A Maus in Profile: Art Spiegelman's Comix, Essays, Graphics and Scraps

A copy of Art Spiegelman's scarce Comix, Essays, Graphics and Scraps (1999) is personalized with an original drawing of his Maus in profile. It's simple and delicate.

Inscribed with a drawing of his Maus in profile
"FOR STEPHEN + AVIVA
W. WARM WISHES
Art Spiegelman
2000!"

The book's cover I interpret as a surrealistic comics riff on the David and Goliath story with the title character of Frederick Opper's Happy Hooligan grieving, a monumental pipe and that chin from E. C. Segar's Popeye, a lightning bolt straight out of C. C. Beck's Captain Marvel, not to mention a stray brick reminiscent of George Herriman's Krazy Kat. The landscape recalls the work of Giorgio de Chirico and René Magritte. Your results may vary.

Art Spiegelman. Comix, Essays, Graphics and Scraps (1999)

Note:  My thanks go out to Stephen Kroninger for providing this scan of a wonderful copy of a Spiegelman book I didn't know existed. Shazam!

I'm always looking for scans or photographs of uniquely personalized books by Art Spiegelman and other New Yorker artists. Go ahead, surprise me!

What's more annoying, Spiegelman's spelling of comix or his avoidance of the Oxford comma? I think it's the spelling. Keep your comments under 500 words please.

By the way, the new American Bystander #5 will carry the very first classified ad for this blog. My wife told me it won't drive any traffic here and—you know what?—she's absolutely right!

Quick Links to the Attempted Bloggery Archives

Art Spiegelman

Stephen Kroninger

Signed Books with Original Drawings

Attempted Bloggery's Scrappy Index

02304

New Books Signed by Michael Tisserand and Patrick McDonnell

Call me an old-timer if you like. I've now been living in the Princeton area long enough to have missed public appearances by Mutts comics creator Patrick McDonnell twice. To make matters worse, this time it was a joint appearance at Labyrinth Books with Michael Tisserand, author of the acclaimed Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White. Fortunately, I was still able to pick up a couple of signed books a few days later at the bookstore, but it just isn't the same thing as being there. Under the bylaws of the town, should I miss a third appearance of Mr. McDonnell, I will need to move out of the municipality and surrender my blog to the Town Clerk.

Michael Tisserand, Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White, 2016

Signed by Michael Tisserand

Patrick McDonnell, Year of Yesh, 2016

Signed by Patrick McDonnell

Book Trailer for Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White

(HarperCollins, 2016)

The Virtual Memories Show #199

Gil Roth Interviews Michael Tisserand

Patrick McDonnell of Mutts Comics Draws Earl

Attempted Bloggery's quick links:

George Herriman

Patrick McDonnell

Signed Books

Attempted Bloggery's Krazy Index

02062

Pretentious Krazy

"Mary's a Grand Old Name" was a song in George M. Cohan's "45 Minutes from Broadway" which had its premier in 1906. The chorus states:

For it is Mary, Mary
Plain as any name can be
But with propriety, society
Will say Marie.

http://www.elderly.com/vintage/items/300U-2896.htm

Perhaps George Herriman picked up on this Mary/Marie thing in his Krazy Kat comic strip of February 20, 1922 where the residents of Kokonino are putting on airs. Herriman colored the strip by hand after publication and presented it, appropriately, "To 'our' Mary...."

George Herriman, Original hand-colored artwork for Krazy Kat, February 20, 1922

Illustration House, Spring Premier Auction, May 21, 2005
Sold for $21,375 including the 12.5% BP

 http://www.illustration-house.com/recent/a31/a31_090.html

Note:  Relax, there's lots more by George Herriman on the blog here.

01078

George Herriman: The Right Size for Ignatz

My third most popular blog post ever presents specialty pieces by George Herriman featuring his iconic Krazy Kat. On January 23, a previously unknown example was sold at Swann Galleries in New York. I have added the new image to the earlier post and I am presenting the full auction listing here.

George Herriman, "If only 'Ignatz' could hendle one that size--Ooy--"
Inscribed "To 'Fred Myer'/who had the nerve to ask for it--/from Geo. Herriman/who had the nerve to give it to him./1933"

http://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/asp/fullCatalogue.asp?salelot=2337+++++113+&refno=++681512&saletype=

http://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/asp/fullCatalogue.asp?salelot=2337+++++113+&refno=++681512&saletype=

Note:  My essential blog post of Krazy Kat Specialty Pieces is on view here and today it's better than ever.

Other posts featuring the comic art of George Herriman may be seen here. They're not too bad either.

There's still time to review Attempted Bloggery's archive of football posts before the big game. See them here.

01034

George Herriman: Krazy Kat in Kolor

One doesn't see too many of these! Here is original 1922 Sunday comic strip artwork for Krazy Kat by the peerless George Herriman, hand-colored and dedicated to Hollywood composer Victor Young. Herriman had a poetic streak himself. "Night comes and under the red tape tree a villain slumbers while a moral moon unwillingly blankets him with a mantle of purity." It really doesn't get better than this!

George Herriman
Original hand-colored Sunday artwork for Krazy Kat, June 25, 1922
Inscribed, "To 'old' Vic Young/that Kentucky thrush, that blue grass Paderewsky--/ Etc. Etc. --Mit luff--/From Geo. Herriman--/July-1-/1922"

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7076&lotNo=92176

George Herriman
Original hand-colored Sunday artwork for Krazy Kat, June 25, 1922, framed
Inscribed, "To 'old' Vic Young/that Kentucky thrush, that blue grass Paderewsky--/ Etc. Etc. --Mit luff--/From Geo. Herriman--/July-1-/1922"

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7076&lotNo=92176

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7076&lotNo=92176

George Herriman
Original hand-colored Sunday artwork for Krazy Kat, June 25, 1922
Inscribed, "To 'old' Vic Young/that Kentucky thrush, that blue grass Paderewsky--/ Etc. Etc. --Mit luff--/From Geo. Herriman--/July-1-/1922"

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7076&lotNo=92176

George Herriman, Krazy Kat, June 25, 1922

Image added October 7, 2013

http://www.comicstriplibrary.org/images/comics/krazy-kat/krazy-kat-19220625-l.png

Note:  There is a lot more Krazy Kat on the blog here. Don't miss it.

You'll also find more original comic strip art on the blog here.

Under no circumstances will I write about the government's partial shut-down, not when my previous remarks on the debt ceiling and sequestration have been completely ignored by our so-called leaders. You can read what I had to say here. 

0904

George Herriman's Krazy Kat: Boomerang, Not Brick

George Herriman
Original artwork for Krazy Kat, c. 1917-1918

This original artwork from the early days of George Herriman's Krazy Kat comic strip tells a story in five panels with a few sound effects but without any words. Of note, Ignatz tosses a boomerang rather than the classic brick at Krazy. The outcome is most likely predictable to the contemporary reader.

George Herriman
Original artwork for Krazy Kat, c. 1917-1918

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7079&lotNo=92144#Photo

George Herriman
Original artwork for Krazy Kat, c. 1917-1918

Note:  See more Krazy Kat on the blog here. I dare you.

You'll find more original comic strip art on the blog here.

Of course, I'd be grateful for any information on when this strip was published. Over the years this blog has accumulated quite a few difficult questions regarding publication and date. Interested sleuths may peruse them here.

Did you hear about the government's partial shut-down? Of course you did. Well, if this were a blog about the hazards of putting political ideology over the good of the country, I would have quite a bit to say. But I'm going to stick with my one blog post about sequestration and let it ride-- probably for a while.... 

0903

Krazy Kat Photo Pose

In the early days of this blog I sometimes took on enormous tasks that would have been better left to someone with a lighter schedule. A single specialty piece of George Herriman's Krazy Kat at auction somehow prompted me to assemble a very large and fairly comprehensive selection of Krazy Kat specialty images from all over. The result is, quite frankly, jaw-dropping--I wouldn't lie to you. The credit, of course, belongs entirely to George Herriman, one of the greatest comic art geniuses ever.

Now it is time to add another image--or rather, seven months ago it was time, but I'm just getting around to it now. In order to keep my big blog post from overflowing with auction clutter, I'm adding just a single fine image to that post and creating this separate space here to record the auction information from Heritage.

George Herriman, Specialty drawing of Ignatz Mouse, Offissa Bull Pupp,
and Krazy Kat posing for a photograph.
Inscribed, "To that 'Gran Caballero'--y,--/'Charro Pomposo'--/
From--/the Ole Peon--'Herriman'/Jan 1934."
Heritage Auctions, February 22, 2013

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotNo=92182#Photo

George Herriman, Specialty drawing of Ignatz Mouse, Offissa Bull Pupp, and Krazy Kat posing for a photograph.
Inscribed, "To that 'Gran Caballero'--y,--/'Charro Pomposo'--/From--/the Ole Peon--'Herriman'/Jan.1934." Framed.
Heritage Auctions, February 22, 2013

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotNo=92182#Photo

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotNo=92182#Photo

George Herriman, Specialty drawing of Ignatz Mouse, Offissa Bull Pupp, and Krazy Kat posing for a photograph.
Inscribed, "To that 'Gran Caballero'--y,--/'Charro Pomposo'--/From--/the Ole Peon--'Herriman'/Jan 1934."

Heritage Auctions, February 22, 2013

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotNo=92182#Photo

Note:  My large (but never large enough) and essential post on Krazy Kat Specialty Pieces is here, or you can see all my posts on George Herriman together here.

I shouldn't have to say it at this point, but I will anyway:  If you should happen to have glorious original art by George Herriman hanging on your wall and if that art depicts characters from Krazy Kat drawn in a manner never intended for newspaper publication but rather for someone's personal enjoyment, then you can increase the personal enjoyment factor of that piece many times over by sending a photo or high resolution scan to this blog, where it will be included in the world's most comprehensive online archive of Krazy Kat specialty pieces. Have I made myself clear?

I have important things to do with this blog. I can't just stop and write a scathing essay every time some politicians decide their ideology is more important than the welfare of the nation. To me, the partial shut down of the government is little different from sequestration or refusing to raise the debt limit. One blog post fits all, and it's got a beautiful drawing to boot by Mischa Richter that sums it all up better than I ever could. If Richter were alive today, he might finally be able to sell this drawing to The New Yorker. I think they should have purchased it back in the day and saved it for whenever they needed it. Like now.

0902

Krazy & Ignatz: "A Kat a'Lilt with Song"

Krazy & Ignatz 1931-1932: "A Kat a'Lilt with Song" (2004)
George Herriman
Edited by Bill Blackbeard and Derya Ataker

George Herriman's Krazy Kat comic strip is unique in the history of the art form. The full-page Sunday strips are generally exceptional, and this volume collects all of them from 1931 and 1932, although there seem to be a few odd missing dates. Also included is a select smattering of daily strips from 1931.

I have always found Krazy Kat a bit challenging to read with its exotic quirks of language, syntax, and spelling, but generally it is worth the trouble. The story line is an endless variation on a theme, accompanied by zany poetry and fantastic, ever-shifting landscapes. There is, of course, Krazy the lovestruck Kat, Ignatz the mouse with his brick, and Bull Pupp the dutiful police officer devoted to law and order, but also to the Kat. It is a strange but poetic love triangle that wouldn't make sense anywhere else, and come to think of it doesn't quite make sense here either.

Krazy Kat is many things all at once: lyrical and absurd, comic and poignant, profoundly inventive and occasionally incomprehensible. It has never been surpassed. 

George Herriman, Krazy Kat, February 15, 1931

George Herriman, Krazy Kat, February 22, 1931

George Herriman, Krazy Kat, March 1, 1931

George Herriman, Krazy Kat, March 8, 1931

611

Heppi Boid Day to You!

Today's blog post is dedicated to my wife, who celebrates her birthday today. I wouldn't say she's a fan of Krazy Kat, so I don't know for sure if she'll appreciate a sentiment like "Be you ever so forgotten, there's someone who remembers." Krazy Kat delivers fond birthday greetings via gramophone with birthday cake to the incarcerated and apparently irate Ignatz Mouse, as delineated by the remarkable George Herriman.

First we have the published Krazy Kat Sunday newspaper comic strip, June 4, 1922:

George Herriman, Krazy Kat, June 4, 1922

http://www.rosebudarchives.com/wp/products/happy-birthday-krazy-kat/

Here now is the original Herriman artwork:

George Herriman, Original Artwork for Krazy Kat, June 4, 1922

http://snaporaz.posterous.com/?tag=1922

Note:  My previous post on George Herriman's mailings is here.

0226

Heppy New Yeer Everybody

So, is it unanimous?

George Herriman, "Heppy New Yeer Everybody"

According to Allan Holtz, this is a "Krazy Kat special drawing found by Cole Johnson in the Des Moines Capital of New Year's Day 1923."

http://strippersguide.blogspot.com/2009_12_27_archive.html

Note:  My last blog post on the great George Herriman is here.

192

The Family Upstairs

Krazy Kat got started as a featurette in George Herriman's comic strip The Family Upstairs. 
The Dingbat Family would appear upstairs, while Krazy Kat had a separate comic strip
in the basement, so to speak. This original comic strip art, c. 1912, is from last Saturday's auction
at Illustration House.

Lot 71	George Herriman						1880-1944
		Man imitates William Tell; A race up and down a mountain.
		Daily comic strip, The Family Upstairs/The Dingbat Family, circa 1912; Pen & ink, 9 x 27.5", signed lower right
		Estimate: $4,000 - 6,000
		Condition - Good overall: two large tears were repaired at Graham Gallery.; matted and framed.

Lot 71

George Herriman

1880-1944

Man imitates William Tell; A race up and down a mountain.

Daily comic strip, The Family Upstairs/The Dingbat Family, circa 1912;
Pen & ink, 9 x 27.5", signed lower right

Estimate: $4,000 - 6,000

Condition - Good overall: two large tears were repaired at Graham Gallery.; matted and framed.

Note:  My last post on George Herriman's Krazy Kat was here.

0172

Krazy Sunday

Illustration House offers this original art for a Krazy Kat Sunday strip in its December sale. At first I thought the estimate was on the high side, but many Krazy Kat Sunday pages have indeed been selling in this range and higher. Krazy Kat may never have been the most popular strip, but many aficionados consider George Herriman to be the greatest of 20th century cartoonists. Leaping legumes!

Lot 70 George Herriman 1880-1944 x x Jumping beans get their revenge on Offisa Pupp. x x Sunday comic strip, “Krazy Kat”, August 22, 1943; Pen & ink, 22.25 x 14.5", not signed x x Estimate: $12,000 - 15,000 x x x x Condition - Good overall: mat and frame are from Graham Gallery.

Lot 70	George Herriman						1880-1944		x
x		Jumping beans get their revenge on Offisa Pupp.								x
x		Sunday comic strip, “Krazy Kat”, August 22, 1943; Pen & ink, 22.25 x 14.5", not signed								x
x		Estimate: $12,000 - 15,000								x
x										x
x		Condition - Good overall: mat and frame are from Graham Gallery.

Lot 70

George Herriman

1880-1944

x

x

Jumping beans get their revenge on Offisa Pupp.

x

x

Sunday comic strip, “Krazy Kat”, August 22, 1943;
Pen & ink, 22.25 x 14.5", not signed

x

x

Estimate: $12,000 - 15,000

x

x

x

x

Condition - Good overall: mat and frame are from Graham Gallery.

.illustrationhouse.com/

“Krazy Kat” detail, August 22, 1943

My most recent post on George Herriman's Krazy Kat can be read here.

0162

Not So Krazy

When I was putting together my post about George Herriman's Krazy Kat Specialty Pieces, I came across this piece by Ron Campbell, who was the director of the Krazy Kat television cartoons. While it's clearly not up to George Herriman's impossibly high standards, it's not a bad-looking piece, and it puzzled me that it looks more like Herriman's classic cartoon strip than the animated series ever did. True, Herriman's line is more frenzied, imparting a vital energy to even static figures. In the specialty drawings, Herriman saturates his landscapes in deep orange often contrasted with black ink, and he usually imparts some color to the ground and even the speech balloons as well. This piece seems just a little off. For example, the overpowering yellow used here seems to be Campbell's own stylistic choice; indeed all the colors are fairly flat and way too bright, almost psychedelic. It's nice as a tribute, but it's not the Kokonino I remember.

The second image here, a Sunday comic strip, goes a long way toward explaining the first:

Ron Campbell after George Herriman, Krazy Kat Jail Mirage

http://www.inter-activities.com/AnimScoobydoo%20Ron%20Campbell.html

From Krazy Kat & the Art of George Herriman: A Celebration by Craig Yoe, Abrams ComicArts, 2011, page 20: May 15, 1938. Credit: KRAZY KAT™ Hearst Holdings, Inc. Courtesy of Craig Yoe’s collection of Herriman images and ephemera. 

https://plus.google.com/108672329185573341478/posts/RnUXVixrAqs

Now it becomes apparent that Campbell copied this from the final panel of a Krazy Kat Sunday strip, and it is perfectly clear how the piece came about and why it appears to capture a few elements of Herriman's classic style. Possibly Campbell used a lightboard to get this drawing started.

Ron Campbell after George Herriman, Krazy Kat Jail Mirage

http://www.inter-activities.com/AnimScoobydoo%20Ron%20Campbell.html

From Krazy Kat & the Art of George Herriman: A Celebration by Craig Yoe, Abrams ComicArts, 2011, page 20: May 15, 1938. Credit: KRAZY KAT™ Hearst Holdings, Inc. Courtesy of Craig Yoe’s collection of Herriman images and ephemera. 

https://plus.google.com/108672329185573341478/posts/RnUXVixrAqs

Note:  My post on Krazy Kat specialty pieces remains my most popular post of all time and continues to be updated occasionally as I find more amazing material to include. You can see it all here and I believe you will feel better immediately, if not sooner.

140

Krazy Kat Specialty Pieces

George Herriman's Krazy Kat is surely the most imaginative and absurd comic strip of all time.  The trio of Krazy Kat, Ignatz Mouse, and Offissa Bull Pupp were the main characters involved in an eternal love-hate triangle, but there were many other characters as well. Herriman created a number of presentation drawings or, if you prefer, specialty pieces featuring these characters from the strip, and select friends and fans were the lucky recipients. I have included a few of these wonderful presentation pieces below following the spectacular Christie's auction listing from 1997. One thing about almost all these examples: even when the characters are standing stock still, these drawings seem to have so much energy and vitality. I find them all to be breathtakingly beautiful as well.

GEORGE HERRIMAN

Images

ENLARGE

Price Realized

• $40,250
• Price includes buyer's premium
• 
  
• Sale 8049 Lot 145
• 
  
• Comic Collectibles 18 December 1997 
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  

Estimate

$15,000 - $20,000

Sale Information

New York, Christie's East

Lot Description

GEORGE HERRIMAN 

Krazy Kat Specialty Piece 9/9/1933
In the magical world of George Herriman nothing was the way it was supposed to be in the real world. We have a cat (Krazy) who loves a mouse (Ignatz) who feels nothing but disdain for Krazy and he demonstrates this by constantly throwing bricks at Krazy, who in turn takes this as a sign of affection. The third member of this unlikely group is Offissa Pup, who is constantly protecting Krazy from Ignatz. Their eternal love triangle is played out in the Arizona desert, namely Coconino County.

On a rare occasion Herriman was known to either hand color a previously published page or create a specialty piece for presentation to a favored individual. Herriman was deft with watercolor using translucent layers of color to express himself. These were personal expressions that carried the same sort of sympathetic warmth that his poetic Kat was known to convey. In some instances Herriman even perfected his message with a custom mat and frame which he fabricated. This newly discovered specialty piece is one of a handful known to exist. It exhibits the finest balance and proportion of any known. Coupled with its extraordinary size and original mat and frame, it represents a truly exemplary piece. Features the principal figures. Inscribed TO "GAY" BEAMAN AHLA-HAHNEH, signed, watercolor on board-14 x 20 in.

Excellent.

Only a handful? I don't know about that. Here are a few more stunning examples, perhaps several handfuls, really in no particular order, but "oldest" first:

From Illustration House

Presentation drawing: ca. 1936; pen & ink, watercolor, 8.5 x 9.75" 

Drawing for H. P. Raleigh, circa 1925.

From Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman, by Patrick McDonnell, Karen O'Connell, and Georgia Riley de Havenon. Harry N. Abrams, New York, 1986, page 75. Many such works came to light when this book was researched.

From Krazy Kat & The Art of George Herriman: A Celebration, by Craig Yoe, Abrams ComicArts, 2011. Posted by Tony Hightower with this caption: “Is that art?” Offissa Pupp asks. The inscription reads, “Elmer’––Yern––Herriman.” Elmer “Al” Raguse Sr. was the director of sound at Hal Roach Studios. Late 1930s. Previously unpublished. Credit: KRAZY KAT™ Hearst Holdings, Inc. Illustration courtesy of The Raguse Family.  Credit: KRAZY KAT™ Hearst Holdings, Inc. Courtesy of Craig Yoe’s collection of Herriman art. 

Added November 11, 2011.

https://plus.google.com/106969594626960295936/posts/W7dPpr9WHu3

More posing, this time for the camera:

George Herriman, Specialty drawing of Ignatz Mouse, Offissa Bull Pupp, and Krazy Kat posing for a photograph.
Inscribed, "To that 'Gran Caballero'--y,--/'Charro Pomposo'--/From--/the Ole Peon--'Herriman'/Jan 1934."

Heritage Auctions, February 22, 2013

Image added October 1, 2013

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotNo=92182#Photo

"To 'Harry Frandsen' Mit luff und dewotion -- from Geo. Herriman" 

Posted by owner Rob Pistella on the Comic Art Fans page.

George Herriman, Untitled (Krazy Kat), 1939

Watercolor, inscribed with a dedication to Boyden Sparkes. International Museum of Cartoon Art. © 2005 Reprinted with permission of King Features Syndicate.  From the collection of Ohio State University.

Drawing dedicated to Mr. E. B. Crosswhite, c. 1940.  

From Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman, by Patrick McDonnell, Karen O'Connell, and Georgia Riley de Havenon. Harry N. Abrams, New York, 1986, page 83.

George Herriman, To Arthur Escollier. This one sold for $11,500 at Heritage in 2002. I believe previous to this it had been on eBay and then was at Illustration House.

An ink and watercolor drawing from 1932. It is dedicated to Mrs. Gladys T. Clements and posted by current owner Rob Pistella on the Comic Art Fans page. "AH-LA-HAHNI" is nearly the same greeting as in the example from  Christie's at the top of the page.

From Krazy Kat & The Art of George Herriman: A Celebration, by Craig Yoe, Abrams ComicArts, 2011, page 8. Posted by Tony Hightower with this caption: "The essence of the unholy triangle between the Kat, the Mouse, and the Pupp." Previously unpublished. 1930s. Credit: KRAZY KAT™ Hearst Holdings, Inc. Courtesy of Craig Yoe’s collection of Herriman art. (This work photographed in its frame is posted by owner Rob Pistella on the Comic Art Fans page.)

 Image added November 11, 2011.

https://plus.google.com/106969594626960295936/posts/W7dPpr9WHu3

George Herriman, "If only 'Ignatz' could hendle one that size--Ooy--"Inscribed "To 'Fred Myer'/who had the nerve to ask for it--/from Geo. Herriman/who had the nerve to give it to him./1933"

Image added February 1, 2014

http://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/asp/fullCatalogue.asp?salelot=2337+++++113+&refno=++681512&saletype=

A 1936 Herriman drawing dedicated to Marie Weiss and posted by owner Rarebit Fiend on the Comic Art Fans page.

Listing from Heritage Auctions:

George Herriman Krazy Kat and Ignatz Specialty Illustration Original Art (c. 1936). This lyrical George Herriman specialty illustration of his famed cat and mouse characters was signed and inscribed, "To Elmer Bramon from ole man Herriman." This gem of a drawing has an overall size of 6" x 8", and aside from a small flake of black ink out of the center of the upper edge, the art is in Very Good condition. A mini-masterwork.

Herriman, George:(American, 1880-1944) was the creator of the critically acclaimed Krazy Kat comic strip feature. He was born in a light-skinned, Creole African-American family in New Orleans, Louisiana. Herriman's father moved the family to Los Angeles in order to avoid the onerous restrictions of Jim Crow laws in Louisiana. Many of Herriman's newspaper colleagues had the mistaken impression that Herriman's ancestry was Greek, and according to close friends of Herriman, he wore a hat at all times so as to hide his hair. His other earlier newspaper comic strips include Musical Mose, Professor Otto and His Auto, Major Ozone's Fresh Air Crusade, Gooseberry Sprigg, and The Family Upstairs/The Dingbat Family. Herriman also illustrated writer Don Marquis' popular stories and poems featuring the whimsical cockroach and cat, archie and mehitabel. Herriman’s timeless Krazy Kat strips and specialty drawings have hung in museums, been the subject of academic treatises, and appeared on a US postage stamp.

Image added March 4, 2012.

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7054&lotNo=92118#Photo

A 1922 drawing from the georgeherriman.com rarities page of Craig Yoe and Clizia Gussoni. They write:

Herriman did quite a few "specialty pieces" for friends and fans but this is supposedly the only one with Ignatz throwing a brick at Krazy Kat. From the collection of Craig Yoe thanks to Rick Marschall.

This 1936 page is also from the rarities page of georgeherriman.com, where they explain:

Apparently a long-ago fan wrote a couple of top vintage cartoonists and asked them to type a short bio on a piece of paper illustrated in their hand. This is Herriman's contribution to this early fan's scrapbook, from the collection of Craig Yoe.

A 1921 specialty piece inscribed "To Sir Michael" posted by owner glen gold on the Comic Art Fans page.

"Ah-Lah-Hah-Nih" !!! "from the Folks of Kokonino Kounty" and Ole Man Herriman.

From Krazy Kat & The Art of George Herriman: A Celebration, by Craig Yoe, Abrams ComicArts, 2011. 

Added to post November 13, 2011. 

http://blog.abramsbooks.com/2011/08/22/a-very-happy-birthday-to-the-one-and-only-george-herriman/

From the collection of Fawcett's Antique Toy Museum in Waldoboro, Maine, a drawing given to Herriman's friend Harley M. "Beanie" Walker.

Also given to the Walkers is this anniversary piece again from Fawcett's Antique Toy Museum.  It doesn't have any figures from the Krazy Kat strip, but it does feature a tardy Herriman himself furiously pumping a handcar on the far right under a Kokonino moon.  Can you see all the way over there?

For Harold "Hal" Rosson and actress Jean Harlow, Xmas 1933.  From Fawcett's Antique Toy Museum.

Detail of the above.

Painted on a window shade for his daughter Toots at a party. Again from Fawcett's Antique Toy Museum.

To Mrs. Irving C. Valentine, a fan, circa 1925.

Reproduced in Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman, by Patrick McDonnell, Karen O'Connell, and Georgia Riley de Havenon.  Harry N. Abrams, New York, 1986, page 6.

This one looks a little different and may actually be a hand-colored Sunday panel. Reproduced on the cover of Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman, by Patrick McDonnell, Karen O'Connell, and Georgia Riley de Havenon. Harry N. Abrams, New York, 1986.

From Krazy Kat & The Art of George Herriman: A Celebration, by Craig Yoe, Abrams ComicArts, 2011, page 92-93. Posted by Tony Hightower with this caption:  A blue velour-covered book was presented to William Randolph Hearst by the artists of the King Features Syndicate in honor of his 79th birthday. The artists included Alex Raymond (Flash Gordon), Hal Foster (Prince Valiant), Chic Young (Blondie), and George Herriman. Herriman’s dedication reads, “Could be our boss. Could be our chief. Could be our friend. Could BE.––Herriman, ‘Enchanted Masa.’ A.D.?” April 29, 1942. Previously unpublished. Credit: KRAZY KAT™ Hearst Holdings, Inc. Courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries. 

 --Added to post November 12, 2011.

This volume sold at Heritage Auctions in November 2010 for $33,460.

 --Added November 19, 2011.

https://plus.google.com/106969594626960295936/posts/W7dPpr9WHu3


http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7027&lotNo=92245

Herriman was one of 35 King Features strip cartoonists contributing greetings to a book presented to publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst in December of 1943. This is his page. The book bore the title Christmas Greetings to William Randolph Hearst 1943. The entire volume was sold at Heritage Auctions in November of 2010 for $33,460.
Added to post November 19, 2011.

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7027&lotNo=92246#Photo

There are no major characters here, but we're definitely still in Kokonino Kounty. This image had been on the Comic Art Fans page but is no longer posted there. What is the world coming to? From the collection of Rob Pistella.

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=162063&GSub=10048

A drawing from 1940 given to Herriman's granddaughter Dinah. This landscape is very similar to that of the stork drawing just above. From Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman, by Patrick McDonnell, Karen O'Connell, and Georgia Riley de Havenon. Harry N. Abrams, New York, 1986, page 71.  

Painting given to son-in-law Ernest Pascal, 1932.  Ibid.

I'm including this one here since it seems stylistically and thematically similar to the painting above. It is dedicated to British actor Roland Young. From Krazy Kat & The Art of George Herriman: A Celebration, by Craig Yoe, Abrams ComicArts, 2011.  Source here. 

Added to this post September 30, 2011.

A 1941 piece presented to "Doc. Double Eff Petty, the Wild West's baa-adest two gum dentist." Exhibited at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, February 6 to April 29, 2007.

Watercolor for Carl Harbaugh, c. 1925. "To my good friend 'Carl' in hope that this may cure him of 'asking for things'--Geo. Herriman" [all capitals] with another stork visiting Kokonino Kounty.

From Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman, by Patrick McDonnell, Karen O'Connell, and Georgia Riley de Havenon. Harry N. Abrams, New York, 1986, page 79. Offered for sale at Galerie Lambiek.

Detail of the above.

Unpublished drawing of Gooseberry Sprig, January 1910. From Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman, by Patrick McDonnell, Karen O'Connell, and Georgia Riley de Havenon. Harry N. Abrams, New York, 1986, page 50.

 Added to this post on November 12, 2011.
http://ignatz.palmdrive.net/archives/drawings/

Pencil drawing, c. 1920's, on package paper in somewhat sad condition. Could this be dedicated to someone in Staten Island? Posted by owner Stephen Donnelly on the Comic Art Fans Page. Recently sold by him on eBay along with a Herriman Krazy Kat book for $199.

On November 17, 2011, this 1929 specialty sketch in pencil by George Herriman was sold at Heritage Auctions along with a sketch by Charles Wellington and another sketch by Tom McNamarara for $1075.50.

Image added March 4, 2012.

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7039&lotNo=93680#Photo

Lot listing and item description from Legendary Auctions: Americana, Fall 2002 Sale:

Lot #1188: Original George Herriman Presentation Sketch of His Three Main Krazy Kat Characters

This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on: 11/15/2002

Minimum Bid:	$200
Final Bid(Includes Buyers Premium):	$253

Included within this small India ink on paper work are a hatless Offica Pup, a tailless Ignatz the Mouse, and a bodiless Krazy Kat, the three main cast members for the marvelously imaginative Krazy Kat newspaper strip by George Herriman (1880-1944). It can be said that Herriman's imagination was simultaneously his greatest strength and his greatest weakness, for while his publisher, William Randolph Hearst, loved the strip, every single one of the editors on his many papers absolutely detested it. They didn't understand it, and could not accept its absurdist humor. Worse than that, they reported that their readers hated it too! Despite this, Hearst ordered its continuation, and it still regularly appeared in all his papers. A reader usually had trouble finding it though, for the editors would hide it in the magazine section, the theatre section, or worst of all for everyone concerned, within the ad pages. (The advertisers regularly threatened to pull their ads if it wasn't put back with the other comics, as they felt that readers would skip the ad section entirely, in avoidance of the strip.) As the strip toned down its level of absurdism in its later years, it eventually found its way back to the funny pages, but it was an incredibly rough ride while it lasted. The clever strip that started in 1916, ended in 1944 with Herriman's death. It is today considered to be one of the all time greats in the history of the comics.

Item: Original George Herriman ink on paper presentation sketch of Krazy Kat's three main characters, nicely matted with a visible image area that measures 6.5 by 3.75 inches in size. It is boldly signed below the artwork with Herriman's highly stylized signature. While undated, it would appear to be a late interpretation of the characters, probably dating from the 1940's.

Added to post December 22, 2011
http://www.legendaryauctions.com/LotDetail.aspx?lotid=29553

Minimum Bid:

$200

Final Bid(Includes Buyers Premium):

$253

These are the specialty pieces I was able to find on the web. I did not make any of my own scans. I believe Herriman made other specialty pieces, possibly many others, and that some of these may currently be residing with the grandchildren of the recipients or with private collectors. If you should happen to have a high quality scan or image of a similar specialty piece by George Herriman and you would like to have it posted here alongside these remarkable pieces, please send me the image and tell me whatever you know about it. Maybe we can share it with the world.

You can kontact me at the email address listed on this blog, docnad (at) aol (dot) com.

Links, also in no particular order. Those images I've added more recently have links to the sources located in the individual captions:

The Christie's specialty piece auction that started this whole thing:

http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?from=searchresults&intObjectID=309994&sid=9e843300-5cc3-4991-9977-6a0dbc27bcdc

The Herriman biography page from Illustration House, with the drawing of the aged characters:

http://www.illustration-house.com/bios/herriman_bio.html

The 1930's drawing for Harry Frandsen:

http://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=509319&gsub=43595

The 1939 watercolor from the International Museum of Cartoon Art:

http://www.jewishpress.com/printArticle.cfm?contentid=19580

Heritage Auction Gallery's 2002 sale.  You'll need to register to see it all:

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=802&lotIdNo=16044#Photo

This little masterpiece once belonged to Jack Gilbert and now belongs to Rob Pistella:

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=413167&GSub=43595

Another Rob Pistella piece photographed in its frame but no longer a part of this post:

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=71369&GSub=43595

The work owned by Rarebit Fiend. Yes, he also has Winsor McKay drawings:

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=625631&GSub=96885

Yoe & Yoe's rarities page:

http://georgeherriman.com/rarities.html

This is glen gold's watercolor. What does he have against capital letters?

http://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=28780&gsub=5688

Fawcett's Antique Toy Museum:

http://home.gwi.net/~fawcetoy/krazykat.htm

For the identification of Jean Harlow's Hal as husband Hal Rosson and not Hal Roach, I am indebted to the discussion at SilentComedians.com:

http://www.silentcomedians.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=890&sid=377af7df2b5565605212624efc973ff1

The drawing for Mrs. Irving C. Valentine:

http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/krazy+kat

Bill Watterson's introduction to the Komplete Kolor Krazy Kat, Vol. 1. Worth its weight in gold bricks:

http://thisrecording.com/today/tag/krazy-kat

Museum exhibition with the big tooth:

http://newsroom.unl.edu/releases/2007/01/16/Sheldon+'Comic+Art'+exhibit+to+focus+on+relationship+between+comic,+high+art

The Ignatz Archives has a few incredible scans from Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman:

http://ignatz.palmdrive.net/archives/drawings/

Galerie Lambiek:

http://lambiek.net/specials2.htm#herriman

Stephen Donnelly's pencil drawing on package paper:

http://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=785871&gsub=27878

The closed eBay listing of the same pencil drawing:

http://cgi.ebay.com/KRAZY-KAT-PENCIL-SKETCH-HERRIMAN-1946-HDBK-w-DJ-/230638541495#ht_5862wt_1139

These links are generally accurate at the time of posting, but I am not going to attempt to keep them up to date.  Now for one last brick courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service:

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