Attempted Bloggery: Sylvan Byck's Copy of Alex Atkinson and Ronald Searle's By Rocking-Chair Across America

In the late 1970s I had the good fortune to pay a visit to King Features Syndicate in Manhattan. I remember the open floor plan allowed me to see what some of the people working at drafting tables were up to and I was truly fascinated by it. For example, letterers were sitting before me inking the word balloons of some unfamiliar comic strip originals; it turns out that not every comic artist provided all that neat lettering.

One who did, of course, was Charles M. Schulz, the reigning star of King Features. There was a shelf with a stack of original art, including what must have been about a month's run of original Peanuts strips. At the time, there was nothing in the world of newspaper comics that could have impressed me more, and that was before each strip was worth a small fortune.

The real object of my visit, though, was to meet with Sylvan Byck (1904-1982), the comic strip editor for the whole operation. I had an appointment and had brought along a portfolio of my own work, by which I mean basically a few Strathmore pads. He reacted to the pieces I brought positively and pronounced them "marketable." He was quite encouraging, and he certainly didn't have to be. I was thrilled.

Still, I did tell him I was somewhat concerned that my drawings might be a bit derivative. He reassured me that James Montgomery Flagg had at one time considered his work too similar to that of Charles Dana Gibson, but Flagg most definitely came into his own as a fine illustrator with his own distinctive—not to mention incredibly popular—style. At our meeting I decided not to bring up my growing admiration for Ronald Searle, whose work I was already becoming quite familiar with. I figured an editor who specialized in American comic strips might not be all that familiar with or interested in the European illustration scene.

More than forty years later, I learn I was mistaken in my assumptions. An AbeBooks listing posted earlier this month by a French bookseller produces photos of Sylvan Byck's personal copy of By Rocking-Chair Across America signed by illustrator Searle and inscribed to the distinguished King Features editor himself in 1959, the year of publication. If the dust jacket's current condition is any indication, the book did not go unread.