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Flag-waving in the flesh Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Bob Wheeler of Klamath Falls has an American flag tattooed on his arm Tuesday by Steve Anderson of Custom Body Art in Medford. Tattoo shops across the Rogue Valley report renewed interest in the Stars and Stripes in the past two weeks. Red-white-and-blue tattoos are all the rage By BILL KETTLER Bob Wheeler traded an angel for Old Glory. The Klamath Falls man planned to have an angel tattooed on his chest until terrorists bombed New York and Washington. Wheeler wheeled into Medford Tuesday to have the Stars and Stripes etched into his right arm, along with the phrase: "Colors that never run." "I changed my mind with everything that's been going on," said Wheeler, 47, a master sergeant in the Oregon Air National Guard. "It's my way of showing my patriotism." Men and women alike have been trooping into tattoo shops for patriotic decorations since the Sept. 11 bombings. Tattoo artist Steve Anderson said his shop, Custom Body Art, has done at least a dozen patriotic tattoos besides Wheeler's in the two weeks since terrorists crashed airplanes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. "We've done a lot of flags," said Anderson. "We've done 'em all over - on shoulder blades, inner arms, inner forearms. The top of the arm is most popular. It's like a (military) patch up there." Tattoo shops across the Rogue Valley report renewed interest in the Stars and Stripes in the past two weeks. Megan Doherty at Custom Tattoo Design in Ashland said she's done a few eagles and a flag since the bombing. Bruce Burton at Unique Tattooing & Piercing in Grants Pass said some of his customers want something more than an ordinary flag. "We've been doing some weird stuff," Burton said. "I took an eagle and put the stars in his head and made the feathers in his neck into the stripes in the flag." Anderson's shop offers red-white-and-blue motifs that reflect contemporary tastes. He'll tattoo Mickey Mouse holding the flag, or Betty Boop with the colors, or a basic shield design with stars on a blue field above red and white stripes. "A flag costs anywhere from $50 up," he said, "depending on how much skin you want to cover." The flag across Wheeler's arm carried a $120 price tag. Anderson said tattoos have been used to set soldiers apart or create a sense of belonging for a long time. "Down through history, warriors and soldiers have always gotten some kind of (identifying) mark. "In the Middle East, where everything's going on right now, a lot of those tribes tattooed their warriors." Elaborately tattooed warriors in some cultures inspired fear in their enemies, Anderson said. "I've read about the first Caucasians who saw the tattooed people in the South Sea islands. It scared the hell out of them." Tattooed American warriors first became commonplace during World War II. Anderson said tattoo artists near military bases often worked long days decorating soldiers and sailors going off to war. "When there were big troop movements, they'd work 17-, 18-, 19-hour days," Anderson said, "doing one guy after another." Anderson said many of his patriotic customers have long since passed the age where they might go off to war. "The 20-year-olds aren't the ones looking for flags," he said. "They're middle-aged men - and women. The 30s-and-up - that's who we're seeing right now." Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.