card paintings and so much more.

Each original cabinet card is a genuine one hundred year old (or more) photograph on which Colin directly paints. Photographs of this age are often creased, scratched, deteriorated, and otherwise worn. Colin often utilizes the character of the wear to find inspiration.

Each original card is signed and dated by the artist.

Archival prints of this original can be purchased HERE.