Signed by Four Cartoonists: Bob Kane, Walter Lantz, Charles M. Schulz, and Dean Young

On a collaborative souvenir drawing, four leading cartoonists drew their classic characters: Batman by Bob Kane, Woody Woodpecker by Walter Lantz, Snoopy by Charles M. Schulz, and Dagwood by Dean Young. These artists came together on an unknown date, or dates, from the worlds of newspaper comic strips, comic books, and animation. The characters were all popular, but there isn't all that much synergy between them.

Nevertheless, when bidding hit $1,500 with ten bids placed a full four days before the April 27 auction, I was pretty sure this set of souvenir sketches was as good as sold. But the estimate was an ambitious $2,500 to $3,500 and the reserve, undisclosed, was never reached. Why set it so high? I recommend reserves be set at half the low estimate. Sellers may or may not be pleased with the result of this strategy, but either way the market will set the price and, one hopes, move the merchandise. It's no achievement to be left holding an unsold piece that you want to unload and numerous bidders want to possess.

Charles M. Schulz, Dean Young, Walter Lantz, Bob Kane
Lion Heart Autographs listing accessed April 23, 2022

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/4-Classic-Cartoonists-Their-Characters-in-Pen-47-c-AE44EB39E2?utm_source=alerts&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=keywordalerts411_algolia_min

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Pop Art: Garrett Price Proposed New Yorker Cover Art

A New Yorker magazine cover proposal by Garrett Price follows a contemporary art movement downstream into art school. The widespread appropriation of comic book and comic strip characters onto the canvasses and smocks of art students shows the massive influence of the Pop Art movement. As a practical matter, Price probably couldn't have expected to get an image of Dagwood Bumstead or Mickey Mouse onto the cover of The New Yorker in the 1960s. Even if he did, the idea of getting the name Phlembrant past the editorial eye of William Shawn was simply preposterous.

Garrett Price's signature

Verso

Pop Art:  Garrett Price Proposed New Yorker Cover Art
eBay Listing Ended March 26, 2017

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Garrett-Price-ORIGINAL-THE-NEW-YORKER-COVER-Older-Modernist-PAINTING-2-NO-RES-/352003648760?hash=item51f50d6cf8%3Ag%3ASp0AAOSwTM5Yywj~&nma=true&si=YQGb25QThn5Fxe78BW8tTy6VzZY%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Pop Art:  Garrett Price Proposed New Yorker Cover Art
eBay Item Description

eBay Bid History
Three bids in the final hour fail to wrest it from the winner.

Note:  Who is that comic book character hanging on the wall?

Original art by Garrett Price, published or unpublished, is welcome here on Attempted Bloggery. Please send your scans or photographs this way.


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With Hearty Good Wishes

Four works of cartoon art inscribed to one Richard Portofee have been framed together and are offered for sale by Gallery of History, Inc. A boy playing the trombone has been inscribed and signed by cartoonist Chon Day. A drawing of Andy Gump by Gus Edson is very nicely personalized. A souvenir print of the Bumsteads from "Blondie" is likewise dedicated by Chic Young. A color illustration of characters from "The Katzenjammer Kids" beautifully inscribed by Harold H. Knerr rounds out the delightful quartet.

According to ancestry.com, Richard Portofee was born in 1926 in Mineola, Long Island. He graduated from Nutley High School in Nutley, NJ in 1944. This would have made him either 14 or 15 in 1941at the time he obtained the drawing from Harold Knerr. That sounds about right to me. (I think I started at 16.) There is no biographical information on whether he played the trombone, but I suspect he did.

The set is offered at $4,999, which sounds high to me. I'm never entirely sure whether I should be commenting on offering prices, but I do anyway. Look, it's easy for me sitting at my computer to say an asking price is too low or, more likely, too high, but usually I'm content to let the market sort all that out. Eventually, even expensive works of art offered for sale will sell, even if buyers and sellers have to negotiate a bit. It's simply not in a dealer's interest to offer works, even significant ones, at a price that no one will pay. That said, this is a fairly pricey offering.

Four framed works inscribed to Richard Portofee from cartoonists Chon Day, Gus Edson, Chic Young, and Harold Knerr.
Note the hinge discoloration at the corners of each.

Chon Day, original color illustration of a boy playing the trombone inscribed "Best Wishes to Richard/Chon Day"
A sterling example, incidentally, of poor watermark placement.

Gus Edson, Andy Gump from The Gumps says "I'm proud to include Richard Portofee among my friends!" Very nice.

Chic Young, a souvenir print of the Bumsteads from Blondie inscribed "To Richard Portofee" and signed

Harold Knerr, color drawing with the Katzenjammer Kids saying, "Gesundheit, Richard!"

Inscribed "To Richard Portofee--with hearty good wishes from-- Harold H. Knerr '41." A prize!

http://www.amazon.com/CARTOONISTS-EDSON-HAROLD-KNERR-YOUNG/dp/B009NK49P0

The framed cartoons are being simultaneously listed on Amazon and eBay. Does anyone see a potential problem with this?

http://www.amazon.com/CARTOONISTS-EDSON-HAROLD-KNERR-YOUNG/dp/B009NK49P0

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CARTOONISTS-CHON-DAY-GUS-EDSON-HAROLD-KNERR-CHIC-Y-/370085179781?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item562acbb185

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CARTOONISTS-CHON-DAY-GUS-EDSON-HAROLD-KNERR-CHIC-Y-/370085179781?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item562acbb185

July 17, 2016 Update:  This piece has been discounted by about $500 and the watermarks have been removed from the eBay listing. On amazon.com, there is no discount and the watermarks remain.

Four framed works personally inscribed to Richard Portofee from cartoonists

Chon Day, Gus Edson, Chic Young, and Harold Knerr.

Note the hinge discoloration at the corners of each.

Chon Day, original color illustration of a boy playing the trombone inscribed "Best Wishes to Richard/Chon Day"

Gus Edson, Andy Gump from The Gumps says "I'm proud to include Richard Portofee among my friends!" Very nice.

Chic Young, souvenir print of the Bumsteads from Blondie inscribed "To Richard Portofee" and signed

Harold Knerr, color drawing with the Katzenjammer Kids saying, "Gesundheit, Richard!"

Inscribed "To Richard Portofee—/With hearty good wishes from—/Harold H. Knerr '41." A prize!

eBay Listing Copied July 17, 2016

Note:  Other posts about Chon Day may be seen here.

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