The Mumbling Prophets -- sketch comedy $145

[The Mumbling Prophets]

(Admin code added by Palmer - 10852412)

Hi there!

I'm Laura, director of THE MUMBLING PROPHETS, a sketch comedy troupe based in Cambridge, MA. We're in the market for a great new logo. You can expect me to work closely with you on it--the rest of the Prophets will give feedback along the way, too, but they'll funnel it through me, so we don't drive you nuts.

Our comedy has been described as: hilarious, smart, inventive, tilted, polished, unexpected, clever, endearing, classy, wild, and full of heart. We generally lean toward subjects that are surreal or irreverent and have to do with a wide range of relationships and human nature.

Even though we're "Prophets," we're not particularly Biblical. That is to say, we don't necessarily want to play up the religious aspect of the name. Sure, we have nuns and priests in some sketches. But we also have pirates, cops, psychiatrists, CEOs--and especially, ordinary folk in funny situations.

Our name has some irony to it (we deliver important prophecy, yet we mumble), and if you can find some visual representation of that quality, we'd love to see it. It would be great if some small part of the logo could be lifted out, for use as a stamp. Full color is great, but the design should also be something that works extremely well in grayscale--or maybe even monochromatic? Some of the color schemes that appeal to us are red and black, or earth tones reminiscent of parchment, burlap, sand, and stone. Personally, I'd love it if the logo, itself, were also funny. None of these things are requirements at this point--except that we do need it to work in grayscale.

The title of our next show is "Larger than Life." While that should not be included in the main logo, it would be great if you could suggest some common display fonts that would go well with the logo.

We'll use this logo for our website, programs, postcards, and business cards--and possibly on t-shirts, letterhead, buttons, stickers, posters.... I'm not sure what programs we'll be plunking this into. We'll need it in formats that give us the most flexibility. Do we need to specify format, size, resolution, etc. ahead of time?

PRIZE: $145

We have some design ideas, but I'd say, for the moment, we're also looking to see a totally fresh take on this. So.... Anything goes!

There's so much talent here at DesignOutpost, and we can't wait for you to unleash it on The Mumbling Prophets!

Thank you.

Laura

[Bill]

Here's an idea...

[Eagle]

*
Hi Laura

Here's one from me. :)

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Wow. This is so much fun already.

Bill, I like the Magic 8-ball idea though I'd be concerned that the public may just see it as a regular 8-ball despite the hard edge at the bottom. Of course, it's only when you look at the bottom that you see the "magic" part, but then you don't see the 8 part.

What if there were a second one there somewhere--maybe one showing the 8, and the one you have now could show the triangle on the bottom of the 8-ball, and that's where we could put a tagline or something.

In fact, we used to use a tagline: "In the year 2003, there will be comedy." I always liked having a prophetic tagline, but back in 2002, it sounded to me like we were saying nothing was funny YET. (Hey, I know it's not your job, but if anyone here happens to have some inspiration about a tagline, feel free to offer it....)

In the triangle, it could just say "sketch comedy." But would it work to put anything in that small space? Could work on a website or poster, but not on a business card.

Eagle, I like the laughing thumbs with bowties (made me giggle), but not how "fisty" the fists are (though the punchline pun is not lost on me). We're not as much of an in-your-face kind of troupe as some are. Also, having one black and one white hand might imply that we do a lot of racially based comedy? We might do something like that once in a while, but that's not our "thing."

Hands are nice though. Could they be used differently? Applause? Thumb wrestling? A bit more sideways and tilted and they might look more like the thumbs-up I saw at third glance.


Two very different designs, and that's great. For now, the more variety, the better.

Thank you!

Laura

[Mark]

I can hardly contain myself... :P

[Palmer]

:lol:

[designmarket]

ROFL B)
Can I buy it! LOL :ph34r:

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Mark--that is SO Funny! Uh... whether we wind up choosing this one or not--um, are you single?



Have to run off to rehearsal, but I'll check in later tonight.

You folks are amazing.

Laura

[AlexKogan]

Mark :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :tup:

Now I feel stupid posting what I'm posting after THAT version :lol:

But anyway, here's my version (darn too serious in comparison :D :)

[Mark]

<!--QuoteBegin-The Mumbling Prophets+Nov 16 2003, 10:51 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (The Mumbling Prophets @ Nov 16 2003, 10:51 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Uh... whether we wind up choosing this one or not--um, are you single?[/b][/quote]
Yes I am! :D .... Uh :unsure: Just don't tell my wife.... :whistle:

[Bill]

Here's another mblbom nskjsnbsn idea...

[cre8or]

Hey! Isn't that ElKootcho? ;)

[The Mumbling Prophets]

So I got home and have been staring at this page for a really long time, trying to figure out what to say. I just keep laughing. I love this process, this site, and the community here.

Mark, as I said before, I love your design with the guy with the chicken. (A bunch of us do.) And if I weren't in the troupe, but I saw that design on a flyer, I'd be much more likely to go see the show. And that's a huge plus.

The "wetting your pants" line is hilarious, but that might not work for our troupe. I also have mixed feelings about "the end is near" though it's especially funny with the guy's pants down. I'll ask my castmates what they think.

I love the chicken, the sandwich board, the look on the guy's face, the spraypaint print, all that stuff.

I think I'd like to see a little more contrast among the beiges, or actually, the two beige circular bands on either side of the black section could be a different color. I want to say red, but I don't want that to take away from the chicken. What do you think would work there?

Also, will this design work in two-color or grayscale? Could we see it? And if this were small enough for a business card, would everything still be clear?


<!--QuoteBegin-"design-market"+--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE ("design-market")</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Can I buy it! LOL[/b][/quote]
Um, we still get first dibs, don't we? ;)

Alex, I kind of like the eye. And I have to say that the design looks pretty spiffy on the letterhead and business card! I'm not as fond of the wavy edges on the letters, and I do think we're going for something with a little more conceptual funny behind the design.

And Bill... Your 2nd design is quite appealing. I like the comic book feel here, though that's not usually my preference. I like the lettering, the color, etc. Is that Johnny Carson? I'm not sure we want Karnak (sp?) in our logo. But I love the look of it. Hmm. I'll wait to hear from some other Prophets on this one.

Thanks, everyone!

Laura

[Mark]

Thanks for the feedback Laura! :)

I'll play around with the colors, etc and post it sometime tomorrow.
But right now, I should tuck myself in and catch up on some shuteye :zzz: before I pass out. :blink:


Cheers,
Mark

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Great--thanks, Mark.

Anyone/Everyone:

So here's an additional thought--one that I, and the troupe, are in no way committed to, which is why I didn't suggest it at the start. But if someone was inspired to play with it, it would be fun to see. The words:
THE
MUMBLING
PROPHETS
...carved out of stone (not chiseled into the stone, but carved out, like Stone Henge). The words would look chunky and impressive, stacked that way, viewed slightly from the side and from slightly below (?). Maybe there's a little bird standing on top somewhere. The other thing is, there might be a person who got stuck under the words and is sort of crushed in the grass underneath with just a tiny bit of a hand reaching out and a dialogue bubble coming out that says something like "Shhh." Okay, maybe that's kind of lame, but something... Maybe the bird says I told you so. Eh. Perhaps there are prophet-like, robed people, hiding behind the letters. Or something. This is far less impressive in words than it was in my mind's eye earlier today. Truth is, even if it's just the big stone letters--and you find a different way to make it fun and/or intriguing.... Feel free to give it a whirl.

Thanks!

[Mark]

Hi Laura,

I'm awake now! :woot:

Here's some color combinations for you. I've also included a B&W version and what it would look like on a business card. Please keep in mind that the business card artwork would be much more crisper printed then viewing on the monitor, however it looks pretty good none the less. I left the wording the way it was until further notice.

Cheers,
Mark :D

[Mark]

Here's another look based on your groups ideas...

[The Mumbling Prophets]

HA! Funny one with the flag, Mark! We'll see what everyone things.

So we're having some debates about the pros and cons of these designs.

Mark: There is strong sentiment in favor of the guy with the sandwich board (with some of the color/wording adjustments we've been talking about), but the main concern seems to be that it's rather busy which might limit how we could use it. Now that I see it in grayscale, that has become my main concern--where the now-gray bands around the black section intersect with the chicken and the halo, and the horizontal lines behind his head, and maybe even the effect of the spraypaint font when the rest is grayscale--make it look not so crisp. I'll post more later, but for the moment, I'm wondering, is it possible to see what this would look like just in black and white? Maybe that's a real pain at this point. Especially considering the placement of the chicken. Hmm. I'm also wondering if some part of this design could be lifted out as a stamp for the times when we really need something much more simple. How does that work on your end? Hard? Easy? Impossible? I'll write more details later.

Also, heads-up, Bill!! Some Prophets are fond of your 8-ball design especially because it's so straightforward and they also prefer something more banner-style. Any thoughts on solving the earlier 8-ball dilemma?

Thanks!!

[Mark]

Here's a straight B&W version. :)

[Mark]

Here's a couple of adapts for you... :D

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Thanks, Mark, you're doing great work for us. And a lot of it!

So I'm not going to ask you to have the guy's sandwich board just say "Mumbling Prophets" and give the chicken his own sandwich board with the word "The." No, really, much as the thought amuses me, I'm not asking you to do that!

But I would ask again about that lift-out stamp thang. As in, suppose we also wanted something like a freestanding sandwich board to use to mark a new section on the website or to have several to use as a menu. The same sandwich board as in your first design, but blank. Can you do that? (No need to do it yet but just let me know.) I'm thinking that I could put a transparent text box over the sandwich board and add whatever little text is needed then, right?

Also: Could you show us your most recent design in grayscale and in black and white? Thanks!

And then I'm going to need a day to confer with The Prophets. I don't want to ask you to do more work beyond that until we're more sure that we're going in this direction. If so, we'll come back with a font preference, a thought about regular sandwich board vs. banner-type sign, tagline possibilities, etc. I can tell you that there's no way we can stick with the ultra-funny "wetting your pants..." tagline only because that strong a suggestion of bathroom humor might repel more of our preferred audience. But, we'll either come up with one in the next day, or, depending on the placement, we can add new or changing taglines outside this design. One that we're thinking of is "Don't say we didn't warn you." We'll see.

Merci.

Laura

[Mark]

<!--QuoteBegin-The Mumbling Prophets+Nov 18 2003, 01:04 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (The Mumbling Prophets @ Nov 18 2003, 01:04 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->The same sandwich board as in your first design, but blank.* Can you do that?[/b][/quote]
Yes I can. That is a very easy thing to do and not a problem. :D


.... also attached is the grey scale and B&W version of the last design.


Cheers,
Mark

[Bill]

Here's another idea...

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Hee hee. :)

Glad to see you back here, Bill. This could be a contendah!

So here's the deal, everyone:

We've been loving Mark's sandwich board guy. At tonight's rehearsal, we agreed that this is the kind of design that would make people stop and take notice if they saw it on a poster, it could draw them in to see our show, and they might be extra inclined to buy some Mumbling Prophets' shirts/mugs/whatever with an image like this on it. So basically, the bar has been set rather high. (If we wind up going this route, we'll still need to try out at least one more configuration and tweak some things. Mark, I hope to post those details tomorrow.) If we walk away with that as our logo, the contest will have been a great success.

At the same time, there is some feeling among the Prophets that we'd still like to see more designs. There are so many talented designers here, and, basically, we'd love to become thoroughly stuck--not knowing which of several amazing designs to choose. I mean, we'll be able to make a choice, of course, but we'd like it to be a terribly, terribly difficult choice.

Ideally, the winning design would encompass the quality of mumbling, the notion of prophecy, and the spirit of comedy. We understand that's a tall order, especially because these are not concrete concepts.

The two designs in the running now are Mark's Sandwich Board Guy and Bill's Flying Chicken. Both clearly show this is comedy without having to say so (though Bill's does say so). Both have that stop-and-take-notice, go-see-the-show, and buy-it-on-a-mug appeal. Mark's relates to prophecy and at least to bumbling, if not mumbling itself. :) Bill, could you think about if there's some way to bring the mumbling and/or the prophecy into yours? Could you also show us what this one would look like in grayscale and b&w? Thanks.

Various Prophets have other thoughts/requests--I'll report them here, and let's see what you're inspired to do with them. 1. Like to see at least one strong design that doesn't have any words in it, not even our name. (We can put our name next to it or below or whatever depending on how we use it.) 2. Something with that burlap/parchment look--perhaps a few robed prophets hunched over some kind of scroll, perplexed, mumbling to each other. 3. Something with finger puppets, perhaps, but definitely not sock puppets (that's another local troupe). 4. Really, whatever else you're inspired to try.

Can you all post your designs in grayscale/b&w as well as in the colors you've chosen? Thank you!

Our goal is to end the contest this weekend.

Yours, in poultry,
Laura

[Bill]

Another try...

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Catching up:

I think we decided against both the 8-ball and the Karnak designs because we want something that is truly our own. Not that Mattel or NBC are ever going to come after us, but it's the principle.

The design with the big stone letters is impressive, though not quite what I had in mind, and that's fine because it made me realize that what I was thinking is not necessarily worth pursuing at this point.

However, Mark, we would like to see the little guy on top of the stone in a larger form--just him. It's the same face as the sandwich board guy, right? But he's in a robe.... Maybe we could see that funny guy as if he were a real prophet, but he's still got a rubber chicken along with his staff. Maybe he has some other funny thing in his hand, too, like a pair of whacky novelty glasses. Or something. Or just him with the robe and staff? No words.

Bill's flying chicken is cute. We'd like to see that one as a text-free logo. Just the chicken, against the blue oval. (And also see it in grayscale/b&w, please.)

I'll probably wait to comment on the finger puppets until I hear from the guy who requested that.

Yes, I'm still going to write some notes to Mark on the sandwich board guy--I'm really eager to do that, actually, and to see how it looks with some slight modifications. But I'm also exhausted, so it probably won't happen tonight.

Thank you for your work, Mark and Bill! :)

[Bill]

Here ya go!

[Mark]

;)

[designmarket]

I cannot help it.. I gotta :lol: good stuff designers.

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Well, the Mumbling Prophets' e-mail network is alive and ablaze!

And we're liking what we've seen here. The chicken and the finger puppets are awfully cute.

A few requests:

Could we see Mark's latest robed prophet guy in grayscale/b&w?

Could we see the original sandwich board guy, without the circle around him, but with the words "The Mumbling Prophets" on the sandwich board in a more clear font than the spraypaint font. Is there a paintbrush font? Also, can you try the spraypaint font without the spraypaint effect? His sandwich board could be a little larger, if necessary, but would still be a sandwich board, not like the banner-style sign in the later design.

More to come.

THANK YOU!

[ejlain]

Hi Laura.
I don't think I can top any of the great designs you've gotten so far, but I just HAD to enter your contest.

Here's my idea.

Thanks.

- Ed

[Mark]

;)

[Mark]

;)

[Mark]

;)

[Mark]

Just a bit of "Sandwich Board" humor to end your day! :lol:

[Bill]

Okay mark. You asked for it!

[Mark]

Have you been peeking in my bedroom window again??? :unsure:

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Bill,
Think we could see the footprint-on-the-caboose design in grayscale?

Kiddddinnnng. I kid.

[The Mumbling Prophets]

<!--QuoteBegin-"markbeaudry"+--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE ("markbeaudry")</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Just a bit of "Sandwich Board" humor to end your day![/b][/quote]

Adorable!

So listen, Mark, can you show us the guy in the robe without the hood, glasses, and mustache? Thanks!

And Ed: Glad you entered! Your design is spiffy, with fun colors, and it's easy to see how it would convert to b&w. Hey, is it just me, or does the guy in the middle bear a striking resemblance to James Taylor? :) Anyway, I'm waiting to get some feedback from at least a few other Prophets about this one and a couple of the other designs.

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Hey, Mark!

Some of us really liked the look of the banner-style sign you gave that guy on p. 2. Unfortunately, it was no longer a sandwich board, and it's those sandwich-board guys who advertise all the prophecies.

So here's something I'd love to see:

The same guy, wearing his usual sandwich board (not a sign), but he also has his left arm stretched way out (like he did with the banner sign), but he's holding a separate sign next to his sandwich board. He'd be holding the chicken along with the sign in his left hand, and his hand placement would be the same as in your banner-sign design.

The font on the sandwich board could be the 1st one you gave us here on p. 3.
Written on the sandwich board would be:
The Rapture Has Come
(We're playing with different versions of that phrase, but that's a good place to start.)

The font on the separate sign could be the same as on the sandwich board. ALSO, it would be fun to see if there's another choice that wouldn't look too disjointed--something that looks a little more like a theater sign that he didn't make himself--but is holding up as evidence that his sandwich board message is true.
Written on the separate sign would be:
The Mumbling Prophets

"The Mumbling Prophets" should catch one's eye before the prophecy on the sandwich board itself. Maybe the sign is bigger or wider than the sandwich board, or the print is darker, or maybe he's even holding the sign just a little bit higher than the level of the sandwich board. Whatever you think will work.

Thank you, Mark!!

By the way, we've discussed adding a little comedy surprise to the prize for this contest--as a gesture of thanks for sticking with us through some of our wackier requests. Is that okay, Palmer? In fact, we could do it for you, too. :)

Laura

[Palmer]

<!--QuoteBegin-The Mumbling Prophets+Nov 21 2003, 05:40 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (The Mumbling Prophets @ Nov 21 2003, 05:40 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> By the way, we've discussed adding a little comedy surprise to the prize for this contest--as a gesture of thanks for sticking with us through some of our wackier requests. Is that okay, Palmer? In fact, we could do it for you, too. :)
[/b][/quote]
By all means. Looking forward to it. :jester:

[Mark]

Here's the one request...

[Mark]

and here's the other....

[ElKootcho]

<!--QuoteBegin-Palmer+Nov 21 2003, 02:03 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Palmer @ Nov 21 2003, 02:03 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> <!--QuoteBegin-The Mumbling Prophets+Nov 21 2003, 05:40 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (The Mumbling Prophets @ Nov 21 2003, 05:40 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> By the way, we've discussed adding a little comedy surprise to the prize for this contest--as a gesture of thanks for sticking with us through some of our wackier requests.&nbsp; Is that okay, Palmer?&nbsp; In fact, we could do it for you, too.&nbsp; :)
[/b][/quote]
By all means. Looking forward to it. :jester: [/b][/quote]
Sounds good. These guys are doing a great job. Each entry is cracking me up! :lol:

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Oh man! :flowers: Funny. Have to check in with the other Prophets....

[Mark]

This is what happens when you drink too much on a Friday night! :drink: Sorry I could'nt resist! :lol:

[Palmer]

lol :tup:

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Gosh, Mark, we have to get you liquored up more often. :brow:

[The Mumbling Prophets]

FYI, I'm still gathering feedback from my fellow propheteers.... We're loving what you've all done. :kiss:

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Okay, we're closing in on a decision! Quick request for Mark. In the p. 3 design with the separate purple sign, I'm still a little concerned about how busy it is. Mostly, where the red and yellow chicken is in front of the red and yellow lights on the sign. I like the fancy look of the sign, but maybe want to see some other way for it to stay fancy but without that border? Or more of the chicken could hang off the sign? I guess I'd just like to see more of the contrast of the chicken against the background of the sign. For both color and b&w purposes. Yes, let's try it without that border--other ideas are welcome, too. Muchas gracias.

[Mark]

Here you go....

[Mark]

Greyscale version

[The Mumbling Prophets]

And the contest has come to an end.

There were some Prophets pulling for almost every design. Great aspects to all of them, and a big thank you to everyone who participated! This has been a terrific experience for us.

The winning design is Mark Beaudry's sandwich board guy, and the trickiest part has been deciding which one. We received even more of these guys than we requested, and every single one of them still makes me laugh--hard--even after a week of examining them, way too closely. I'd say that's a pretty good sign!

For the official pick, let's go with the simpler one--the guy with the regular-size sandwich board where the board says The Mumbling Prophets--the top one in the pair you gave us. We feel he will represent us very well and will be the most versatile.

Let's chat tomorrow morning about the final details.... Thank you, Mark!!

Laura & The Mumbling Prophets

[AlexKogan]

yooo-hoooo, Mark :D :tup: GREAT work! :lol:

IMHO this guy's face is a hit, the rest are just framing details :D I'd really use the face and the hand pointing up and it would be enough :P

[The Mumbling Prophets]

Hi, All.

I wanted to come back to thank you all again and to give some feedback on the couple of designs I never said much about. (I get the impression that most of you appreciate that, even though we already chose a winner.)

Mark's stone "Prophets" with the 2 guys and the flag: We figured you just hadn't yet gotten to coloring in the stone. Someone said that made it look ghostly/creepy. We felt the guys were too small though we liked their size in relation to the stone. But if we wanted this design on, let's say, a business card, we thought the guys would be completely lost. The flag was a nice touch. It was great to be able to pull the guy at the top out of this design and see him stand on his own. We loved that guy so much that we preferred the designs where he takes center stage. All in all, the people who were pulling for this design just like seeing people get smushed. :)

Bill's finger puppets: We asked to see finger puppets, you gave us finger puppets! :) With the red, black, beige, and the robes for the little finger prophets! Very cute. The name looked a little too blocky to me--and not as integrated with the image as we would have liked (though, actually, as you may have noticed, the troupe was split on whether we wanted that). A couple of Prophets really liked this design but agreed that, even with revision, it probably wouldn't have the same degree of "grab ya" that the one we chose had. Didn't want to ask you to keep working on it, given that.

Ed's prophets making James Taylor laugh. ;) A couple of Prophets really liked this one, too, especially the line drawing, the color schemes, and how the word Mumble is stacked behind them. But we all felt there was something about how the heads and hands were drawn--something a little unsettling (?). I think the adjustment would have involved redrawing them, not just tweaking them. Didn't want to ask you to do all that at that point. Also, we felt it was too explicit in terms of prophets, mumbling, and comedy. How strange--when you give us exactly what we ask for, it turns out to be not what we want. But thanks for giving us what we asked for!

Thank you, everyone! If you're ever in the Boston area, give us a holler. E-mail me if you want info on our next show (2 weeks away). Keep up the great work.

Laura