Our sister store; proudly displays some very fine memorbilia well worth browsing. We have provided for you some of the listings and a link to eBay.
There are currently 58 eBay listed items
Major Motion Picture Costume Design: Red Evening
Limited edition lithograph of a sketch for a costume worn by Judy Garland, designed by Virginia Fisher for the 1946 MGM motion picture, “In the Good Old Summertime,” produced by Joseph Pasternak and directed by Robert C. Leonard.
This is 305/400, entitled, “Red Evening.” Sight size is 13”x19.” Matte size is 19”x25” unframed, signed by the designer.
This is a wonderful collector’s item for any fan of MGM’s leading singing star during the period of its great musicals.
Condition: MINT – shrink wrapped in clear plastic
N. B. The picture is positioned to avoid glare on the shrink wrap.
Major Motion Picture Costume Design: White Coat
Limited edition lithograph of a sketch for a costume worn by Judy Garland, designed by Virginia Fisher for the 1946 MGM motion picture, “In the Good Old Summertime,” produced by Joseph Pasternak and directed by Robert C. Leonard.
This is 283/400, entitled, “White Coat.” Sight size is 13”x19.” Matte size is 19”x25” unframed, signed by the designer.
This is a wonderful collector’s item for any fan of MGM’s leading singing star during the period of its great musicals.
Condition: MINT – shrink wrapped in clear plastic
N. B. The picture is positioned to avoid the glare on the shrink wrap.
Major Motion Picture Costume Design: Grey Fox
Limited edition lithograph of a sketch for a costume worn by Ava Gardner, designed by Virginia Fisher for the 1948 MGM motion picture, “The Great Sinner,” produced by Gottfried Reinhardt and directed by Robert Siodmak.
This is 142/400, entitled, “Grey Fox.” Sight size is 13”x19.” Matte size is 19”x25” unframed, signed by the designer.
This is a wonderful collector’s item for any fan of this exceptionally beautiful leading lady and international star.
Condition: MINT – shrink wrapped in clear plastic
N. B. The picture is positioned to avoid glare on the shrink wrap.
Major Motion Picture Costume Design: Three Shades of Grey
Limited edition lithograph of a sketch for a costume worn by Judy Garland, designed by Virginia Fisher for the 1946 MGM motion picture, “In the Good Old Summertime,” produced by Joseph Pasternak and directed by Robert C. Leonard.
This is 143/400, entitled, “Three Shades of Grey.” Sight size is 13”x19.” Matte size is 19”x25” unframed, signed by the designer.
This is a wonderful collector’s item for any fan of MGM’s leading singing star during the period of its great musicals.
Condition: MINT - shrink wrapped in clear plastic
N. B. The picture is positioned to avoid glare on the shrink wrap.
Black Dress with umbrella and fur stole: Vintage signed and numbered hand colored lithograph from 1947 movie The Easter Parade staring Judy Garland and Ann Miller.
Midriff Cutout.jpg
White dress with silver: Vintage signed and numbered hand colored lithograph from 1947 movie B.F.'s Daughter staring Barbara Stanwyck. Silver "beading" is hand done on top of the hand colored lithograph.
Humor, whether by J. C. Leyendecker or Norman Rockwell, has always been one of the chief characteristics of THE SATURDAY EVENING POST covers. In this summer issue, a very large lady inflates a very small set of water wings that wouldn’t be able to keep even one of her legs afloat.
Photographs were very rare in these issues, and the task of illustrating the many stories and feature articles fell to a host of brilliant artists working in a variety of black and white media. Hal G. Evarts’ western tale,“Tumbleweed,” was drawn by W. H. D. Koener and Sam Hellman’s “Twosome at Tuana,” a golf story, by Tony Sarg. There are contributions, as well, by J. E. Allen and Robert Stewart that indicate the very high level of artistry and make a modern reader sadly aware of the wonderful skills and mysterious aura of an art increasingly lost to the advance of photography.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine roll -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
Charles Ellis: Cat
Medium: Watercolor on Board Title/Date: 1989 Signature/ Inscriptions:Signed Lower Right Measurements: Image: height 12", width 18"
This early issue of America’s favorite illustrated weekly still carries the information that it was founded by Benjamin Franklin and published in Philadelphia. The J. C. Leyendecker cover, done with all the stylish skill for which he is admired, celebrates the circus, featuring a black poodle jumping through a clown’s red hoop. At the time, the only colors available in magazine printing were red, black and occasionally, green, and the illustrators of the period made wonderful use of this limited palate.
The story illustrations all done in various graphic media show off the talents of a group of artists unmatched in publishing. The baby drawings by Lucille Patterson Marsh make the Gerber baby look plain. The beautiful, atmospheric charcoal drawings by James H. Crank and C. P. Williams had an enormous influence on many of the early Hollywood moviemakers and photographers. The award winning art director and poster artist, Anton Grot, is a case in point. His work was at the heart of the film noir style.
This issue contains an amazing number of these examples of a lost art. No contemporary computer generated graphic novel will ever hold a candle to them.
Condition: GOOD -Minor spine roll -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Light page discoloration -Some discoloration on cover -Small page or cover tears/creasing
The puzzled runaway and his loyal dog are the theme of this evocative cover, illustrating the pull of the big city on a small town boy.
This issue contains nearly a dozen short stories, beautifully illustrated by the POST’s best artists, among them, Henry Raleigh and H. J. Mowat. Black and white drawings of this kind are found throughout the magazine in articles and ads, including a charming Jell-o ad by Norman Rockwell.
Articles and features cover subjects like stress on businessmen and the workings of England’s Labor Party toward its Socialist goals. The unusual back cover features the new Sine Kodak motion picture camera. The complete outfit, including crank, tripod, screen, etc. costs $335.00, a lot of money in those days. A warm union suit to wear for outdoor photography was $1.50. A real bargain.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Light cover discoloration -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
This beautiful Christmas issue has on the cover an 18th Century liveried servant bringing in the lighted, holiday candelabra, smiling radiantly. Few illustrators of the day could render the lace and sheen of the red uniform with such skill.
The magazine still carried the banner informing the reader that it was an illustrated weekly, founded by Benjamin Franklin in A.D. 1728, and illustrations are what they featured. On almost every page, the talented artists of the POST display their abilities to depict the world of the stories and articles in black and white with the charm and expressiveness that can rarely be achieved by photography.
The story of a black jazzman, “Sizzling Sadie,” by Octavus Roy Cohen, is drawn by J. J. Gould. And the western, “The Shaggy Legion,” is painted in grisaille by W. H. D. Koerner in the tradition of great western artists, like Remington and Russell. In these and many other illustrations, one is pleasantly reminded of the black and white movies of the period.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Loose center page -Light cover/page discoloration -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
This Dickensian cover of a man asleep over his book of chivalric tales, dreaming of a world of wonders long past, is priceless. In an icon format perfect for the subject and chock full of Rockwell’s wonderfully observed and rendered details, down to the mysterious cat at his feet, it is one of the artist’s works that extends his range into a dramatic mode not usually attributed to him. But the usual wit and charm are not at all lessened by the darker tones.
Contributors of stories, like Ben Ames Williams and I. A. R. Wylie, illustrated in black and white gouache by James N. Crank, and charcoal by Henrietta McCaig Starret demonstrate the reason this magazine was considered the pinnacle of illustration art during the period of its publication. Also, it is an example of what was lost with the advent of photography.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Light page discoloration -Minor page or cover tears/creasing -Minor pencil mark
This political issue dispenses with the usual humor and shows a red, white and blue checkerboard with the Republican elephant facing the Democratic donkey. Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his New Deal were running for an unprecedented third term while the nation was still recovering from the Great Depression.
The famous columnist, Westbrook Pegler, supplies an article emphatically saying, “No,” to Roosevelt’s plans and anything else coming from what he called, “the left.” And the Jehovah’s Witnesses, in a separate article, are accused of hating just about everybody.
A rare occasion when a writer supplies his own very good illustrations can be found in John W. Thomason, Jr.’s Civil War story, “The Stars in Their Courses-.” Also, there is a typical ad, illustrated by Norman Rockwell, for General Motors, and an article about the company’s president, Alfred P. Sloane, Jr.
The usual features, cartoons and poems can be read with as much pleasure today as they were then.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor cover tears/creasing -Smudge on lower left corner of cover -Minor blunting of corners
The cover of this issue by Rockwell shows him at his most entertaining, in a study of a gleeful young boy, reading his sister’s diary at her dressing table, surrounded by a pretty pink and white world.
In keeping with the magazine’s high literary standards is a Dez & Crunch adventure by the popular novelist, Phillip Wylie, and a Captain Crowe tale by the incomparable author of sea stories, C. S. Forester, illustrated by Ben Stahl in grisaille. The black and white illustrations by R. Cooper for the serial, “Murder in the OPM”, are examples of this long lost art.
Also, there are numerous period ads, many featuring popular entertainers of the day, such as: Red Skelton, Fred Allen, and Joan Bennett.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
Rockwell’s iconic GI is shown on kp, avidly reading his hometown newspaper. Humorous, touching and beautifully designed, this blazing red cover is unforgettable.
At a time when we were losing WWII, escapism was in demand, and this issue of THE POST features 2 western tales excitingly illustrated in color. The major article reports on the effort to prevent the fall of Australia to the Japanese. The famous author, W. Somerset Maugham, tries to solve the riddle of why Americans seem to dislike their ally, Great Britain.
Chock full of period ads, cartoons, serials and weekly features, this is a fascinating issue.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at to and/or bottom) -Light page discoloration -Light rubbing on cover/some pages -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
Willie Gilles, Jr., Rockwell’s typical GI, appears cheek to cheek in the dark with a pretty girl, reading a pamphlet entitled, “What To Do In A Blackout,” leering impishly.
Among the stories,“The Bride Saw Red,” by Robert Carson, is lavishly illustrated by Mortimer Wilson.
Wendell L. Wilkie, the New York district Attorney, who famously lost the presidential election to Harry S. Truman, makes a case for minorities in America. A wartime report on the defense of Corregidor, the first great American loss of WWII, is another featured article.
History, romance, comedy and travel, all enhanced by wonderful photography and painted illustrations are what THE POST provided to an anxious country during these trying times.
Condition: EXCELLENT -Small corner bends and/or light creases on cover -Very minor spine wear -Very minor page discoloration on back spine
Here again, Rockwell’s Willie Gilles, Jr., adorns a wartime cover. But instead of the usual humor, we have the artist’s representation of a young G. I. seated in a church pew, clutching his crisp, new military cap and staring thoughtfully into space. Visible behind him, the arm of an army Master Sergeant with six hash marks, obviously a seasoned veteran. It is a wonderful touch, and the contrast makes Gilles look even younger and more vulnerable. As it is today, war changes the tone of our communication, making it graver and more touching. It is unlikely that a photograph would have been able to express this as well as an imaginatively composed painting.
Other illustrations in this issue, especially the work in color by Harold Von Schmidt, demonstrate the expressive value of drawing in the hands of gifted artists. Many of the black and white illustrations for the magazine’s famous stories and articles are cleverly enhanced by touches of a single color, pre-dating today’s TV commercials where this device is used, proving that there is little new under the sun but much to be retained. Classic magazines like this are clear demonstrations of that fact.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Light rubbing on cover -Minor page or cover creasing
This wartime cover depicts two pretty young lady gardeners confronting each other at their suburban mailboxes on a day when they both have received photos from Rockwell’s stand-in for all American GI’s, Willie Gilles, Jr., signed, “Love.”
The war and love themes also are treated in Richard Heckman’s story, “Twenty-Four-Hour-Leave,” stylishly illustrated by Alex Ross and “No Surrender,” illustrated by Harold Von Schmidt.
A feature article celebrating the flyer, Jimmy Collins, who died giving birth to the Navy’s crack Grumman Avenger aircraft. The issue also contains a Walter Brooks story, featuring Ed, the talking horse, illustrated by the noted NEW YORKER cartoonist, Peter Arno. Ed later appeared in a popular television series. The noted African American author, Zora Neal Hurston, contributes a fascinating study of a Negro rancher’s life in Florida.
Condition: FINE A nearly perfect copy overall, which may have some very minor imperfections
This famous wartime Rockwell cover celebrates the USO and features Willie Gilles, Jr., his typical American boy reacting to being served pettifores along with his coffee and donuts by two fashionable and very pretty ladies. This illustration has all the homespun charm and precise execution that has become synonymous with Rockwell’s name.
This typical 85-page issue features the first of C. S. Forester’s new navy stories, with a full-page illustration of a U.S. vessel under attack by a German Stuka divebomber. The featured article is by the famous author, Edgar Snow, on America’s armament industry, and another is a study of the first body builder to encourage the nation to go buff, Charles Atlas. The weekly serials include “Sugarfoot” by Clarence Budington Kelland, beautifully illustrated in grisaille by Harold Von Schmidt. Numerous features, cartoons and illustrated ads bring the period of the war to life in an incomparable way.
Condition: GOOD -Minor spine roll -Minor wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Small page or cover tears/creasing
This issue of America’s most popular illustrated magazine features a delightful, hot weather cover by Norman Rockwell, the country’s best loved illustrator.
It also contains 4 short stories, including “The Spike Eared Dog” by Mari Sandoz and 8 articles covering WWII, Wall Street and the wild life of heavyweight contender, Lee Oma, who appeared in later years in the films, “On the Waterfront” and “A Face in the Crowd.”
The many features, serials, classic cartoons and illustrated advertisements reveal a past world with the magazine’s signature charm and wit.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Minor page or cover tears/creasing -Small pencil mark on cover
This Rockwell cover of America’s favorite illustrated magazine records a spellbinding moment in a boy’s life as he watches an old piano tuner at work, surrounded by the tools of his trade, rendered in the usual authentic detail by the artist.
Among the 8 articles are one by the noted author, Irving Wallace on the art forger, Hans van Meegeren, who swindled Nazi, Hermann Goering, with his fake Vermeers, and a fascinating study of the ultra left-wing Congressman Vito Marcantonio, who represented New York’s East Harlem during the twists and turns of the Communist party line, resulting from the Soviet Union’s entry into WWII.
The 4 short stories all are skillfully illustrated, as are the 2 weekly serials. The numerous cartoons and features include 5 short, touching poems and many cartoons comparable to the ones found in THE NEW YORKER magazine of the day.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
This cover of the Christmas issue is every man’s nightmare - coming home with a freshly cut Christmas tree to find your wife decorating the one she brought home. The only hint that this issue was published during the Korean War is a small picture of a man in uniform hanging on the wall near the door.
Inside the magazine, there is a lovely Norman Rockwell ad, depicting a visiting family’s arrival, arms laden with presents, being greeted by the household’s beribboned beagle. It was painted as a Plymouth car ad.
Condition: GOOD -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Small cover tears -Rubbing on Plymouth car ad -Wriiting on back cover
This Korean War cover keeps the hardships of military life out of sight, playing lightly on the rivalries among the armed forces and the enduring American themes of dating and ultimately, matrimony.
The matrimonial theme is treated again in the short story, “Love is One Thing, Marriage Another,” by Phyllis Duganne, illustrated by Coby Whitmore in the dashing style of the period. The illustration for “The Killer Racket,” a boxing drama, is reminiscent of the famous ring paintings of George Bellows.
The feature articles deal with the McCarthy era arrests of the staff of the Communist paper, “The Daily Worker,” and an article on the treatment of criminals convicted of heinous crimes who pled insanity.
C. S. Forester offers another sea story, centering around Captain Horatio Hornblower and illustrated by Ken Riley.
The famous characters in Al Kapp’s cartoon,“L’il Abner,” appear in a humorous Cream of Wheat ad.
Condition: GOOD -Moderate spine roll/wear -Small cover tears -Some blunting/creasing of corners
The wintry cover of this issue of the nation’s favorite magazine is Snoqualmie Pass, painted by John Clymer who worked in the vein of the American Impressionist movement.
The 4 short stories include a suitably cold snowbound tale by G. S. Albee and a warm tale of love, charmingly illustrated by Lynn Bucham. An unusual full page photo of the young James Stewart is part of an Air France ad on page 3. The 8 articles include a study of communism by the then famous reporter, Stewart Alsop. Rex Stout contributes a chapter in one of the 2 monthly serials, based on his master detective, Nero Wolf.
There are many features and articles, cartoons and illustrations that make this issue memorable, and the ads reveal a world in which any character from TV’s MADMEN would be at home.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine roll -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
The cover, a split screen of love struck teenagers talking on the telephone, is a study in innocence, security and the cultural artifacts typical of this prosperous period in our history.
Among the 6 articles, are one on the growing affluence of Europe, and one by Edward Teller, the father of the H Bomb, entitled, “A Plan for Survival.” The 4 short fictions include one on Abraham Lincoln as a defense lawyer and another, a nightmare tale that would fit perfectly into the Lifetime channel’s schedule of domestic dread seen on television today.
The weekly cartoons, including the popular strip, “Hazel,” the regular features and departments make this issue a pleasant trip into the past. Atomic threat or no, America was always willing to be entertained.
Condition: VERY GOOD -Minor spine roll -Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom) -Minor cover scratches -Minor page or cover tears/creasing
This classic Easter issue was published virtually without the use of photographs. Every story and advertisement was illustrated by a stable of artists, working in pencil, charcoal, conte crayon and gouache that was unmatched for their skills and affect. Only three colors were available at the time: black, red and rarely, green. The red is used to great effect is a full-page Campbell’s pork and beans ad worthy of Andy Warhol. For those who appreciate great drawings, this issue is a real treat, beginning with a cover by the incomparable J. C. Leyendecker of a pretty girl trying on her new Easter bonnet.
The stories and articles range through all the popular genres, from westerns to love stories, to remembrances of the theater world in which Maurice Barrymore, the father of the famous Barrymore clan, reigned.
Condition: GOOD -Minor spine wear -Moderate discoloration of edges of cover -Minor page or cover tears/creasing -Some blunting of corners J. C. Leyendecker
Charles Ellis: Swan Family
Medium: Watercolor on Board Signature/ Inscriptions: Signed Lower Right Measurements: Image: height 120", width 180"
Medium: Acrylic on board200 Signature/ Inscriptions: Signed lower left Measurements: Image: height 16", width 12"
Description: Inscribed "To my Friend Edward Everett Horton 03-43"
Charles Ellis: Chinese Leader Portrait
Title: Chinese Leader Portrait / Acrylic on board Measurements: height 20”, width 16” Description: Chinese Leader’s Portrait
Young love and jealousy are the themes of this issues cover painted in a style reminiscent of a man with a very similar name, Norman Rockwell.
Fascism was doing its best to establish a foothold in America on the brink of WWII, and the magazine featured it in a lead article by Stanley High.
A number of stories in this issue are by very popular writers of the period, some still read today:Paul Gallico,Agatha Christie and P. G. Wodehouse.A sports story about tough Tony Gallanto preparing for his first fight with Joe Lewis is typical of the interest in those days in heavyweight boxing.
Celebrity, in the form of a glamorous blond was in fashion then as it is now.This cover of the pre-paparazzi reporters surrounding a star has all the charm and insight of the magazine’s favorite illustrator at its best.
The confessions of a lady communist accounting her disillusion with the ideology in her belief that capitalism and pluralism were better, was a timely matter duringThe Great Depression, and the POST features it in one of its articles.
The stories illustrated by the many skilled POST artists, deal with glamorous people in love and the rich and larcenous abroad, making for good escapist reading.
The sport of boxing, extremely popular at the time, is covered by an article about the showman who arranged the very famous Corbett-Fitzsimmons championship bout.
The allegorical figure of Education, book and torch firmly grasped, is here embodied by a sour faced youth, encouraged by his mother to smile before entering the pageant.Once again, the artist’s humor and exacting eye for detail make a memorable cover.
Deep in the Depression, stories by the popular writers of the day about princesses, high life, family and romance, all beautifully illustrated, are the magazine’s contribution to escapism and hope.
On the editorial pages, the isolationist POST features a cartoon by Herbert Johnson showing Uncle Sam in the “No Foreign Entanglements” box, while on the field, the European powers battle it out.John Bull hints that he might join the U.S. on the sidelines.In the end, it was Britain that pulled the U.S. into the war.Wishful thinking makes for telling ironies.
This income tax cover hints at non-payment.During this time, the final day to file was March 15th, the Ides of March, the day Caesar was warned to beware.It was later changed to April 15th… a wise decision.
Current events, like Roosevelt’s New Deal, are not ignored by the POST, which did not favor it.The editorial page contains a famous cartoon by Herbert Johnson, depicting the “Recession” as a hobo with a top hat and cigar stub on a toothpick, urging a New Deal bureaucrat to do a little whitewashing.On the chest behind the desk, is a trophy with the inscription, “Smear Hoover Triumph,” a reference to the president that F.D.R. defeated in 1933.
Norman Rockwell’s full-page illustration for the “Down-East Ambrosia,” showing a grandmother with her small grandson at work in her homey Maine kitchen, depicts all his usual charm and telling detail.
Condition:
VERY GOOD
-Minor cover tears
-Minor blunting of corners
-Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom)
This Spring issue, depicting a slim, pretty hiker putting a flower in the lapel of a fat scarecrow, shows the country’s favorite illustrator’s skill at rendering contrasting figures.
The famous author and lecturer, Vincent Shean’s article on relations between Britain and Egypt, and the effort to resolve sixty years of trouble between East and West, is a timely subject, even today.
The stories in this issue are wonderfully illustrated in black and white, including one by the famous film and stage star, Eddie Cantor, about life in the theater.There is an additional article on the extremely successful theater producer, Gilbert Seldes, making this a rare showbiz issue.
Color has begun to be used frequently in the magazine at this time, and this issue has many striking full-page ads.
Spring is suggested by a barefoot schoolboy and a pair of bunnies in this issue’s cover, painted with the artist’s usual charm and attention to detail.
The Great Depression was as famous for its criminals as it was for its bread lines, and the featured article on counterfeiting proves that there is more than one way to make money when things are bad.
Money also figures in the sports article on baseball salaries when $45,000 was paid for a good pitcher and $1,000,000 was baseball’s total expenditure for all its players.
Beautifully illustrated stories by well-known writers, like the popular poet and novelist, Ogden Nash, were still the magazine’s stock in trade.
Haggling over brass, the peddler and the very chic lady make a wonderful pair in the skilled hands of America’s favorite illustrator.
The Great Depression is not ignored in a featured article, illustrated by the brilliant political cartoonist, Herbert Johnson, depicting the collapse of market capitalism due to stupidity and greed, and expressing the hope that the Recovery measures advocated by the young Utopians of the left will not lead the country to abandon the old folks:private capitalism and democratic government. Sound Familiar?
Beautifully illustrated tales of the rich and the romantic, looking much like the black and white movies of the day, are the main choices for the magazine’s stories.A serial biography of the Princess of Rumania completes the glamorous picture of the world as seen from below.
In this hunting season issue, it’s difficult to tell whether it’s a Crockwell or a Rockwell, but “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,” and magazine sales are not hurt by the resemblance.
This issue was published on the brink of our entry into WWII, and the stories and articles reflect this. A submarine tale is wonderfully illustrated in grisaille by Anton Otto Fischer.Herbert Hoover offers an article calling for the U.S. to stay out of the war in Europe.As is the case today, the country was divided over this issue.
The feature story illustrated in color by Norman Rockwell, was written by Stephen Vincent Benet, the well known poet, and it, too, was political, featuring Daniel Webster dealing with dire predictions about the fate of the nation.The POST’s editorials also warn against the European entanglements.The more things change, the more they stay the same.
This Dickensian Christmas cover shows America’s favorite illustrator at his best, rendering Bob Cratchett and Tiny Tim in rich detail, their faces glowing with the embracing spirit of the season.
There is little in this issue to indicate a nation deeply sunk in The Great Depression.Like Hollywood, the magazine featured tales of the rich, cowboy escapism and the mysterious Oriental world in which John P. Marquand set his stories, all wonderfully illustrated in black and white by the POST’s artists.
This cover by one of the many skillful illustrators is typical of the humorously sentimental images that endeared the magazine to the public.
Another female illustrator of note was Mary Wilson Preston whose work can be seen in the feature story by Mary Robert Rinehart.John P. Marquand, another best selling author, contributes an adventure story located in China, the mysterious world of many of his novels.
A Norman Rockwell painting of “The Land of Enchantment” forms a beautiful double spread on pages 18-19.The title describes it, and the wonderland is beautifully depicted in dreamlike tones.
The Great Depression stories include a study of J. Edgar Hoover in pursuit of John Dillinger, the bank robber.The editorial pages like many today, argue against F.D.R.’s Recovery measures and fears of government spending, calling them radical social experiments.Issues like this, make us aware of history’s tendency to repeat itself.
A museum attendant unknowingly creates a self-portrait as he carries an empty canvas past an array of pictures whose painted subjects react in this fine example of Rockwell’s engaging humor.
A gripping tale of the Old West, illustrated in color by Donald Teague, and a romantic story, illustrated by Albert Dorne, are two examples of why the POST was considered the nation’s premier illustrated magazine.
World War II is recalled in an article about the Congressional Medal of Honor winner, Charles (Commanado) Kelly’s exploits in civilian life as the owner of a gas station on the tough north side of Pittsburgh.Having been robbed by local kids, he remains sympathetic to the roughneck type.“The best men are always in the stockade,” Kelly reports, having proved it by his heroism after many visits to the guardhouse.
A POST Picture Story, lavish with color photos, reveals the enviable life of G. I.’s stationed in picturesque St. Moritz, Switzerland.
Bowling, an amiable pastime is covered in an article about Joe Falcaro, a man who bowled a record 59 perfect games and 51 strikes in 60 consecutive games, a score approached only by the great Andy Barapapa.
Condition:
FAIR
-Moderate spine wear
-Small separation of cover and two pages at bottom of spine
War or no war, American life continued to be presented with humor on POST covers, and this issue is a fine example:barber and boy absorbed in a comic book with tragi-comic results.
The war was being fought in Africa which pleased the besieged Russians, and the featured article reveals the extent to which Asia had been contributing to the war effort.
The stories in this issue hardly touch on the war, but many articles and ads do.The highlight of this effort is on page 13, where Norman Rockwell’s painting of one of “The Four Freedoms, “The Freedom of Worship,” with a text by the historian and philosopher, Will Durant, makes up a double-page spread.
A museum attendant unknowingly creates a self-portrait as he carries an empty canvas past an array of pictures whose painted subjects react in this fine example of Rockwell’s engaging humor.
A gripping tale of the Old West, illustrated in color by Donald Teague, and a romantic story, illustrated by Albert Dorne, are two examples of why the POST was considered the nation’s premier illustrated magazine.
World War II is recalled in an article about the Congressional Medal of Honor winner, Charles (Commanado) Kelly’s exploits in civilian life as the owner of a gas station on the tough north side of Pittsburgh.Having been robbed by local kids, he remains sympathetic to the roughneck type.“The best men are always in the stockade,” Kelly reports, having proved it by his heroism after many visits to the guardhouse.
A POST Picture Story, lavish with color photos, reveals the enviable life of G. I.’s stationed in picturesque St. Moritz, Switzerland.
Bowling, an amiable pastime is covered in an article about Joe Falcaro, a man who bowled a record 59 perfect games and 51 strikes in 60 consecutive games, a score approached only by the great Andy Barapapa.
Condition:
FAIR
-Moderate spine wear
-Small separation of cover and two pages at bottom of spine
Spring was in the air for this POST cover of children at play in an ideal country setting, the kind that would soon disappear under the pressure of suburban development.
The Cold War was raging, and Senator Joseph McCarthy was turning political issues into security issues in opposing a presidential appointee to the post of Ambassador to the Soviet Union.McCarthy lost this battle, but the era that would bear his name was at its height.Moscow, too, was being shaken up in the struggle for Stalin’s place in the Communist Party hierarchy.
The fiction includes a Des and Crunch serial by Phillip Wylie, illustrated in color by the noted artist, Rudy Pott.The popular author, Paul Gallico offers another well illustrated tale of a swindle.
Charles A. Lindbergh contributes a serialized account of his 33-hour flight to Paris.A sporting article on the catcher, Clint Courtney, supports Satchell Page’s statement that Courtney was “the meanest man he ever met.”
Willie Gillis, Jr., Rockwell’s typical GI, appears cheek to cheek in the dark with a pretty girl, reading a pamphlet entitled, “What To Do In A Blackout,” leering impishly.
Among the stories,“The Bride Saw Red,” by Robert Carson, is lavishly illustrated by Mortimer Wilson.
Wendell L. Wilkie, the New York district Attorney, who famously lost the presidential election to Harry S. Truman, makes a case for minorities in America.A wartime report on the defense of Corregidor, the first great American loss of WWII, is another featured article.
History, romance, comedy and travel, all enhanced by wonderful photography and painted illustrations are what THE POST provided to an anxious country during these trying times.
The torch held aloft by the Statue of Liberty gets a working over on this cover by men in colorful shirts as white doves of peace soar around them.The contrast between the powerful arm of liberty and the small figures on the twisted flame embodies the message on the statue’s base, offering the world’s downtrodden protection.
Treasure hunters and returning G.I.’s are the subjects of this POST’s stylishly illustrated stories, and a C. S. Forester serial, featuring Lord Hornblower, follows the famous sailor’s climb up the ranks of the British Navy.
Post war recovery in Poland under the Communist regime is the subject of the featured article, and General Dwight Eisenhower’s six great decisions are discussed in another.The mysterious missions of the 9th Infantry Division are revealed and accompanied by vivid black and white combat photos.
Here again, Rockwell’s Willie Gillis, Jr., adorns a wartime cover.But instead of the usual humor, we have the artist’s representation of a young G. I. seated in a church
pew,clutching his crisp, new military cap and staring thoughtfully into space.Visible behind him, the arm of an army Master Sergeant with six hash marks, obviously a seasoned veteran.It is a wonderful touch, and the contrast makes Gilles look even younger and more vulnerable.As it is today, war changes the tone of our communication, making it graver and more touching.It is unlikely that a photograph would have been able to express this as well as an imaginatively composed painting.
Other illustrations in this issue, especially the work in color by Harold Von Schmidt, demonstrate the expressive value of drawing in the hands of gifted artists.Many of the black and white illustrations for the magazine’s famous stories and articles are cleverly enhanced by touches of a single color, pre-dating today’s TV commercials where this device is used, proving that there is little new under the sun but much to be retained.Classic magazines like this are clear demonstrations of that fact.
Condition:
VERY GOOD
-Minor spine wear (typically, a separation at top and/or bottom)
A cartoon of Adolf Hitler, failing to paste together a wallpaper map of Europe, is a hopeful bit of humor at this point in the war when victory still seemed far off.
Women at war, is the subject of the featured article, and the politically sensitive efforts at price controls at home is examined in another timely editorial piece.The stories are of men at war and in love, effectively illustrated, as always, in the POST.
A testimonial by Sgt. Frank C. Jennings, entitled, “What I am Fighting For,” defines the ideals and goals of the “Greatest Generation” in simple, direct and inspiring terms.
On page 84, Norman Rockwell’s illustrations of “The Four Freedoms” appears along with the announcement of their being used in a traveling war bond show, sponsored by the U. S. Treasury Department and THE SATURDAY EVENING POST.
Willie Gillis, Rockwell’s emblematic dog foot, is now seen at college, making good use of his G.I. Bill.His old helmet, bayonet, discharge papers, division patch and First Sergeant’s stripes decorate his dorm room.Oh, and he has taken up golf and pipe smoking.
The one-time lawyer and King of Mystery Writers, Earl Stanley Gardner, gets a featured story in this issue.His total sales, as of 1945, were 6,104,000 hard copies and 13,146,520 paperbacks, certainly a record.
The exodus of the surviving Jews of Eastern Europe is a moving tale of recovery and resilience one year after the end of the Holocaust.
Romance, adventure, mystery stories and serials, all illustrated by the POST’s stable of talented artists, are a reminder that times had returned to normal, and the brightly colored ads demonstrate that the things millions of Americans fought and died for, were once again available.
This wartime cover depicts a beautiful nurse lighting a cigarette for a handsome wounded member of the armed forces aboard a hospital ship.Even Hollywood would be hard put to come up with a glamorized image of war to match this one.
Military personnel figure in two stories and a serial, all illustrated in color, but the most touching wartime image of all is supplied in a black and white picture by Roman Vishniak of a starving child.
A long poem by Joseph Auslander, illustrated by Stevan Dohanos, is an open letter to the incomparable Norwegians and their resistance to the Nazis.
The glamour and heroism of our young pilots are wonderfully captured in a Goodyear Aircraft ad by the celebrated illustrator, J. C. Leyendecker, in the centerfold.
This view of the suburban Crestwood Station, features an enterprising newsboy at the gate, selling the morning edition of the town paper to a steady stream of customers who also can be seen lined up on the distant platform, reading the news right up to the moment the train arrives.It was a perfect image of a peacetime America returning to its established ways.
World War II was over, and the recovery in Germany was a big question, particularly its ability to feed its people.Another question of the day was the treatment of enemy aliens during the war, and in this article, the descendents of one German detainee, felt that he had been treated very well.
The sports article deals with Lou Little, the coach of the Columbia Lions, who was highly paid and highly respected despite the fact that his career contained more losses than wins.
All the stories and serials in the magazine are skillfully illustrated in color, and the ads and special features paint a prosperous and optimistic picture of the country at peace.
Five years after Pearl Harbor, a peacetime initiation into adult life is the theme of this POST cover, done with the usual humor and charm by America’s favorite illustrator.
The occupation of the defeated Germany is featured in this issue, and concerns the feeding of its people.National politics is focused on the figure of Henry Wallace, Secretary of Commerce and future vice president, who would, a few years later, unsuccessfully attempt to run for president on a third party ticket.
The stories and serials cover romance, western drives and the adventures of Des and Crunch, Phillip Wylie’s famous fictional characters, fishing in the Caribbean.These all are excellently illustrated by the POST’s artists.
This POST cover depicts an exhausted sales clerk left as limp as a rag doll after the store has closed at 5:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve.Once again, Rockwell’s gift for telling detail and humorous associations makes for a memorable picture of working life.
Two of the issue’s stories are beautifully illustrated in black and white, however the serial, “Tugboat Annie,” the source of many motion pictures, is illustrated in full color by the incomparable Harold Von Schmidt.
The U. N. decision to partition Palestine between the Arab Muslims and the Zionist Jews is discussed in the lead article, “Will the Arabs Fight?”The answer, we know was, “Yes,” and the fight has lasted more than seventy years.
