Ronald Searle: A 1936 Autograph Page

Ronald Searle's 1936 drawing from an autograph album that belonged to one Patricia M. Frost of Cambridge is not by a long shot "possibly the earliest work known by him," as claimed by Rainford & Parris Books of Bishop's Stortford, but still it may be the earliest drawing that an interested collector can expect to come across. By August of 1936, the sixteen year old's cartoons had been appearing weekly in the Cambridge Daily News since the previous year and it's stunning that he was well known enough locally to be sought after for the autograph at all. Searle's signature from this period has the middle initials W. F., for William Fordham. The accompanying cartoon reportedly represents a teacher, but more likely it is a graduating student, cigar and all. The cartoon looks reasonably accomplished for its day, but it doesn't in any way foretell the illustrator's future greatness.

Ronald Searle
AbeBooks listing accessed June 6, 2023

https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=31524317550&searchurl=kn%3DRonald%2BSearle%26sortby%3D1&cm_sp=snippet-_-srp2-_-title25

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Hank Porter for Walt Disney

An elementary school teacher of mine once told me he had written to Walt Disney and received from him a signed original drawing of Mickey Mouse. I never saw it but years later had thought this must be one of those very rare pencil drawings of Mickey that Walt occasionally gave away. I hope it was, but perhaps it was something done by a studio artist instead. Here Hank Porter, uncredited, provided autograph collector Fred J. Hall with his boss's "autograph" and a nifty drawing of the world's most celebrated mouse.

Hank Porter, "THERE YOU ARE MR. HALL" studio "autograph" of Walt Disney with a drawing of Mickey Mouse, c. 1930's.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HANK-PORTER-DISNEY-ARTIST-S-1930s-WATERCOLOR-DRAWING-OF-MICKEY-NICE-RARE-/231172004549?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35d2ecdac5&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Note:  See my earlier posts about Walt Disney.

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Uncle Sam by Charles Henry Sykes

Editorial cartoonist Charles Henry Sykes signed an autograph page in 1931 and included a drawing of Uncle Sam.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CHARLES-HENRY-SYKES-LIFE-MAGAZINE-CARTOONIST-S-DRAWING-UNCLE-SAM-1931-/231140545626?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35d10cd45a

Note:  Celebrate the Fourth of July with posts from the blog archives.

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Uncle Sam by Roy Justus

Some time back Roy Justus, political cartoonist for the Minneapolis Star, provided an autograph collector with this drawing of a jolly Uncle Sam. Somehow I doubt Sam would would have cause to laugh like this today.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ROY-JUSTUS-MINNEAPOLIS-STAR-CARTOONIST-S-ORIGINAL-DRAWING-OF-UNCLE-SAM-/371016287708?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item56624b45dc&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Note:  See other pleasant if slightly less ebullient renditions of Uncle Sam from the archives of this patriotic blog.

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Clare Briggs: Mr. and Mrs.

Cartoonist Clare Briggs created the popular characters Joe and Vi for his Mr. and Mrs. comic strip. Here they are on an autograph album page signed in 1929, the year before he died.

Clare Briggs, drawing of "Joe" and "Vi" from Mr. and Mrs. signed "Sincerely/Briggs," 1929

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CLAIRE-BRIGGS-MR-MRS-CARTOONIST-S-ORIGINAL-DRAWING-OF-VI-JOE-DATED-1929-/371016287707?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item56624b45db&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Clare Briggs, Mr. and Mrs., 1922

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mr-and-Mrs-1922-Comic-Book-Briggs-Great-Graphics-Amazing-Condition-/111391512215?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item19ef739697

Note:  Enjoy more autograph drawings from the glorious blog archives.

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Robert Benchley's Autograph

"The surest way to make a monkey of a man is to quote him."

--Robert Benchley

Currently offered on eBay is this autograph album page from the collection of Fred J. Hall. It bears the autograph of humorist Robert Benchley.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Humorist-Robert-Benchley-Signed-Page-PSA-DNA-Autographed-Auto-Harvard-New-Yorker-/261484248581?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3ce1acfe05&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Humorist-Robert-Benchley-Signed-Page-PSA-DNA-Autographed-Auto-Harvard-New-Yorker-/261484248581?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3ce1acfe05&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Note:  See more hand-picked autograph album pages from the storied archives of Attempted Bloggery.

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Gluyas Williams's Autograph

A tip of the hat to illustrator Gluyas Williams, who signed a page in a fan's autograph album decades ago and included a caricature of himself tipping his hat.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/GLUYAS-WILLIAMS-NEW-YORKER-CARTOONIST-S-ORIGINAL-SELF-CARICATURE-/231065071049?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35cc8d2dc9&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 

Note:  Previous posts about Gluyas Williams, including another self-portrait, may be seen here.

Other pages from autograph albums, including two others with drawings from this very album, may be seen here.

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An Off Syd Hoff Autograph

Fred is the autograph collector and Syd Hoff is supposedly the cartoonist who signed and drew on a page of his autograph album.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SYD-HOFF-NEW-YORKER-CARTOONIST-S-1930s-ORIGINAL-DRAWING-NICE-/231065070579?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35cc8d2bf3&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

I don't know of any other cartoonists named Hoff, but Syd Hoff's signature usually has a small h, as in the offbeat 1939 magazine cartoon below. He may very well have altered the h of his signature in the autograph drawing to a capital letter H resembling a switch with the on position above and the off position below, that off doubling as the last three letters of his name.

Syd Hoff, "Milton, Come out of that amnesia--I'm Rebecca."
Unknown magazine, May 1939

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1939-Cartoon-Sid-Hoff-Husband-Wife-Amnesia-Rebecca-ORIGINAL-/370902645167?nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

March 17, 2014 Update:
Here's another Hoff autograph with the unusual capital H. It is from the same autograph dealer, so it may possibly come from the same collection.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SYD-HOFF-NEW-YORKER-CARTOONIST-SIGNED-VINTAGE-DRAWING-/370990521478?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5660c21c86&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Note:  I'd love to hear of any other instance of Syd Hoff signing his name with a capital H. I'd also love to know in what magazine this 1939 cartoon was published. Does anyone out there have a good Syd Hoff archive? Well, there's always the official website www.SydHoff.org.

I have one earlier post on Syd Hoff and it's quite painless. See it here.

More autograph album pages may be seen here, including another one from this album signed by Chon Day.

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Chon Day: Brother Sebastian with a Policeman's Cap

An autograph album page signed by cartoonist Chon Day with an original illustration of Brother Sebastian sold last month on eBay for $25 to a lone bidder. The policeman's cap must have been a way of personalizing the drawing for the recipient, who most probably was employed in law enforcement.

Chon Day autograph drawing signed of Brother Sebastian with a policeman's cap

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CHON-DAY-BROTHER-SEBASTIAN-CARTOONIST-S-VINT-ORIGINAL-DRAWING-OF-THE-BROTHER-/370909746028?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item565bf1936c&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Chon Day autograph drawing signed of Brother Sebastian with a policeman's cap

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

Other autograph album pages may be seen here.

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