Peter Arno's Side-Show for April 1937

Arno's work for College Humor has long fascinated me. The April 1937 number of the magazine includes three Peter Arno cartoons making up his "Side-Show" feature. As it happens, each of these has been seen previously on this blog, in one form or another.

"All right—I take the key, to to your hotel, go to the twelfth floor and walk down one flight, and go                                                        "—And then he assaulted me without so much as a 'Thank you'!"       

                        in your room and wait till you come—and then what do I do?"                                                                            "Am I to understand this is not the Forty-ninth Street crosstown 'bus?"

Peter Arno

College Humor, April 1937, pp. 10-11

The original art to the first drawing was offered by the Nicholls Gallery of New York in 1985, but the caption was then unknown. As it turns out, it's quite a mouthful. One wonders whether it could have been sold sans caption. I suspect it could.

["?"]

Original art to the second one was sold on eBay in 2016 and appeared on this blog an inexplicable two years later. I had something to say about prevailing attitudes in the 1930s towards nonconsensual sex in my post here, although I'm sure I didn't say it as well as I meant to. At the time I was thinking a lot about Byron but in no way living up to his example.

"—And then he assaulted me without so much as a 'Thank you'!"
Peter Arno
Original art
College Humor, April 1937

The third cartoon is far and away my favorite of the trio. There is a photo on the Nicholls Gallery contact sheet of the original art and the caption was then known. But was it sold?

"Am I to understand this is not the

        Forty-ninth Street crosstown 'bus?"               

Note:  That exceptional Nicholls Gallery contact sheet I keep referring to may be seen on my 2016 post here.

Not surprisingly, much of Peter Arno's original art is hidden from public view. Any collectors willing to share original Arno works on this blog are welcome to submit scans or photographs. As you may be aware, I accept even contact sheets.

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