Tag Archives: Beto’s

Unlike those who enjoy Ohio Valley Style Pizza, art thieves have no taste.

Posted on by Standard Reply

Alright. You know I like Ohio Valley Style Pizza. You know I draw mazes. You know I sell mazes on stuff. I also occasionally dabble in other bad art & design work. One of those examples is my Ohio Valley Style Pizza T-shirt/sticker/whatever they wanna print it on at TeePublic & RedBubble. These people are worse than the people who make the PiTtsburGH StYLe pIzza is jUsT lunChABleS joke about Beto’s and DiCarlo’s.

Apparently, that caught the attention of art thieves around the world wide web. I used the Goog for trying to locate my Ohio Valley style T-shirt, and three from Printerval popped up… my art, but not my storefronts or name attached to them. Who TF is Printerval? This is maybe worse than the last time my art was stolen and the guy reached out afterward mad about me naming & shaming him. That’s some world-class jagoffery.

Google search results showing sponsored listings from Printerval selling stolen copies of the Ohio Valley-Style Pizza t-shirt design above the legitimate TeePublic result.

Three different dingleberries used my art in a store… or one scraping bot did? Who knows what triggered them? The maddening part of these ones was that they were offering to add a licensed design file for $2.99. I think I make about $2.50 on a T-shirt sale at TeePublic or RedBubble, even less on stuff like stickers or buttons. I don’t know off the top of my head because I don’t sell them often. 😂

I’m absolutely not complaining about that. I really don’t push the links, this is for fun, I’m not making a living off of it, & the stuff I do offer is weird and very niche. But all that being said, it’s still my art and any profit from sales should go to me after TP & RB take their massive cuts in exchange for doing all the work.

If SakuraArt, Mindyguw, & Kemarsporat2zl actually exist, they can all kiss my ass. Are people doing this, or is it all scripts & bots? I’m guessing even if I watermarked it, that could be easily removed… and paying to copyright an image that doesn’t sell seems to be a negative sum game.

If people worked as hard at creating as they do stealing, they might actually make better art than I do.

Oh yeah, the site said that there were currently 8 in carts. I hope that’s a sales pressure tactic and not real. I don’t think I have sold 8 T-shirts total. 🤣

Screenshot of a Printerval listing displaying absurd pressure tactics like 'In 8 carts' for a niche pizza t-shirt that has barely ever sold in real life.

I follow artist Ryan Conners (KilkennyCat Art) on Threads. She has dealt with art theft for quite some time. Sometimes it’s direct. Sometimes the art is changed. Sometimes it’s scrapers. Sometimes it’s actual damn physical stores. Check out her incredible cat art! I reached out for advice and she suggested the DMCA‘s to the websites & to follow-up with Cloudflare.

At any rate, I had Claude.ai help me draft a DMCA and look for more. It found one on ClickOneShirt where I was unsuccessful in finding any more myself. This one was unhinged in that it contained this copypasta-ish word salad that can only be an LLM-fueled fever dream:

It was a sweltering summer afternoon, the kind where the air hung thick enough to feel like you could almost drink it, and the thought of anything remotely warm made me want to crawl back into bed. But my stomach was rumbling something fierce, and the memory of my Grandma Betty’s cookouts, specifically her version of Rawdog the cheese and toppings Ohio Valley style shirt, danced in my head. It wasn’t really about the shirt, of course, but the meal that went along with it. Back then, we used to pile into her dusty station wagon and head over to the local butcher shop in anticipation.
Rawdog the cheese and toppings Ohio Valley style shirt: buy and enjoy this shirt

The butcher, a man named Mr. Henderson with a walrus mustache and perpetually stained apron, always greeted us with a hearty laugh. He knew Grandma Betty’s order by ass: thick-cut, juicy Italian sausages and an assortment of cheeses, the good stuff that melted like a dream. She was a stickler for quality, and the toppings were just as important. Onions, peppers, a jar of Mrs. Renfro’s ghost pepper salsa (that stuff burned, but man, was it good), and always, always, a mountain of shredded cheddar.

Back home, the process was almost a ritual. The sausages would sizzle on the grill, the smell alone enough to make your mouth water. Grandma, meanwhile, would be expertly slicing the hot dog buns, the kind with the squared ends. The real magic happened when the sausages were split and the cheese went in; it would bubble and blister like something out of a cartoon, just oozing perfection.

ClickOneShirt.com

Like. What? Seeing the words Grandma and Rawdog in the same sentence is unsettling to say the least. It doesn’t even make any sense. Why has this backstory been invented? More importantly: Did it work to sell T-shirts and should I add it to my listing?

This is some J. Peterman level shit. Is Eddie Sherman working at ClickOneShirt?

Bonkers, I tell you. Bonkers.

“He knew Grandma Betty’s order by ass: thick-cut, juicy Italian sausages and an assortment of cheeses…” WHAT?

Also, I reached out with a Google report tool to get the fraudulent art removed from their search listings. Who knows if any of it will pan out, but at least I can say I exhausted every avenue that I had available.

-🍕-

So, if you’re following this absolute shenanigans of the highest order, this may help:

The Original:

The Thieves:

Where I Reported It:

If This Sounds Familiar…

Same shit happened with my maze designs:

I hope to have a follow-up saying how quick and cooperative everyone was, but… we’ll see I guess, won’t we? I know where I am going to get a celebratory slice or two.

I guess I should have mentioned that you should buy a T-shirt or some stickers or a maze book from my various stores. It’s better than Grandma Betty using what should be my profits to rawdog Mr. Henderson the butcher.

Ohio Valley Style Pizza: Sometimes You Just Like It Raw

Posted on by Standard 3

Sometimes you get goofy ideas. Sometimes you follow through on them before anyone tells you no.

For some reason, Ohio Valley Style pizza has made the rounds as “Pittsburgh Pizza,” and that’s fine with me. We just had Beto’s the other night. For me, it’s delicious, inexpensive, and filling. It seems to be rather polarizing. I know DiCarlo’s & Police Station Pizza have their followings, too.

Does anyone else do it this way?

The trip inspired me to do this…

A slice of Beto's pizza, Ohio Valley Style pie from the Banksville neighborhood in Pittsburgh, PA, with the caption "Rawdog the cheese & toppings... Ohio Valley Style!"

And, now that design is available on all kinds of stuff in my TeePublic & RedBubble shops.

T-shirt @ TeePublic
Apron @ RedBubble

Check it out, and tell your friends. Buy it on something you dig it. Both stores have T-shirts, stickers, magnets, hats, & so much more!

Of course, I really enjoy Aiello’s, Badamo’s, Slice, & Italian Village Pizza, too. Also, if you catch a Fox’s on a good day, it’s pretty good too! There’s room for all styles at the table.

Hit me up in the comments with your pizza manifestos because people seem wildly adherent to their opinions, and drop your design critiques too!

Your favorite pizza sucks, my favorite pizza rules! (Part 2)

Posted on by Standard 14

So, last time I blogged about pizza, I covered some of my favorites: Aiello’s, SLICE, & A’Pizza Badamo.  This time I’ll blog about other area big-hitters.

Beto's Pizza on UrbanspoonBeto’s is another place nearby that is just excellent.  They’re the place that you’ve probably heard of that doesn’t cook the cheese & other toppings.  You’ll probably either love it or hate it.  I dig it, the wife does not.  The only thing I’d change is the consistency of the sauce… I’m not a fan of chunks of tomatoes in pizza sauce, but the flavor is excellent.  They don’t get all fancy with toppings here either, just simple, straightforward pizza with cheese that’s melting as you eat it.  I think my favorite way to eat it is just as plain cheese pizza.  Why mess up such a beautiful combination?

Molly's Pizza on UrbanspoonMolly’s Pizza is close by too.  They have some great pizza, and some really crazy specialty pies like the Ranchero Steak Pizza and the Pierogi Pizza.  I personally like to get a pizza with zucchini on top.  Excellent stuff!  It’s hard to pick a favorite around here.

Fiori's Pizzaria on UrbanspoonFoiri’s is a south hills institution.  Sorry, I don’t get it.  Is it good pizza?  Most definitely.  Is it overrated?  In my humble opinion, yes.  Maybe I’m biased because you can get deathfish as a topping there.  At any rate, if you’re in the area and a pizza aficionado, it’s worth checking out before you decide that Slice is the best place around.

Il Pizzaiolo on UrbanspoonIl Pizzaiolo isn’t your regular Pittsburgh pizza shop.  They’re fancy.  They have great pies in a steep Neapolitan tradition.  As they say themselves…

…the restaurant has become a vibrant gathering place for lovers of Neapolitan pizza, pasta and Italian wine. Nearly everything on the menu is hand-made. And if it’s not made in-house, it’s imported from the best artisans, cheese-makers and salumeria in the world. Mozzarella di Bufala comes direct from Naples every Thursday and the pizzas are baked at 1000˚ in a handcrafted, wood-fired brick oven for less than 90 seconds. This, along with perfectly leavened dough, San Marzano tomatoes and extra virgin olive oil, produces the most authentic Neapolitan pizza possible.

So obviously, this is no Pizza Hut.  They make incredible gourmet pies.  Unfortunately it’s entirely not what I’m craving when I “just want a pizza”.  This is where you want to go when you’d like a nice evening out to enjoy some of the lightest most delicious pizza you’ve ever eaten.

Italian Village Pizza (Canonsburg/McMurray) on UrbanspoonItalian Village Pizza is all over the place.  Both by location and quality.  They used to have a killer A1 Steak Sub at the one on Rte. 51, but I don’t think they have that any more.  The last one I frequented was the one in McMurray, but I only ever got the pizza once or twice.  The steak & Italian subs are incredible, but the sauce was just too bitter for me.  It tasted like straight tomato paste with some basil thrown in.  Some people love it, but it just wasn’t my thing.

Here I’d also like to try to address this thing…

VinceNt’s vs. Vincent’s

I’m still not sure what the exact dispute is… if there’s still a dispute, and if there are only two Vincent’s involved in this saga.  Can anyone fill me in on this?  I’ve heard several amalgamated stories over the years.  Some credible news even.  First, you’ve got to get your head around the locations…

There’s Vincent’s Pizza Park – One on 30 in Irwin/North Huntingdon, one on Ardmore Blvd., and one in Holiday Park (the one I used to frequent).  And there’s Vincent’s “of Greentree” …oddly enough in Greentree, Southpointe, and the West End.  (There also seems to be a Vincent’s Pizza Pub on Mt. Washington – I’m unsure if they’re related to any of the others.)

I haven’t been to Vincent’s Pizza Park in Holiday Park in a long long time, but I remember it as the greasiest pizza I have ever had.  It was good, but greasy.  Some people like that.  I’m not the biggest fan of grease, but I remember they had a nice thick crust & a flavorful sauce.

I don’t think I’ve ever been to the Vincent’s in Greentree, but the one in Southpointe has great steak subs, garlic buns, and pretty good pizza.  Their “like it” percentage on Urbanspoon is pretty low though.  No idea what’s up there.

Vincent's Pizza Park on Urbanspoon Vincent's of Southpointe on Urbanspoon

Which Vincent’s is your favorite?  Which Vincent’s location is the best & the original?  (I think it’s Vincent’s in Forest Hills)

Please, chime in on any of these locations, any from my previous pizza post, or any that I may have missed.  I may dive into pizza chains next.  Pizza is always a subject of hot debate (and it goes well with beer).

Radical!

Radical!

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