Say "Uncle".

Lately I'v e been collecting vintage books by this illustrator Ryohei Yanagihara, whose work I assume has had a big influence on Reas' pink people. Born in 1931, Yanagihara was the in-house illustrator for Torys Whisky, later renamed Suntory after a corporate merger. His work is great visual slapstick, much of it centered around a dirty old boozehund named "Uncle". Great stuff. Follow the link above to an overview of his work and definitely check out the link to an animated whiskey commercial he did circa mid-1950s. Danvo Publishers put out a really great compendium of Yanagihara's book cover designs thoughout the years that is definitely worth picking up. His work is in league with (though hornier than) Dick Bruna's book covers of the 50s and 60s in line quality, interesting compositions, nice color combos, and lots of paper-cuts. Don't sleep on it! The last book of his work is all sold out.