In January 1969, after a year of being rejected as a poster artist by Chet Helms at the Avalon, 23-year-old Randy Tuten took his portfolio to the Fillmore where Bill Graham immediately hired him. Tuten was partial to traditional advertising styles, Graham was bound to receive his work as something considerably more akin to his own taste. Born in San Francisco, Tuten moved with his family to Los Angeles and grew into a rebellious teenager coming of age in the late fifties. Like Griffin, he was a self-taught artist who was into surfing and cartooning. In junior high, he could be found seated in the back of the room decorating classmates' notebooks. The art teachers,who recognized his talent, cut deals with the other departments to give him passing grades in exchange for doing art work for their classrooms. While attending Los Angeles Valley Junior College, Tuten worked for the art department and regularly cut other classes in favor of hanging art exhibits in the college gallery.