Lyle Tuttle
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[edit] Lyle Tuttle
Lyle Tuttle is a well-known, living tattoo artist and historian of the medium, who has been tattooing since 1949. <ref>Prick Magazine interview</ref>
[edit] Biographical and career information
Lyle Tuttle was born in 1932 and grew up in Ukiah, CA. At the age of fourteen he purchased his first tattoo for $3.50. In 1949 he began tattooing professionally.<ref>Columbus Dispatch feature article</ref>In 1954 he opened his own studio in San Fransisco. This first shop was open for nearly 30 years. During that time, he was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine,<ref>Rolling Stone,rolling stone magazine, 10/01/1970</ref> after having tattooed Janis Joplin and several other notable musicians and celebrities of the time.
He has tattooed on six continents, yet has never knowingly tattooed a minor.<ref>Columbus Dispatch feature article</ref>He has become a legend and a teacher within the industry in the years he has been tattooing. He officially retired in 1990 but will still occasionally tattoo his signature on a friend or acquaintance. His fame within tattooing has a somewhat humorous side to it, as many tattooists of his day disliked his statements to the press and "shameless self-promotion". <ref>Prick Magazine interview</ref>
Lyle Tuttle currently teaches accredited seminars in "Tattoo machine maintenance and machine building" at tattoo conventions around the United States.
When asked what made tattooing gain in popularity during his early career, he responded:
"Women's liberation! One hundred percent women's liberation! That put tattooing back on the map. With women getting a new found freedom, they could get tattooed if they so desired. It increased and opened the market by 50% of the population - hell of the human race! For three years, I tattooed almost nothing but women. Most women got tattooed for the entertainment value ... circus side show attractions and so forth. Self-made freaks, that sort of stuff. The women made tattooing a softer and kinder art form. "
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