The New Yorker covers: July 29, 1950

Over the years, there have been many magazines whose covers have featured the work of highly talented artists and illustrators. But probably no magazine has had more varied and memorable covers, over a longer period of time, than The New Yorker, which was founded in 1925.

Edna Eicke
(covers untitled until February 1993)

And now, a few words from . . . Soren Aabye Kierkegaard

People demand freedom of speech to make up for the freedom of thought which they avoid.

"What is art but a way of seeing?" Saul Bellow

"Pomeranian and Puppy," ca. 1777, Thomas Gainsborough

Movie Posters, 1944: Two adults, please, and a large popcorn!

Today in the history of the American comic strip: April 17

American cartoonists and writers may not have invented the comic strip, but some argue that the comics, as we know them today, are an American creation. Clearly, the United States has played an outsize role in the development of this underappreciated art form.

4.17.1944: Bill Mauldin’s Willie and Joe, cartoon infantrymen who had appeared in military newspapers, make inroads in general circulation papers under the title Up Front.

 

4.17.2000: Writer Hector Cantú and illustrator Carlos Castellanos launch Baldo, a strip focused on light humor and the Hispanic community.

4.17.2002: Fantagraphics releases Krazy & Ignatz 1925-1926: "There Is a Heppy Lend Fur Fur Awa-a-ay," the first volume in a series reprinting George Herriman’s  Krazy Kat Sunday strips.

4.17.2006: F Minus, created by Tony Carrillo, goes into nationwide syndication. Carrillo began the single-panel comic when he was a sophomore at Arizona State University.

Most of the information listed here from one day to the next comes from two online sites -- Wikipedia, and Don Markstein's Toonopedia -- as well as 100 Years of American Newspaper Comics, edited by Maurice Horn. Note that my focus is on American newspaper comic strips (and the occasional foreign strip that gained popularity in the United States). Thus, comic books and exclusively online comics are not included here.

The New Yorker covers: August 10, 1940

Some of the politicians who have appeared on older covers of The New Yorker are cartoonish fabrications making campaign swings or holding news conferences. In recent years, though, real-life candidates and officeholders have made the cover, often in an unflattering light.

Perry Barlow
(covers untitled until February 1993)

And now, a few words from . . . St. Augustine

The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.

"What is art but a way of seeing?" Saul Bellow

"Pine Tree," 1932, Paul Klee

Movie Posters, 1921: Two adults, please, and a large popcorn!