A colleague is preparing a Masters Thesis on character trademarks and advertising in pioneer tire companies.While researching Fisk Tires Co., he found the above cartoon ad from 1942.
Can anyone ID the signature? It's there in the lower left hand corner ("Galpert?"), but it's not legible.
Mike, I found an "A. Halpert" who did advertising art in the '30s and '40s. There's an example at:
ReplyDeletehttp://xroads.virginia.edu/~UG00/3on1/tobaccoads/comic.htm
The styles don't look very similar to me, but this example is from 1935 and Halpert could have evolved between then and 1942. A. Halpert (presumably the same one?) also edited a book called "Annual of Advertising Art" in 1947. I found that here:
http://www.antiqbook.com/boox/morr/00200822.shtml
That's as far as a got.
Wow! You are the dogged researching reporter!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Brian!!!
This site credits A. Halpert with the "Little Alby" ads for Grape-Nuts Flakes that ran in magazines through the 1930s. If this is true, then he took over from Roy Whittier, who created the Little Alby campaign in 1931 for the Johnstone & Cushing agency.
ReplyDeleteA.Halpert was my grandfather. I could tell from the cartoon posted on your site that it was his. Not only did it look like his style but the signature on the cartoon looks just like the signatures on paintings that I have by him. He was a member of the New York Society of Illustrators and the Art Directors Club. The cartoons I knew best were the ones he drew for us, his grandchildren, and made into cards for our birthdays. They were funny and warm. He also did a lot of water color paintings, and especially loved to paint Manhattan scenes, like the horse drawn carriages in Central Park, and the fountain outside of the Plaza Hotel. It was so nice to see his cartoon and your reference to him on your site!
ReplyDeleteThanks to everyone for the torrent of responses both here and via email.
ReplyDeleteLucy, great to see you here and I appreciate the time you took to say hello. I can only hope that one day you might share some more of Mr. Halpert's work on the Web! I'd love to see it!
Here Pablo, the graphic designer and Master Thesis researcher who asked Mike for his nice help.
ReplyDeleteThanks Brian, Bob, and Lucy to use your time and knowledge to identify the A. Halper Fisk cartoon!
I really appreciate your nice help, and special thanks to Mike, which blog is a friendly and amazing place to rescue old forgotten memories from past. A really homage to all these illustrators who deserves to be remembered.
The Halper cartoon is a part of an advertising strategy done by Fisk Tire under the management of United States Rubber Co. which owned Fisk since 1940. We can find other great names signing Fisk cartoons in magazine ads, like Reamer Keller (1909-? anyone have more info??) in 1948-49 or sport cartoonist Williard Harlan Mullin (1902-1978) in 1950.
Thanks again everybody for your nice contribution, and sorry for my poor english!!
My best regards from Barcelona, Spain. Sincerely, Pablo
Dear Lucy,
ReplyDeleteHere again Pablo. It will be a pleasure to contact with you to obtain more information about the bio and art of your grandfather to include short lines in my Thesis.
Recently I purchased on ebay three more cartoons of this Fisk serie. Are unsigned, but it seems the same graphic style of A. Halpert.
If you want I can scan its in good resolution for your own use, of course.
You can email me at pauvictoria@arrakis.es or pauvictoria@gmail.com.
Thanks again, Lucy, and thanks again, Mike!!
Pablo