My Entry in The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #919

In The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #919 from the issue of October 28, 2024, a a pair of cowboys on horseback are chasing a horse driving a convertible. The cowboy with the lasso is speaking. My submission is shown below. The drawing is by Michael Maslin.

"How did you think he'd leave town by high noon?"

These captions didn't sit right:

"You mean he's the only one with GPS?"
"What do you suppose is his horsepower?"
"This is worse than when the dog caught the car."
"Someone should post a speed limit."

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My Copy of Eric Drooker's Naked City

A copy of Eric Drooker's brand new graphic novel Naked City arrived in the mail last week. I had preordered a signed copy.

Drooker not only signed it but he provided an original sketch on the front free endpaper of Isabel—but she prefers to be called Izzy. She is the singer-songwriter and artist's model at the heart of the story. Did Drooker use a quarter?

This one panel in particular resonates with me:

https://www.facebook.com/edrooker/posts/pfbid02b4WiQgDaLHKVenDN4MpnzByAXDLaHGtapvv87iyUg3QYFTfs2g14anDVcJGQwi2ul

Note:  At the time of this posting, signed copies of Naked City by Eric Drooker remain available here.

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Karen's Copy of Pip Squeak: Mouse in Shining Armor by Robert Kraus and Richard Oldden

Even more impressive than a copy of Pip Squeak: Mouse in Shining Armor (1971) personalized with a drawing by illustrator Richard Oldden—such as we saw here in yesterday's post—is a copy personalized with sketches by both Oldden and the book's author Robert Kraus. Oldden's drawing for reader Karen featured Pip Squeak with his sword raised as well as Hopper, the mouse's toad. Kraus, himself a prolific New Yorker cartoonist and magazine cover illustrator, provided the book's new owner with a somewhat generic drawing of a rabbit holding a flower.

This leads one to wonder how Kraus decided whether to illustrate his own stories or assign them to others? His obituary dated August 30, 2001, by Myrna Oliver of the Los Angeles Times, and cited by Wikipedia on its Robert Kraus page, sheds a little light here:

A decade later, the budding author decided to establish a children's book publishing house, dubbing it Windmill and installing himself as president. His idea was to ask artist friends to create the books—but he soon learned they were more interested in illustrating than writing.

So he wrote the stories, albeit painfully, recalling: "I love drawing . . . Giving my stories to somebody else was like giving away a child."

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Robert Kraus and Richard Oldden
Biblio listing accessed October 25, 2024

https://www.biblio.com/book/pip-squeak-mouse-shining-armor-robert/d/1624075172

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George and Fran's Copy of Pip Squeak: Mouse in Shining Armor by Robert Kraus and Richard Oldden

Pip Squeak:  Mouse in Shining Armor is a 1971 children's book by New Yorker cartoonist and author Robert Kraus published by his Windmill Books imprint.  The illustrator is fellow cartoonist Richard Oldden, here making his debut in children's literature. E. M. Maurice Books of Torrington, CT,  offers a copy personalized by the artist "To George and Fran from Pip Squeak and Dick Oldden" with an original drawing of the heroic mouse.

Robert Kraus and Richard Oldden
E. M. Maurice Books listing accessed October 21, 2024

https://e-m-maurice-books-llc.square.site/product/pip-squeak-mouse-in-shining-armor-inscribed-with-drawing/2749?cp=true&sa=false&sbp=false&q=true

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Edward Lear: Desert of Sinai

Edward Lear (1812-1888) is known and beloved to this day for his nonsense verse and illustration. On his travels, though, he sketched and painted more realistic work. His Desert of Sinai, for example, shows his skill in delineating the vast scale of the landscape populated with smaller groups of human figures traveling on camelback. A few splashes of color give a sense of the local textiles. The work was sold on Tuesday in Chicago with an estimate of $2,000 to $3,000.

Edward Lear
Toomey & Co. listing accessed October 20, 2024

https://www.toomeyco.com/auctions/2024/10/fine-art/190

Sold!

Hammer price

Price including the buyer's premium

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Midnight Maestro: Charles Alston Original New Yorker Cover Art

Harlem Renaissance artist Charles Alston painted only one illustration that was used on the cover of The New Yorker. It graced the issue of October 6, 1934. The original art was sold yesterday at Toomey & Co. Auctioneers of Chicago.

A janitor is shown on stage conducting an imaginary orchestra after hours.

The presale estimate was $8,000 to $12,000, with bidding starting at $6,000.

Charles Henry Alston
Toomey & Co. Auctioneers listing accessed October 12, 2024

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/charles-alston-cover-illustration-for-the-new-yor-114-c-24844738e9?objectID=192265776&algIndex=upcoming_lots_lotNumber_asc_prod&queryID=8eefb851c9952ac2ffa11abbe66a00bb

The artwork was in the collection of Alfred and Martha Montgomery Newman. Alfred Newman was a major Hollywood composer.

Charles Henry Alston
Toomey & Co. Auctioneers listing accessed October 13, 2024

https://www.toomeyco.com/auctions/2024/10/fine-art/114

Charles Henry Alston
The New Yorker, October 6, 1934

https://archives.newyorker.com/newyorker/1934-10-06/flipbook/CV1/

Charles Henry Alston
Original cover art
The New Yorker, October 6, 1934

Sold!

Hammer price

Price including the buyer's premium

Charles Alston

Alfred Newman

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My Entries in the Moment Cartoon Caption Contest for Fall 2024

Moment magazine's Cartoon Caption Contest for the Fall 2024 issue brings us to the day of the emotional college dropoff. The parents are leaving their son with a menorah. My submissions are shown below. The drawing is by former college boy Benjamin Schwartz.

"Guess what we found in the bookstore?"
"It's always been a babe magnet and you're living proof."
"Just set it in any window that's bulletproof."
"It might come in handy in these dark times."

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My Entry in The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #918

In The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #918 from the issue of October 21, 2024, a seated couple is having wine in a restaurant. The man's head is a surveillance camera and the woman, who seems to be upset, is speaking. My submission is shown below. The observant drawing is by T. S. McCoy, which is short for The Surreal McCoy.

"I wish you'd take your Ritalin."

These captions didn't come upon anything worthwhile:

"What's more interesting than I am?"
"See if you can find our waiter."

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Maeve Brennan: The Long-Winded Lady

From Honey & Wax Booksellers of Brooklyn comes a beautiful copy of The Long-Winded Lady: Notes from The New Yorker by Maeve Brennan. The 1969 book collects "Talk of the Town" pieces the magazine published in the 1950s and 1960s. The volume is described as "a near-fine copy of a surprisingly scarce first edition" and is priced at $250.

Maeve Brennan
Honey & Wax Booksellers listing accessed October 20, 2024

https://www.honeyandwaxbooks.com/pages/books/1003495/maeve-brennan/the-long-winded-lady-notes-from-the-new-yorker

Note:  Who illustrated this cover?

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Barbara Westman: Louisburg Square

A watercolor of Louisburg Square, Boston, by Barbara Westman was published in The Bean & the Scene: Drawings of Boston and Cambridge in 1969. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/235570216936?_skw=Barbara+Westman&itmmeta=01JAKYW5T09EZ4B0X5DJF2K3RP&hash=item36d9143fe8:g:ox8AAOSw~wll7mm
y&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAA8HoV3kP08IDx%2BKZ9MfhVJKmFJzdbmBzia3VoqV2bnQdBFMBDIIFSdgwUdpiJw%2F5fMityXGsEDzvK8wFgGan69fDjbntTT1O
UAonNB0QFOuJ7RFHmo5my13ftd%2BJl8xBMJEDcVUYD%2B2miyUPNFYF%2FfkRRvnEzwsQC8ifE0oBvD9qFXWMdKCvE90paLryDUSlCnDy0rVw%2Bl
zPLrzpB8VbW7U4fHuic2sQtS7AkGliDNPQc6BK8ypCINeFi%2F5IZT1LyvP3USwgQaEfAxzlZXQ6y40ipsp3U7KD42QE
eAVwLvRKF5sjz0Rd6HhR7453H178Ixw%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR4zd8P7UZA

In 1971, the Barre Publishers issued Louisberg Square as an unsigned print. Westman was to become a cover artist for The New Yorker in the 1980s and '90s.

The edition size of the print is not stated. An example was sold on eBay in 2015 for $35 with a $24.04 shipping fee. Other copies of the print are currently listed on the auction site for considerably more.

At least two copies are currently available on eBay:

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