Saturday, October 19, 2019

 

What The Cartoonists Are Doing, August 1914, Vol. 6 No. 2

[Cartoons Magazine, debuting in 1912, was a monthly magazine devoted primarily to reprinting editorial cartoons from U.S. and foreign newspapers. Articles about cartooning and cartoonists often supplemented the discussion of current events.

In November 1913 the magazine began to offer a monthly round-up of news about cartoonists and cartooning, eventually titled "What The Cartoonist Are Doing." There are lots of interesting historical nuggets in these sections, and this Stripper's Guide feature will  reprint one issue's worth each week.]

CARTOONS OF THE MONTH
With the waning of public interest in the Mexican situation, the cartoonists, who already had about exhausted every possibility of the subject; who had portrayed Huerta, Villa, and Carranza in as many shapes as Proteus, have been rather at a loss for new ideas. As a result, the cartoons of the month show a decided falling off. The additional drawback of vacation time may also have had something to do with the slump. That the thoughts of the overworked newspaper artists are wandering afield can be gathered from the number of vacation idyls they have been producing.

President Wilson's antitrust program, the repeal of the tolls on the Panama waterway, and the international polo games have supplied themes of more or less inspiration. Cartoonists who hailed with delight the return of Colonel Roosevelt from South America have found little material in his subsequent activities. President Wilson, when he added the new phrase, "psychological depression," to the political vocabulary, thus provided about the only oasis in the wilderness.

But then, during the hot weather and an off season in politics, who wants cartoons except as they reflect the joys and vicissitudes of summer time? The "Kid" and vacation cartoons in the present issue will at least afford some variation to the usual themes. The crayon sketches appearing in the Harrisburg Patriot, several of which are reproduced in the August Cartoons, together with Briggs' eternal joys, "When a Feller Needs a Friend," are always a delight, and for the weary business man hemmed in by city walls, one can recommend these cartoons as a prescription for what ails him.

UNCLE SAM'S WHISKERS
"It is a pity," laments the Dayton News, "we cannot have a new Uncle Sam, constructed to meet the development of the time. One can stand for the old plug hat and the antique coat and trousers, but the chin whiskers are almost too much.

"A chin whisker is the child of indolence. Every man who has tried to shave himself knows that it is the chin that makes the trouble. Every other part of the face can be mowed with comparative ease. The rounded or square corners of the chin, with its bulgings and humps and hollows, perhaps with the round dimple showing "the devil within" — these are real difficulties, and it takes skill with the razor and patience to surmount them. Men who were unwilling to disfigure themselves with full sets of whiskers compromised, permitting nature to have her own sweet way with the chin.

"And this is the easy-going, indolent spirit which has been embalmed in the art of the caricaturists. It is a libel, and everybody knows it in this country. No wonder every puny country in the world thinks it can whip the United States. Uncle Sam and his whiskers are enough to delude them.
Clare Briggs

"However, it is unlikely that there will be any change. And, anyway, Uncle Sam, with all his faults, is a lovable old chap, infinitely more likable than John Bull, that fussy, stupid, big-feeling character that is just as familiar to us."

O-OH, SKIN-NAY!
" 'Gee, I wish I had something to do.'

"Cartoonist Briggs of the New York Tribune, originator of 'Oh, Skinnay,' and others, has with these words reminded us pleasantly of the desert stretches in our youthful leisure days.

"Who cannot recall dull hours of 'dooin' nuthin" and wishing for something to happen? The something usually happened. Its form of occurrence, however, was not always happy. Perhaps an ancient enemy passed. A potato or a green apple shied in his direction frequently started the desired 'something.' Later perhaps came remorse.

"The 'Skinnay' of the cartoonist was happily a country village product. The tedium of his leisure moments could not carry him far astray. His city bred comrade, on the other hand, is apt to get into serious trouble when nothing interesting is provided for him.

"The possibility of playtime is one of the most important discoveries men and women have made during the past generation." — Rocky Mountain News.

MR. EASY MARK AND THE "CARTOON CLUB"
"During the last two months," says the Philadelphia North American, "a suave fellow calling himself F. A. Hornby and posing as treasurer of the Cartoon Club of Philadelphia, has circulated among well- to-do persons with the story that he represented the newspaper cartoonists of Philadelphia and was engaged in furnishing permanent headquarters for their club.

"Along with this information Mr. Hornby said in the strictest confidence that, of course, 'the boys,' meaning the newspaper cartoonists, were a little shy of money, and wouldn't it be a capital idea for Mr. Easy Mark to contribute to the worthy cause?

"A man of Mr. Easy Mark's prominence, of course, could never know when the newspapers might start to cartoon him, and when they did, and Mr. Easy Mark had befriended the cartoonists, it wouldn't make any difference what the editor wanted, the cartoonists simply wouldn't draw any nasty pictures of Mr. Easy Mark.

"Mr. Easy Mark didn't even have to contribute the money as an out-and-out gift. Hornby, as treasurer, would give Mr. Easy Mark a four months' judgment note for the amount of his contribution.

"For the information of Mr. Easy Mark it might be said that all the cartoonists in the city who have heard about this scheme are now busy drawing pictures of the mysterious Treasurer Hornby returning Mr. Easy Mark's money to him at the end of four months."

JES' TWELVE O'CLOCK
Boardman Robinson
Boardman Robinson, cartoonist of the New York Tribune, was down South recently, according to the Kalamazoo Gazette, several days in one of the little villages away from a railroad. One day Robinson was standing on the steps of the courthouse and down a few steps lower sat a negro, in tattered clothes, who was a picture of despair. The town clock up in the tower suddenly boomed out the noon hour. The negro cocked up his head to one side and listened and then murmured to himself: "Um-um! Dinner time for some folks but jes' twelve o'clock for me."

WEBSTER LOSES HOME
When Harold Throckmorton Webster, cartoonist of the New York Globe, motored out recently to Sea Bright to spend a weekend at his summer home, he found only a great void where the cottage formerly had stood. He peered around anxiously and decided that he had got the wrong address until a longshoreman accosted him.

"If you are looking for your house," he said, "you'd better take the next liner going out, 'cause it's been washed away, and is probably midway between here and Liverpool by now."
The loss of Mr. Webster's home will be keenly regretted by his Western friends, whom, in spite of the high cost of living, he was said to entertain lavishly.

CHARLES KENDRICK DEAD
Charles Kendrick, the veteran cartoonist and illustrator, died June 16 at his residence in Brooklyn, N. Y., after an illness of three months. Mr. Kendrick was born in London, 73 years ago. For some time he was the leading artist for the Illustrated London News. He went to Montreal about 1870, when that paper attempted to establish a Canadian edition. A year later he established his home in Brooklyn, and became associated with Frank Leslie's publications. Later he worked for a number of years with Joseph Kepper, of Puck.

Between 1870 and 1880 he won an enviable reputation by his black and white portrait sketches of theatrical stars. Many of his pictures were used by the New York Herald and other publications. For many years he conducted a studio in Manhattan, and his work appeared in the leading magazines.

"WALT" QUITS VAUDEVILLE
William Frederick Walther ("Walt"), who for five years has been a vaudeville cartoonist, has decided after a course of private instruction from Mr. C. N. Landon, to abandon the footlights and become a free lance. Walther, so far as known, is the first human being to draw a cartoon above the clouds. He accomplished this feat recently in Los Angeles, when he was taken on a flight by Lincoln Beachey. While looping the loop somewhere in cloudland, Walther completed a cartoon, which appeared the following morning in the Los Angeles Times.

[I believe this 'airborne cartoon' story is apocryphal, as a search of the Los Angeles Times of the period 1908-1914 reveals no such event that I can find. --Allan]



KING AND COLONEL
The King and the Colonel they took the same train;
Sing "Hey, diddle, diddle"; they did;
Alfonso and Roosevelt a traveling in Spain,
The land that is proud of El Cid;
They minded their dignity, spite of the pain;
Sing "Hey, diddle, diddle"; they did.

The same car while dining, they both had to use;
Sing "Hey, diddle, diddle"; they did;
They spoke not, such coolness Cervantes would choose,
With humor and satire to kid;
They thought a whole lot that is not in the news;
Sing "Hey, diddle, diddle"; they did.

Both seemed to be busy with menu affairs;
Sing "Hey, diddle, diddle"; they did;
Though neither is bald from his statesmanly cares,
And neither fears lifting the lid;
They gave first attention to putting on airs;
Sing "Hey, diddle, diddle"; they did.
— Brooklyn Eagle.
Billy Ireland

SENORITAS, TOO, BILLY
All our appeals to Billy Ireland to enlist with us and go down across the border and fight and bleed and die under the Starry Banner fell upon deaf ears, as long as we based them on grounds of patriotism, but when we showed him where it says in the Encyclopedia Britannica that the nights in the City of Mexico are always cool he was for shaking the perspiration of this garden spot of the world from his brow at once and going right down and bearding the lion in his den, the Huerta in his hall. — Ohio State Journal.

POWELL A BENEDICT
Doane Powell, cartoonist of the Omaha Bee, was married June 1, and after a honeymoon spent among the Minnesota lakes, has returned to his drawing board. One of his recent cartoons in the Bee shows the artist in a whirlpool of insurance thoughts, while rival insurance agents and furniture men buzz around him like so many bees.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"A Strassburg cartoonist is on trial for high treason. Anyone," remarks the Omaha Bee, "ought to know better than to try to be a cartoonist in Alsace. It is about as safe a job as making jokes about Huerta on the Mexico City vaudeville stage."

MRS. "BUD" FISHER INJURED

Mrs. "Bud" Fisher, known on the stage as Pauline Welch, was seriously injured early on the morning of June 11, when an automobile in which she was riding crashed into a touring car in Pelham Park way, New York. The machine caught fire, and Mrs. Fisher was extricated from under the heavy car, but not in time to prevent her from being painfully burnt. She was taken to Fordham hospital, where hopes of her recovery were at first abandoned. Later reports, however, indicate that she will live. Mr. and Mrs. Fisher were married in April, 1912, after a romantic courtship ending in an elopement.

"Bud" Fisher is the creator of the comic series, "Mutt and Jeff."

CARTOONISTS AS CRITICS
The cartoonists do not seem to appreciate the beauties of the American policy in Mexico. It is too intricate for their untutored minds. They do not hesitate to draw pictures which place the administration in a ridiculous light, from a dozen different standpoints. And what is worse, the newspapers eagerly publish these cartoons.

But the cartoonists, knowing that free speech and free caricature are safe from official displeasure, go right ahead holding up the administration and its Mexican policy to ridicule and contempt. — Washington Post.

PHIFER HELPS A BOYS' CLUB
Luther C. Phifer, cartoonist of the Worcester Telegram, has aided the campaign of the Boys' Club committee of that city by drawing a series of cartoons, published in newspapers, shown on lantern slides, and reproduced in poster form, and calling attention to the needs of the little fellows, many of whom were newsboys. A fund of $150,000 was raised in nine days for a club house, which will soon be erected, and the committee admitted that the cartoon series was the best method employed to entice the dollars from the pockets of the business men.

A CARTOONIST'S TROUBLES
The cartoonist for the Tariff League, which organization is the principal reliance of the Republican party, has a very difficult position to fill. In the cuts sent out for use in the "patent insides" the cartoonist has to deal with the farmers who have been "ruined" by the Underwood tariff. He must choose between representing the farmer as an intelligent man and the ruined, ragged wretch which the lower tariff is supposed to have made of him. He chose the latter method and the farmer is pictured as the long whiskered, rube variety. Whether such cartoons will incline the farmers who ride in automobiles to vote the Republican ticket is very doubtful. — Omaha World-Herald.

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Friday, October 18, 2019

 

Wish You Were Here, from Jimmy Hatlo


Jimmy Hatlo's They'll Do It Every Time came in for the postcard treatment through Tichnor Brothers of Boston. This card is number 12 in a set of 25. There's no copyright year on these, and this card is postally unused. Others I see on eBay have pretty wide ranging postage dates on them, but the earliest seem to be 1942.

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Thursday, October 17, 2019

 

Ink-Slinger Profiles by Alex Jay: Sidney Delevante


Sidney Delevante was born on December 4, 1894, in Kingston, Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica, according to the Jamaica, Civil Birth Registration at Ancestry.com. His parents were Michael Delevante and Sydney Corinaldi. An Ancestry.com family tree said she passed away December 4, 1894, in Mascotte Villa, Kingston, Jamaica.

In the 1900 U.S. Federal Census Delevante was the “adopted son” of Jacob, a bookkeeper, and Edith Henriques, both Jamaican natives.

Delevante has not yet been found in the 1910 census.

On April 28, 1914, Delevante traveled on the steamship Trent from Colon to New York City where he arrived May 6. The passenger list said Delevante was Hebrew and had been living in Panama. The last time he was in New York was 1910. Delevante’s destination was 2709 Newkirk Avenue, Brooklyn, where his biological father was residing. Delevante’s father also paid for his passage.

The same address was recorded in the 1915 New York state census. Delvante, an art student, was the third of six siblings. His father, a steamship company accountant, had remarried to Alethia. It’s not yet known where Delevante received his art training; one possibility was Pratt Institute which was about four miles from his home.

A 1916 passenger list said Delevante’s address was 1524 East 14th Street in Brooklyn.

On June 5, 1917 Delevante signed his World War I draft card. His address was unchanged. The self-employed artist was described as short, medium build with brown eyes and dark brown hair. Delevante’s New York military service record, at Ancestry.com, said his service began July 15, 1918 in Brooklyn. While stationed at Camp Joseph E. Johnston in Jacksonville, Florida, Delevante filed a Petition for Naturalization on August 15, 1918.

After the war Delevante returned to New York City.
The Newspaper Feature Service produced a long-running series of romantic cartoons, by several artists, beginning in 1913. Delevante contributed to the series in 1919.

He married Thelma Gebhart on February 15, 1920 in Manhattan.

The 1925 New York state census recorded Delevante, his wife and one-year-old daughter, Edith, at 234 Wentworth Avenue in Manhattan.

American Newspaper Comics (2012) said Delevante was the second of two artists to draw Adventures of Vivian Vanity. The series began with Nicholas Afonsky, aka Meetrich, on September 29, 1925. Delevante took over from May 10 to August 1926. Wheeler-Nicholson, Inc. was the syndicate

In the 1930 census Delevante’s residence was at 658–666 West 188 Street in Manhattan. He was a freelance illustrator whose drawings appeared in several issues of the Evening Star and the newspaper magazine, This Week.


 Evening Star 8/13/1933

A family tree said his father passed away May 15, 1937.

The Putnam County Courier (Carmel, New York), July 9, 1937, named Delevante as one of the instructors at The Homestead at Crafts.

The principal feature of this year’s season at The Homestead will be the art course to be given by Mr. Sidney Delevante,. of New York city. This course will be given for six weeks, from July 12 to August 20, and will present work in all mediums with portrait and character painting, landscape, still-life and figure and composition. Mr. Delevante’s skill as a teacher of art is distinctive and this course proves to be a singular contribution to the cultural life of Putnam county.
The New York Post, August 6, 1938, reported nine appointments to the Cooper Inion Art Schools faculty. Delevante, a painter, joined the department of drawing and painting.

On November 15, 1939, Delevante and Margaret L Halm obtained a Manhattan marriage license.

According to the 1940 census, the newlyweds resided at 510 West 124th Street in Manhattan. Delevante was an art teacher whose highest level of education was the fourth year of high school.

Delevante’s address was the same on his World War II draft card which he signed April 25, 1942. His description was five feet two inches, 124 pounds, with gray and hazel eyes and brown and gray hair, and wore glasses.

Delevante was mentioned in the book, Charles Seliger: Redefining Abstract Expressionism (2002): … “[Sidney] Delevante, of Cooper Union; a teacher-painter from Tarrytown New York …”

One of Delevante’s notable students was Seymour Chwast (class of 1951), who wrote in his book, The Left-Handed Designer (1985), “Sidney Delevante, my drawing teacher, revolutionized my way of thinking by making me start everything from zero with nothing preconceived.”

Delevante was an instructor at Columbia University. A brief bio appeared in the school’s Program in the Arts, 1962–1963.

Sidney Delevante. Instructor in Painting
Studied at Art Students League. Instructor at Cooper Union and Art Center of Northern New Jersey. Exhibited and lectured in galleries and museums in New York, Washington, and other cities.

Delevante passed away in October 1984, at New York City, according to the Social Security Death Index.

 

Further Reading and Viewing
askArt
Smithsonian
Whimsical World of Sydney Delevante


—Alex Jay

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Wednesday, October 16, 2019

 

The Newspaper Feature Service Romantic Cartoon Series, Part 4 (1919-1920)



1919-20 finds the romantic cartoon series settling down into a routine. Juanita Hamel (JH) cartoons on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, and Annette Bradshaw supplying Feminisms (F) for Tuesdays and Her Problems (HP) for Thursdays. Fridays were reserved for Annette Bradshaw's fashion illustrations, so each creator was responsible for three illustrations per week.



Occasionally Ms. Hamel would take a little holiday or get behind the deadline eight ball, and that's the only time in these two years when others stepped in. April 1919 seems to have been a vacation month, because Tim Early (TE) returns to do five cartoons and Dan Smith (DS) one. The great Saturday Evening Post editorial cartoonist Herbert Johnson (HJ) also jumps into the fray, but unlike the other subs, he sticks around through August, contributing a total of 16 cartoons.





In 1920 Hamel probably took a vacation in the summer. Her cartoons keep coming but at a slow pace. We have Herbert Johnson contributing four cartoons in June-July, and Dan Smith (DS) three in July-August. Duncan Paget (DP), not seen since his two contributions in 1915, does four cartoons in July-August. Our only new contributor, Sidney Delevante (SD), shows up for a single cartoon in September. Delevante went on to be a fine artist and Cooper Union instructor; his later art certainly shows a cartoonist's sensibility. There's an interesting video about his fine art, titled The Whimsical World of Sidney Delevante. Of course, not a whisper about his early years as a cartoonist!

1919


Jan        Su                   M                    Tu                  W                   Th                     F                   Sa
1 JH 2 HP 3 JH 4 JH
5 6 JH 7 F 8 JH 9 HP 10 11 JH
12 13 JH 14 F 15 JH 16 HP 17 18 JH
19 20 JH 21 F 22 JH 23 HP 24 25 JH
26 27 JH 28 F 29 JH 30 HP 31

Feb
1 JH
2 3 JH 4 F 5 JH 6 HP 7 8 JH
9 10 JH 11 F 12 JH 13 HP 14 15 JH
16 17 JH 18 F 19 JH 20 HP 21 22 ?
23 24 JH 25 F 26 JH 27 HP 28

Mar
1 JH
2 3 JH 4 F 5 JH 6 HP 7 8 JH
9 10 JH 11 F 12 JH 13 HP 14 15 JH
16 17 JH 18 F 19 JH 20 HP 21 22 JH
23 24 JH 25 F 26 TE 27 HP 28 29 JH
30 31 DS

Apr
1 F 2 TE 3 HP 4 5 TE
6 7 DS 8 F 9 TE 10 HP 11 12 HJ
13 14 TE 15 F 16 HJ 17 HP 18 19 TE
20 21 HJ 22 F 23 HJ 24 HP 25 26 JH
27 28 JH 29 F 30 HJ

May
1 HP 2 3 JH
4 5 JH 6 F 7 HJ 8 HP 9 10 JH
11 12 JH 13 F 14 HJ 15 HP 16 17 JH
18 19 JH 20 F 21 HJ 22 HP 23 24 JH
25 26 JH 27 F 28 HJ 29 HP 30 31 JH

Jun
1 2 JH 3 F 4 JH 5 HP 6 7 HJ
8 9 JH 10 F 11 HJ 12 HP 13 14 JH
15 16 JH 17 F 18 HJ 19 HP 20 21 JH
22 23 JH 24 F 25 HJ 26 HP 27 28 JH
29 30 JH

Jul      Su                  M                 Tu                 W                Th                   F                  Sa
1 F 2 JH 3 HP 4 5 JH
6 7 JH 8 F 9 JH 10 HP 11 12 JH
13 14 JH 15 F 16 JH 17 HP 18 19 JH
20 21 JH 22 F 23 JH 24 HP 25 26 JH
27 28 JH 29 F 30 HJ 31 HP

Aug
1 2 JH
3 4 JH 5 F 6 HJ 7 HP 8 9 JH
10 11 JH 12 F 13 JH 14 HP 15 16 HJ
17 18 JH 19 F 20 JH 21 HP 22 23 JH
24 25 JH 26 F 27 JH 28 HP 29 30 JH
31

Sep
1 JH 2 F 3 JH 4 HP 5 6 JH
7 8 JH 9 F 10 JH 11 HP 12 13 JH
14 15 JH 16 F 17 JH 18 HP 19 20 JH
21 22 JH 23 F 24 JH 25 HP 26 27 JH
28 29 JH 30 F

Oct
1 JH 2 HP 3 4 JH
5 6 JH 7 F 8 JH 9 HP 10 11 JH
12 13 JH 14 F 15 JH 16 HP 17 18 JH
19 20 JH 21 F 22 JH 23 HP 24 25 JH
26 27 JH 28 F 29 JH 30 HP 31

Nov
1 JH
2 3 JH 4 F 5 JH 6 HP 7 8 JH
9 10 JH 11 F 12 JH 13 HP 14 15 JH
16 17 JH 18 F 19 JH 20 HP 21 22 JH
23 24 JH 25 F 26 JH 27 28 29 JH
30

Dec
1 JH 2 F 3 ? 4 HP 5 6 JH
7 8 JH 9 F 10 JH 11 HP 12 13 JH
14 15 JH 16 F 17 JH 18 ? 19 20 JH
21 22 JH 23 F 24 JH 25 ? 26 27 JH
28 29 JH 30 F 31 JH


1920



Jan        Su                   M                    Tu                 W                     Th                   F                   Sa
1 HP 2 3 JH
4 5 JH 6 F 7 JH 8 HP 9 10 JH
11 12 JH 13 F 14 JH 15 HP 16 17 JH
18 19 JH 20 F 21 JH 22 HP 23 24 JH
25 26 JH 27 F 28 JH 29 HP 30 31 JH

Feb
1 2 JH 3 F 4 JH 5 HP 6 7 JH
8 9 JH 10 F 11 JH 12 HP 13 14 JH
15 16 JH 17 F 18 JH 19 HP 20 21 JH
22 23 JH 24 F 25 JH 26 HP 27 28 JH
29

Mar
1 JH 2 F 3 JH 4 HP 5 6 JH
7 8 JH 9 F 10 JH 11 HP 12 13 JH
14 15 JH 16 F 17 JH 18 HP 19 20 JH
21 22 JH 23 ? 24 JH 25 HP 26 27 ?
28 29 JH 30 F 31 JH

Apr
1 HP 2 3 JH
4 5 JH 6 F 7 JH 8 HP 9 10 JH
11 12 JH 13 F 14 JH 15 HP 16 17 JH
18 19 JH 20 F 21 JH 22 HP 23 24 JH
25 26 JH 27 F 28 JH 29 HP 30

May
1 JH
2 3 JH 4 F 5 JH 6 HP 7 8 JH
9 10 JH 11 F 12 JH 13 HP 14 15 JH
16 17 JH 18 F 19 JH 20 HP 21 22 JH
23 24 ? 25 ? 26 JH 27 ? 28 29 JH
30 31 JH

Jun
1 F 2 JH 3 HP 4 5 JH
6 7 JH 8 F 9 JH 10 HP 11 12 HJ
13 14 JH 15 F 16 JH 17 HP 18 19 HJ
20 21 JH 22 F 23 JH 24 HP 25 26 JH
27 28 JH 29 F 30 JH

Jul      Su                  M                 Tu                 W                Th                   F                  Sa
1 HP 2 3 JH
4 5 ? 6 F 7 JH 8 HP 9 10 JH
11 12 JH 13 F 14 DP 15 HP 16 17 HJ
18 19 JH 20 F 21 JH 22 HP 23 24 DP
25 26 JH 27 F 28 HJ 29 HP 30 31 DS

Aug
1 2 DP 3 F 4 JH 5 HP 6 7 DP
8 9 DS 10 F 11 JH 12 HP 13 14 JH
15 16 DS 17 F 18 DP 19 HP 20 21 JH
22 23 JH 24 F 25 JH 26 HP 27 28 JH
29 30 JH 31 F

Sep
1 JH 2 HP 3 4 JH
5 6 JH 7 F 8 JH 9 HP 10 11 JH
12 13 JH 14 F 15 JH 16 HP 17 18 JH
19 20 JH 21 F 22 SD 23 HP 24 25 JH
26 27 JH 28 F 29 JH 30 HP

Oct
1 2 JH
3 4 JH 5 F 6 JH 7 HP 8 9 JH
10 11 JH 12 F 13 JH 14 HP 15 16 JH
17 18 JH 19 F 20 JH 21 HP 22 23 JH
24 25 JH 26 F 27 JH 28 HP 29 30 JH
31

Nov
1 JH 2 F 3 JH 4 HP 5 6 JH
7 8 JH 9 F 10 JH 11 HP 12 13 JH
14 15 JH 16 F 17 JH 18 HP 19 20 JH
21 22 JH 23 F 24 JH 25 ? 26 27 JH
28 29 JH 30 F

Dec
1 JH 2 HP 3 4 JH
5 6 JH 7 F 8 JH 9 HP 10 11 JH
12 13 JH 14 F 15 JH 16 HP 17 18 JH
19 20 JH 21 F 22 JH 23 HP 24 25 ?
26 27 JH 28 F 29 JH 30 HP 31

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Tuesday, October 15, 2019

 

Ink-Slinger Profiles by Alex Jay: Frank Crerie


Frank Leighton Crerie was born on December 26, 1881 in Worcester, Massachusetts, according to his World War II draft card. The Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records, at Ancestry.com, listed the Worcester, Massachusetts birth of “Frank L Crierie” in 1881. It should be noted that Crerie’s Social Security application had his birth year as 1884.

In the 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Crerie was the oldest of two sons born to Edward, an insurance agent, and Sarah. They resided in Worcester at 64 Coburn Avenue. Worcester city directories, for 1903 and 1904, listed Crerie at the same address and as a student in Boston, where he graduated from the Massachusetts Normal Art School in 1905.

Th 1906 Boston city directory said Crerie was an artist who boarded in Somerville and had a studio at 408 Sears Building. The 1907 Worcester directory listed him at 64 Coburn Avenue.

The May 1907 register of Bradley Polytechnic Institute, in Peoria, Illinois, said Crerie was on its staff.

Frank L. Crerie, Assistant in Drawing.
Graduate Massachusetts Normal Art School, 1905; Student under Philip Hale, Art Museum, Worcester, Mass., 1897–9, 1901–4; Graduate Boston Evening Drawing School; Student under Laurin Martin in Arts and Crafts Work, 1904–5; Teacher, Boston Public Schools, 1905; Illustrator for Richards Publishing Co., Boston, Mass., 1906.

The same listing appeared in May 1908 register.

The 1907 and 1908 Peoria city directories said Crerie resided at 115 Callender Avenue.

The Daily Nonpareil (Council Bluffs, Iowa), August 6, 1908, published a travelogue and said

Glasgow, July 12— … Frank Crerie, art instructor at Bradley institute, Peoria, has joined the party temporarily and will travel as far as London. He was a passenger on board the Columbia and performed yeoman service in rescuing steamer rugs and suit cases during the confusion of the first two days. …
On August 15, 1906 Crerie departed Boulogne-sur-Mer, France and arrived in New York City on August 25.

Manual Training Magazine, April 1909, published Crerie’s sketches from Guernsey and St. Malo.

The 1909 Peoria directory had Crerie’s address as 813 St. James. The May 1909 Bradley Polytechnic Institute register included Crerie’s resume with an asterisk that indicated he had resigned. In 1909 Crerie moved to Des Moines, Iowa where his address was 1439 7th Street.

The 1910 census said magazine illustrator Crerie was at the same address in Des Moines. He was one of two lodgers at the Moulden’s residence. The other lodger was Julia Higgins, a stenographer at a printing office.

On March 6, 1911, Crerie and Higgins obtained a New York City marriage license in Manhattan.

On September 12, 1918 Crerie signed his World War I draft card. He lived in Bergen, New Jersey at 544 Undercliff Avenue. Crerie worked for Charles Tebbs.
Crerie’s description was tall, medium build with blue eyes and brown hair.

Newspaper Feature Service had a long-running series of romantic cartoons, from late 1913 to 1931, which were credited to many artists. Crerie was a contributor in 1917.

The New York Tribune, September 12, 1919, mentioned Crerie’s purchase of a house, “Bowles & Co. have sold for A.A. Lincoln a house on Westview Avenue, Leonia, to Frank Crerie, of Edgewater, N.J. …” In the 1920 census, the self-employed artist, his wife and month-old daughter, Lucille, lived at 325 Westview Avenue.

Crerie produced the cover art for Shipper and Carrier, August 1923.


According to the 1930 census, Crerie owned a house in Leonia at 309 Westview Avenue. His child was nine-year-old Frank.

Generations Before Us has a collection of diaries from Leonia. One diary mentioned Crerie on March 28, 1937, “Very windy morning so clothes were dry before noon. Mr. Frank Crerie made quite a call. Miss Eaton here too. I polished all my furniture, scrubbed hall floor, etc.”

According to the 1940 census Crerie’s new home was in Teaneck, New Jersey at 1328 River Road. He was a commercial artist. The Hackensack Record (New Jersey), October 17, 1956, said he moved to Teaneck in 1936.

On April 27, 1942, Crerie signed his World War II draft card which had the address, 1328 River Road, West Englewood, New Jersey. The artist was described as six feet one inch, 192 pounds with blue eyes and gray hair.

Paul H. Mattingly wrote about Crerie in his book, An American Art Colony (2019), and said in part

Crerie loved open country and his reading included history, travel, and nature lore. He had a log cabin on Lake Michigan in northern Wisconsin. He specialized in black and white, also water colors and oils. Later in his career he became known for his portraiture. He had exhibited in Worcester Art Museum, Boston Art Club, Des Moines Art Museum and New York galleries. Books he illustrated included Ring Larder’s Treat ’Em Rough (1918).
Crerie’s son submitted a Sons of the American Revolution membership application dated June 4, 1942.

Crerie passed away October 13, 1956, in Worcester, Massachusetts, according to an obituary in the Hackensack Record, October 17, 1956.

Frank L. Crerie; Commercial Artist
Teaneck Man Succumbs While on Visit to Worcester, Mass.

Worcester, Mass., Oct. 17 Frank L. Crerie of 1328 River Road, Teaneck, died here while visiting Saturday. For the past 30 years he had been a well known commercial artist in New York.

Crerie lived for 20 years in Leonia, before moving to Teaneck in 1936. He was graduated from the Boston Art School and was for years a member of the Art Students’ League of New York.

He had art studios in Teaneck and in New York.

Surviving are his wife, Julia; daughter. Miss Lucile Crerie of Teaneck; son, Frank H. of Houston, Tex., and two grandsons.

Funeral services were held in Worcester yesterday at the Putnam Funeral Parlor. The Rev. Frank H. Kennedy officiated. Burial was in Hope Cemetery, Worcester.


—Alex Jay

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Monday, October 14, 2019

 

The Newspaper Feature Service Romantic Cartoon Series, Part 3 (1917 - 1918)

Finally in 1917 we have a good paper to index. Starting in mid-February (when the digital collection at newspapers.com begins), the Harrisburg Evening News will be a very good source for years to come.



Unfortunately our dearth of good papers in 1916 and early 1917 leaves us with no history of Annette Bradshaw's  contributions during this time (the El Paso Times seemed to have had no interest in printing  her cartoons). That gives us no exact idea of when Bradshaw decided to transition away ever so slowly from her continuing title Feminine Foibles (FF) to Feminisms (F). If she saw these as covering different subject matter I cannot vouch, as they both seem to me like the same sorts of gags. I do notice, though, that sometimes the gag is dispensed with in favor of some fashion advice. That makes it essentially just a fashion illustration and outside our purview, but I draw the line at reading the caption to each Bradshaw panel to make judgment calls.



We also can't say when exactly she added her second continuing title, Her Problems (HP), which was already running when we pick up the thread in February 1917. This series too does not really have a specific focus, but the gags do tend to have a sarcastic bent to them, often making fun of the overblown problems that are complained of by upper-class women.

Now that we are with the Harrisburg Evening News, which printed the magazine page with almost perfect regularity, we can see that the romantic series has settled down to a regular schedule. Will Nies (WN) on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, Annette Bradshaw's cartoons on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This is actually pretty much how it would continue for years, except that only Bradshaw would remain true; a practically endless parade of other cartoonists would make appearances, some long-term, some short-term, on the other weekdays.





At the beginning of 1918 just such a shake-up occurs. Will Nies starts to be replaced by the cartoons of Tim Early (TE), who brought a lovely formal style to his contributions.  Then starting in April Dan Smith (DS) starts popping up on a few occasions. Smith, of course, was one of Hearst's premier Sunday magazine cover artists. Nies is gone entirely by early May.



In May another new artist makes his debut, Gene Kay (GK). His style was stiff and illustrative, and he only contributed seven panels over three months. I know nothing about him.






In June we get a single cartoon by "Calvert" (C) (update: I am told this is James Calvert Smith). The style is nothing special, in fact it looks a lot like Gene Kay's style to me. We also get a single appearance by Clyde Ludwick (CL). Frank Crerie (FC) bursts onto the scene with ten quick appearances over the next two months, only to drop off to a few times per month through October. Crerie gets a capsule bio in Paul Mattingly's "An American Art Colony", but it mentions nothing about newspaper work.



Also debuting in June is Charles "Doc" Winner (DW), who later went on to work on high profile properties like the Katzenjammer Kids, Elmer, even a short stint on Thimble Theatre. He manages seven appearances over three months and shows us a considerably different style than the bigfoot cartooning for which he's known.



The musical chairs approach to the romantic cartoon settles down starting in August with the first appearance of Juanita Hamel. Hamel would quickly become a three times per week regular on the panel, a position she would hold for almost a decade.

1917

             Sun                 Mon               Tue                Wed                Thu                Fri                    Sat

Jan (El Paso Times)
1 2 3 4 5 6
7 WN 8 WN 9 10 11 WN 12 13 WN
14 15 WN 16 17 18 19 WN 20
21 WN 22 WN 23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30 31 WN
Feb (Harrisburg Evening News from now on)
1 2 3
4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15 WN 16 FF 17 WN
18 19 WN 20 F 21 WN 22 AB 23 24 WN
25 26 WN 27 HP 28 WN
Mar
1 F 2 3 WN
4 5 WN 6 F 7 WN 8 HP 9 10 WN
11 12 WN 13 F 14 WN 15 HP 16 17 WN
18 19 WN 20 F 21 WN 22 HP 23 24 WN
25 26 WN 27 HP 28 WN 29 F 30 31 WN
Apr
1 2 WN 3 HP 4 WN 5 F 6 7 WN
8 9 WN 10 ? 11 WN 12 HP 13 14 WN
15 16 WN 17 F 18 WN 19 HP 20 21 WN
22 23 WN 24 F 25 WN 26 HP 27 28 WN
29 30 WN
May
1 F 2 WN 3 HP 4 5 WN
6 7 WN 8 F 9 WN 10 HP 11 12 WN
13 14 WN 15 F 16 WN 17 HP 18 19 WN
20 21 WN 22 F 23 WN 24 HP 25 26 WN
27 28 WN 29 F 30 WN 31 HP
Jun
1 2 WN
3 4 WN 5 F 6 ? 7 HP 8 9 WN
10 11 WN 12 F 13 WN 14 HP 15 16 WN
17 18 WN 19 F 20 WN 21 HP 22 23 WN
24 25 WN 26 F 27 WN 28 HP 29 30 WN
Jul
1 2 WN 3 F 4 ? 5 HP 6 7 WN
8 9 WN 10 F 11 WN 12 HP 13 14 WN
15 16 WN 17 F 18 ? 19 HP 20 21 WN
22 23 WN 24 F 25 WN 26 HP 27 28 WN
29 30 WN 31 F
Aug
1 WN 2 HP 3 4 WN
5 6 WN 7 F 8 WN 9 HP 10 11 WN
12 13 WN 14 F 15 WN 16 HP 17 18 WN
19 20 WN 21 F 22 WN 23 ? 24 25 WN
26 27 WN 28 F 29 WN 30 HP 31
Sep
1 WN
2 3 WN 4 F 5 WN 6 HP 7 8 WN
9 10 WN 11 FF 12 WN 13 HP 14 15 WN
16 17 WN 18 F 19 WN 20 HP 21 22 WN
23 24 WN 25 F 26 WN 27 HP 28 29 WN
30
Oct
1 ? 2 F 3 WN 4 HP 5 WN 6
7 8 WN 9 F 10 WN 11 HP 12 13 WN
14 15 WN 16 F 17 WN 18 HP 19 20 WN
21 22 WN 23 F 24 WN 25 HP 26 27 WN
28 29 30 F 31 WN
Nov
1 HP 2 3 WN
4 5 WN 6 F 7 WN 8 HP 9 10 WN
11 12 WN 13 F 14 WN 15 HP 16 17 WN
18 19 WN 20 F 21 WN 22 HP 23 24 WN
25 26 WN 27 F 28 WN 29 ? 30
Dec
1 WN
2 3 FF 4 5 WN 6 HP 7 8 WN
9 10 FF 11 12 WN 13 WN 14 15
16 17 WN 18 F 19 WN 20 HP 21 22 WN
23 24 WN 25 ? 26 WN 27 HP 28 29 WN
30 31 WN


1918 

             Sun                 Mon               Tue                Wed                Thu                Fri                    Sat

Jan  
1 F 2 WN 3 HP 4 5 WN
6 7 TE 8 F 9 WN 10 HP 11 12 WN
13 14 WN 15 F 16 WN 17 HP 18 19 WN
20 21 WN 22 F 23 WN 24 HP 25 26 TE
27 28 WN 29 F 30 WN 31 HP

Feb
1 2 WN
3 4 FF 5 F 6 TE 7 HP 8 9 WN
10 11 WN 12 F 13 WN 14 HP 15 16 WN
17 18 WN 19 F 20 WN 21 HP 22 23 WN
24 25 WN 26 F 27 WN 28 HP

Mar
1 2 WN
3 4 WN 5 F 6 WN 7 HP 8 9 WN
10 11 WN 12 F 13 WN 14 HP 15 16 TE
17 18 WN 19 F 20 WN 21 HP 22 23 WN
24 25 WN 26 F 27 WN 28 HP 29 30 WN
31

Apr
1 WN 2 F 3 ? 4 HP 5 6 WN
7 8 WN 9 F 10 WN 11 HP 12 13 WN
14 15 WN 16 F 17 ? 18 HP 19 20 WN
21 22 WN 23 F 24 DS 25 HP 26 27 WN
28 29 WN 30 F

May
1 WN 2 HP 3 4 TE
5 6 WN 7 F 8 DS 9 HP 10 11 WN
12 13 DS 14 F 15 TE 16 HP 17 18 GK
19 20 GK 21 F 22 TE 23 HP 24 25 GK
26 27 TE 28 F 29 GK 30 HP 31

Jun
1 DS
2 3 C 4 F 5 GK 6 HP 7 8 GK
9 10 CL 11 F 12 FC 13 ? 14 15 TE
16 17 FC 18 F 19 DW 20 HP 21 22 FC
23 24 FC 25 F 26 FC 27 HP 28 29 TE
30

Jul      Su                  M                 Tu                 W                Th                   F                  Sa
1 DW 2 F 3 GK 4 ? 5 6 FC
7 8 TE 9 F 10 FC 11 HP 12 13 FC
14 15 FC 16 F 17 TE 18 HP 19 20 FC
21 22 DW 23 F 24 FC 25 HP 26 27 DW
28 29 DW 30 F 31 DS

Aug
1 HP 2 3 FC
4 5 FC 6 F 7 W 8 HP 9 10 FC
11 12 DW 13 F 14 TE 15 HP 16 17 JH
18 19 JH 20 F 21 TE 22 HP 23 24 JH
25 26 JH 27 F 28 FC 29 HP 30 31 JH

Sep
1 2 JH 3 F 4 FC 5 HP 6 7 JH
8 9 JH 10 F 11 FC 12 HP 13 14 JH
15 16 JH 17 F 18 JH 19 HP 20 21 JH
22 23 JH 24 F 25 JH 26 HP 27 28 JH
29 30 JH

Oct
1 F 2 JH 3 HP 4 5 JH
6 7 FC 8 F 9 JH 10 HP 11 12 JH
13 14 JH 15 F 16 JH 17 HP 18 19 JH
20 21 JH 22 F 23 JH 24 HP 25 26 JH
27 28 JH 29 F 30 JH 31 HP

Nov
1 2 JH
3 4 JH 5 F 6 JH 7 HP 8 9 JH
10 11 ? 12 F 13 JH 14 HP 15 16 JH
17 18 JH 19 F 20 JH 21 HP 22 23 JH
24 25 JH 26 F 27 JH 28 ? 29 30 JH

Dec
1 2 JH 3 F 4 JH 5 HP 6 7 JH
8 9 JH 10 F 11 JH 12 HP 13 14 JH
15 16 JH 17 F 18 JH 19 HP 20 21 JH
22 23 JH 24 F 25 ? 26 HP 27 28 JH
29 30 JH 31 F

Comments:
The Calvert signed art is James Calvert Smith.

Have a nice day,
Keith Alan Morgan
 
Thanks Keith, post updated.
 
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