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An Honest Heart by John Held, Jr.
We know that a William T. Todd of Oxford Mills, Ottawa died in September of 1931 and that a William T. Todd of Pittsburgh was about 70 at that time. Neither is a known artist or would seem to be...
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My Entry in the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #596
As ye sow, so shall ye reap my entry in the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #596 for December 11, 2017. The drawing is by Frank Cotham."I prefer mine dark."The caption not taken:"Yes, I will take...
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Season's Greetings from Arthur Getz
Some years ago, New Yorker cover artist Arthur Getz created an original woodcut of a mother and daughter for use as a holiday card. He added "Season's Greetings" in pencil and signed the print with his...
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Richard Decker: The Card That Says Everything
In a cartoon published in Life magazine's December 1933 issue, Richard Deckerpresents us with a woman who is engaged in the quintessential Christmas season activity of shopping for the perfect card....
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Dorothy McKay: Christmas Spirits
The repeal of Prohibition ended on December 5, 1933 with the ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment to the Constitution. The timing led to an unusual Life magazine Christmas cover by Dorothy McKay....
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Dr. Seuss: A Signed Grinch
University Archives of Westport just sold a later edition copy of How the Grinch Stole Christmas! This copy is signed and inscribed by Dr. Seuss, who himself was no Grinch.Dr. SeusseBay Listing Ended...
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Blog Post No. 2400: Sizzling Platter Chatter
It is now time for us to take up the sizzling platter situation. Just imagining what might very well be the specialty of the house can make one’s mouth water. Yet New Yorker cartoonists very...
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Princeton Symphony Orchestra: Holiday Pops!
A holiday concert put on by the Princeton Symphony Orchestra and the Princeton High School Choir was a joyous place to be on Saturday night.Tuning upQuick Links to the Attempted Bloggery...
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John Updite and Edward Gorey: The Twelve Terrors of Christmas
A first edition of The Twelve Terrors of Christmas (1993) is signed by both author John Updike and illustrator Edward Gorey. These two talents are sorely missed.The Twelve Terrors of...
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Barney Tobey: Santa Who?
Cartoonist Barney Tobey raises a crucial question of identity in this colorful 1950 cartoon from Collier's. Has this heroic Santa remained true to his role, or is he simply too dazed to remember...
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Robert Day: Treading Lightly
One might not necessarily expect to find an especially robust market for old magazine Christmas gift subscription forms, but the New Yorker at least had the good sense to illustrate such forms with...
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Leonardo da Vinci's Salvator Mundi
Art is a commodity. I know I don't usually describe it that way here. Typically I'll look at a specific work of, say, illustration art and describe as best I can what attributes make it unique. Now if...
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Frank Hanley: The Christmas Spirit
In case you missed it on the newsstands, here are a few pages of "The Christmas Spirit"-themed issue of Judge from December 13, 1930. The busy and festive three-color cover illustration is by Frank...
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Benoît van Innis: Tossing the Ornaments
What do you do for entertainment after caroling? Unusual Christmas festivities are taking place in a signed 1991 print by Benoît van Innis.Benoît van InniseBay Listing Ended July 3,...
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Moving Gifts: Arnie Levin New Yorker Cover Art
Arnie Levin's original New Yorker cover art for December 11, 1978 uses perhaps a quarter of the space available. Despite the relatively small area of the drawing, approximately half of it—comprising...
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My Entry in the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #597
Unpack my entry in the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #597 for December 25, 2017. The drawing is by Carolita Johnson."I couldn't get a sitter."Note: Last time, cartoonist Frank Cotham's Grim...
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Garrett Price: Broken Bow and Arrows
It is now time to return those gifts that didn't quite work out. Bookseller James Cummins has a four-panel cartoon by Garrett Price that sums it all up pretty well. The listing states that this cartoon...
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My Entries in the Moment Cartoon Caption Contest for November/December 2017
Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's...my two entries in the Moment Cartoon Caption Contest for November/December 2017. The super drawing is by Benjamin Schwartz."Don't lay a finger on...
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Anatol Kovarsky: Leda and the Swan
In Greek mythology, Zeus disguises himself as a swan and seduces Leda. This union produces two offspring, Helen of Troy and Polydeuces. Two unpublished roughs on this mythological subject by cartoonist...
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Carl Rose's Mythological Beasts
Author Daniel Asa Rose shares with us a fantastic drawing by Carl Rose (no relation) of a mythological subject. Here he tells us how the drawing came to be in the possession of his father, a Rowayton...
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