From the Dick Buchanan Files: Certified Vintage Gag Cartoons 1946 - 1965

There was a time when most every major American magazine had gag cartoons, and hundreds were being bought and published every month. That was called the Golden Age of Gag Cartooning. The height of the Age was post-WWII, and it began to decline in the 1950s as TV became more popular than reading that Saturday Evening Post on Saturday evening.

There were still cartoons in magazines, but not as many. And soon, a lot of those general interest national magazines weren't as many too. Collier's stopped publishing in 1957. This Week, a Sunday supplement to the newspapers, hung on until 1969. Look magazine eked it out until 1971. But here, on this blog, courtesy of cartoon clipper extraordinaire Dick Buchanan, we can visit that Golden Age. Thank you, and take it away, Dick.

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CERTIFIED VINTAGE GAG CARTOONS
(1946 – 1965)

Here are a few of the mid-century gag cartoons which have achieved Certified Vintage status . . .

1. TOM HENDERSON. This Week Magazine March 3, 1946.

2. GARDNER REA. Collier’s February 25, 1951.

3. GLENN BERNHARDT. The Saturday Evening Post October 16, 1954.

4. PHIL INTERLANDI. The Saturday Evening Post October 3, 1953.

5. DAVE LETTICK. Lettick drew the comic strip Little Orphan Annie for 3 months in 1974 after which the strip began running Harold Gray reprints. True Magazine December, 1969.

6. BOB WEBER. American Legion Magazine October, 1963.

7. CLYDE LAMB. 1000 Jokes Magazine Winter, 1954.

8. GEORGE SMITH. The Saturday Evening Post May 15, 1948.

9. SYDNEY HOFF. Collier’s November 24, 1951.

10. ORLANDO BUSINO. American Legion Magazine April, 1959.

11. SLIM. Cartoonist Robert Johnson signed his work Slim. Argosy Magazine September, 1965.

12. JEFFREY MONAHAN. 1000 Jokes Magazine September – November, 1961.

13. IRWIN CAPLAN. This Week Magazine March 17, 1946.

14. FRANK BAGINSKI. Baginski drew the comic strip Splitsville. American Legion Magazine May, 1965.

15. SAM GROSS. Argosy Magazine July, 1965.

- Edited from a blog entry that first appeared on June 17, 2020

AI WIll Tear Us Apart

This picture of a Twitter posting or a Facebook posting (not sure) has been making the rounds. That last sentence is especially chilling.

The Garden As of May 1, 2024

The garden as of May 1st — with cameos by Tank and Cheddar. Not much to see now. Above is the winter rye planted in the raised beds last fall. It will add some nutrients to the soil. It will need to be pulled out before I plant though! 

 

No hummingbirds yet, but they have been seen in the neighborhood. Bluebirds, finches, jays, woodpeckers, doves, chickadees, sparrows all plentiful. 

 

 

Still a lot of branches to be cleared from the two heavy snowstorms we had last month.

History of Press Graphics: The Golden Age of Graphic Journalism 1819 - 1921 by Alexander Roob

Taschen has published this large volume Press Graphics: The Golden Age of Graphic Journalism 1819 - 1921 by Alexander Roob. It covers the 19th century explosion of newspaper illustration in Europe and the States, and its influence on modern art. It's reviewed by Olivia Ahmed for the Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration here. 

 

Here's an excerpt from her review:

"History of Press Graphics is a super-sized account of what came before (at least in northern Europe and the US – the press graphics of other places are available). With hundreds of illustrations, it explores the rise of the illustrated press, from the anti-establishment pamphlets that were passed around England in the early 1800s to the newspapers and magazines that followed."

1973 BBC Archive: Cats With Their Own Bank Account

Hat tip to Sarah Booth for this great 1973 BBC Archive documentary news clip.

Cartoons from WIT FROM OVERSEAS Edited by Roy H. Hoopes, Jr.

 

WIT FROM OVERSEAS, is a collection of wit (cartoons and prose) from various foreign periodicals. It's edited by Roy H. Hoopes, Jr. and is (I swear to goodness) copyright: 1950, 1951, 1952 by Farm Journal, Inc.; 1952 by Hulton Press, Ltd.; 1950, 1951 by The Elite Publishing Corp.; 1950, 1951, 1952 by Bradbury, Agnew, Ltd.; 1953 by Roy H. Hoopes, Jr.



I don't know the work of most of these cartoonists, so please excuse my ignorance. I'd love to hear from someone who may know more than I do about them.

Above: I love the old robots: all boxy, with knobs and gears and sometimes an old fashioned lightbulb for a nose. The cartoonist added that great big wind-up mechanism in back and it just is a wonderful gag. The smug reaction on the bearded scientist tells you that the poor robot is right.


Above: the drawing makes the gag. Click to really supersize the cartoon. Look at that detail! Look at all that patience to get it all looking right.



The above cartoon COULD be the way it all works. Maybe there's this WHITE CONCRETE, y'know? I recall an episode of the British comedy series THE GOODIES wherein one of the Goodies guys is making an old time black and white movie, and he truly believes that he must paint everything within camera range with black or white paint.


Above: you get a great feel for the space in the compartment. Yeah, it's a potty joke -- but one that's clever, and, international -- since it's wordless.


Above: Just look at the cartoonist's command of perspective and excellent reference. And this was before Google images!


Above: a creepy one that would plague me if I saw it when I was a tot. What kind of product are those statue heads using?


Above: some gorgeous work by a Mexican cartoonist. If anyone knows who the cartoonist is, please drop a line. Note to Mr. Hoopes: this wit is not from overseas, since Mexico is part of the North American landmass.



Above: a silly and twisted little cartoon. Who knew that umbrellas were so prim and proper!


Chaval is a name that I see a lot -- but I know nothing of the human being behind the pen. His bold, wordless gags work so well because they're all rooted in human behavior. Not necessarily the kind of behavior that would win you a merit badge, but human behavior nonetheless.


Above: the cartoonist Wiles (?) puts together this grand vertical composition with exacting precision.


It's the appearance of that one high heel -- and leaving their view to the imagination -- that makes this one so successful.



Above: a silly gag, but one full of good drawing: the watery squiggles, the spritzing leak, the Commander in full Napoleon pose.



Not only that, the divan looks like it's floating! An eerie cartoon that smacked of Edward Gorey or William Steig.



Above: life before the Internet. A sharply drawn cartoon by Starke, whose work I've seen in some other UK collections.


Above: another great silent gag, with just enough detail for you to see what's going on.



Chaval with another winner. Are there really big trucks, lugging wine all over France?



Above: a silly cartoon by some youngster named Ronald Searle!

- Edited from a blog entry of March 11, 2008.