A Blue (Dog) Christmas
Fifty-six-year-old Cajun artist George Rodrigue has been a successful Cajun painter for over 20 years. He created his first Blue Dog in 1984 in a book illustrating Cajun tales. He has now painted over 1,200 Blue Dog paintings, which go for at least $20,000.He painted a light-blue Blue Dog during the CBS News' Early Show and talked about his new book, A Blue Dog Christmas, with CBS News Early Show host Bryant Gumbel.
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GEORGE RODRIGUE: About four years ago I decided that Christmas has so
many strong graphic images, and my image is very strong and if I could combine the two graphic designs into a Christmas
theme, it would be fun. It took me like four years to do these 22 silk-screen prints.
BRYANT GUMBEL: There's 22 prints. There's an ornament in the back. Take a look at the ornament in the back of the book.
GEORGE RODRIGUE: These are just things I had fun with in the last years.
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GEORGE RODRIGUE: I had two dogs when growing up. I was an only child, so I had like two brothers. Lady and Trixie. These dogs did everything with me. When I started making my own Christmas ornaments and everything -- I painted everything myself, I painted the manger scene -- the dogs were right there with me. And actually the dogs would sleep in the manager at night.
BRYANT GUMBEL: Blue Dog was based on another dog, Tiffany...
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BRYANT GUMBEL: Why is Blue Dog a she?
GEORGE RODRIGUE: It's a she sometimes, a he sometimes. She's a spirit, really.
BRYANT GUMBEL: What are you telling us?
GEORGE RODRIGUE: It's a spirit.
BRYANT GUMBEL: Blue Dog is a spirit?
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GEORGE RODRIGUE: It's a spirit. It's a deceased dog I had in the '80s. I decided to recreate her as a Blue Dog. She's deceased, she's got the blues.
BRYANT GUMBEL: You keep saying she.
GEORGE RODRIGUE: She, he. He's my best friend.
BRYANT GUMBEL: He never moves?
GEORGE RODRIGUE: He never moves. Stays always the same. I move the insides of the dogs. Everything and inside is very loose and very graphic and fun.