Two drawings by New Yorker cartoonist Robert Leighton were sold at auction on December 12. The auction house calls them "two original illustrated New Yorker Magazine comic strips with captions, signed by the cartoonist Robert Leighton (lower right)." Let's start by noting that these are single-panel cartoons, not comic strips from your newspaper's comics page.
I was unable to find the captions in the magazine's database, so I asked the cartoonist whether these roughs were published and, if so, where. Mr. Leighton replied, "No—neither one (though the doorman drawing later became a different cartoon I did sell). My guess is these are photocopies that I shaded with marker by hand, and were taken from the 'return' file at The New Yorker." Taken? He elaborated, "With so many piece of paper to sort each week, the occasional misfile wasn't too surprising. I remember getting the work of others too. (Though I never offered it for sale!)"
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| "Just taking an informal poll of the building, Mr. B. Which doorman do you like best?" Robert Leighton Unpublished rough |
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| "Of course I have an inferiority complex!" Robert Leighton Unpublished rough |
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| Robert Leighton's signatures |
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| Versos |
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| Robert Leighton Kensington Estate Auctions listing accessed November 26, 2022 |
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| Presale estimate |
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| Hammer price |
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| "Shall I let your wife know you're home, or do you both like surprises?" Robert Leighton Air Mail |
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