Fabricating favorite childhood memories

Meet Adam Bomb, the metal recreation of the iconic hot head from the Garbage Pail Kids series of 1980s trading cards. Shaun Graham

During an episode of The Fabricator Podcast in 2023, the conversation during one of the openers turned to the Garbage Pail Kids, the raunchy counter to the wholesome Cabbage Patch Kids of the 1980s. While the Garbage Pail Kids are more known for being trading cards than actual kids’ toys, they still live on, both as funny memories for the kids who collected the cards and not-so-funny recollections for the parents who still shake their heads, not really understanding the attraction of a kid like Adam Bomb, who has a mushroom cloud exiting the top of his noggin.

(For those interested in pop culture history, cartoonist Art Spiegelman came up with the idea for the Garbage Pail Kids series when he was working as a consultant for Topps. He also was the co-creative force behind Wacky Packages, the trading cards in the 1960s that made fun of consumer goods, such as calling Ritz crackers “Ratz” crackers and Cap’n Crunch “Cap’n Crud.” Later, he produced “Maus,” a graphic novel that covered his father’s experience in the Holocaust. In 1992, the book won a Pulitzer Prize, the only graphic novel ever to receive such an honor.)

Several weeks after the podcast went live, I received a note from Shaun Graham, a metal foreman at Goodnight & Co., a Sherman Oaks, Calif., company dedicated to building scenery and sets for studios, theaters, and special events. Also a talented welder, Graham said that he had been enjoying the podcasts, but he also was inspired to tackle a fabrication of Adam Bomb, probably the most famous of the Garbage Pail Kids.

Why does Adam Bomb stand out? Maybe it’s the fact that the kid actually has a detonator in his hands and chooses to set off the nuclear bomb in his head. We’ve all been there metaphorically, and even that close to the abyss, sometimes we manage to keep smiles on our faces. Adam Bomb just takes the next step for us, saving us the hassle and clean-up that comes with blowing up a human head.

“I used to collect baseball cards, and I collected Garbage Pail Kids for a little while,” said 40-year-old Graham. “I just liked the fact that they are different and could be viewed as a little negative, but at the same time, I just loved the creative aspect of it, even the names.

“So when I heard about the Garbage Pail Kids again, I thought instantaneously of Adam Bomb. I knew I could do something,” he continued. “So I wanted to just run with it.”

He started with some metal spheres, one for the head and one for the body, both 14-ga. mild steel. Parts of the arms are made of 16-ga. mild steel, and the fingers on the hand are solid steel rods, which were heated up with a torch until they got a little bit of a shape and then welded together. After that, a lot of grinding was done to finish it.

You also might notice some diamond plate as part of Adam Bomb’s attire. Graham used 1/8-in. plate for the bottom of the shoes and the tie.

Creating hands for a metal sculpture can be a little bit of a challenge. Graham said he’s actually done some work in this area before, making a much more realistic hand as part of a Michael Myers mask. The idea for the art piece was to have the masked head of Michael Myers and his hand appearing like it was coming through a wall.

“Doing that realistic hand for a cartoon really wouldn’t have worked,” Graham joked.

Graham said the finishing work on the Adam Bomb sculpture was probably one of the biggest challenges, particularly with all of the tight spaces. He ended up purchasing some small grinders for jewelry applications to help with the task.

“The different aspects of just putting it together were challenges,” he said. “Having to get the arms where they needed to be as well as the hands, that in itself could be a challenge. It’s not like you can make a simple jig, throw it down, and have it keep everything where you want it.”

The project also gave him the opportunity to do some TIG welding, which doesn’t come up that frequently in his day job.

“My art just stems from my love of what I do—my love of welding and fabricating,” Graham said. “I know I’ve got the skills to be able to do it. I’ve built enough things. It’s all relative—all of the angles, the bends, and all of the things you deal with. It’s just a matter of taking that image out of your head and being able to use basic fabrication skills to create it.”

Perhaps one of the more interesting parts of the sculpture is Adam Bomb’s mushroom cloud. Graham had never really worked with fiberglass by himself, but the owner of Goodnight & Co. was able to show him how to create the mushroom cloud out of sculpted foam, which then acted like a mold for the resin that was applied over it. After one try, Graham said he got the results he wanted.

“I actually am really happy with how it turned out and the effects with the lights in the back,” he said. “I still might mess with some different lighting, but I’m pretty satisfied with the way I have it now.”

When asked if he might tackle any other pop culture sculptures, Graham said others have encouraged him to try and replicate some other Garbage Pail Kids. He’s even got some inspiration closer to home. His almost 2-year-old son is enamored with “The Super Mario Brothers Movie,” and that happens to be a game that Graham played frequently as a kid.

“When it comes down to it, one of the things I love is the fact that, not just in my hands, but the guys that have worked with me, we have helped to create happy memories,” Graham said. “It could be the work we did at amusement parks and the stuff we’re fabricating now. It wouldn’t be possible without welders and fabricators. So being a part of that is part of what I love. It’s part of what continues to drive me.”