Peter Arno's timid man is a stock character who makes frequent appearances in the cartoonist's work. Sometimes his comments show him to be oblivious to libidinous behavior in his vicinity. Here's a 1937 example from College Humor that appeared in the blog archives:
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"See here! Won't you two have a bit of nourishment?" Peter Arno "Side-Show," College Humor, Vol. 5, No. 3, July 1937, p. 18 |
The timid man is similarly clueless in his bland observations about New York's sexy night life. An original New Yorker drawing from the same year as the College Humor cartoon was sold at Heritage Auctions on April 17:
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| "One would think she'd be subject to a series of nasty colds." Peter Arno Original art The New Yorker, October 23, 1937, p. 16 |
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| "One would think she'd be subject to a series of nasty colds." Peter Arno Original art The New Yorker, October 23, 1937, p. 16 |
Here's the bidding as it stood one day prior to the sale:
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| Peter Arno Heritage Auctions listing accessed April 16, 2024 |
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| "One would think she'd be subject to a series of nasty colds." Peter Arno The New Yorker, October 23, 1937, p. 16 |
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| "One would think she'd be subject to a series of nasty colds." Peter Arno Original art The New Yorker, October 23, 1937, p. 16 |
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A cartoon by Peter Arno and a spot drawing of cats by Lee[?] |
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| Spot drawing of cats by Lee[?] |
Note: I don't recognize this New Yorker spot artist named Lee, or something similar to Lee. Reader assistance would be appreciated. Peter Arno I recognize.
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