The last thing my life needs is another cartoon caption contest, which is why I've entered the Boomer Name That Cartoon Caption for July 2024. I chose a real groaner too, strictly for your reading pleasure, of course. The cartoon is unsigned, evidently created with digital technology—quite possibly with the assistance of a human.
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| "Wow! She really broke the molt." |
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In 1942, magazine promotions aimed at parents touted a new children's clothing line inspired by William Steig's "Small Fry." Just three months after Pearl Harbor, the outfits are marketed as "Defense Denims." Small Fry Fashions were created by Fairfame Sportswear located at 1350 Broadway, which is not far from the Garment District just north of Herald Square. It's interesting to see how a studio fashion photographer attempted to capture the feel of Steig's drawings in Glamour Girl and Her Hero.
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| "Small Fry" Come to Life in Defense Denims The Parents' Magazine[?], March 1942 |
For the fall line, two girls' outfits are called "Sugar Ration" and "Back to School." Some of the advertising copy reads, "Double sweetness! There is no rationing of ingenuity in SMALL FRY's saucy dress with its dainty trimmed collar or her sophisticated suit..."
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Fairfame Sportswear The Parents' Magazine, September 1942, page 93 |
Note: I would love to hear about other ads for Small Fry Fashions based on William Steig's drawings.
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The Belles Amures silk scarf was designed by Loïc Dubigeon for Hermès in 2002. The scarf features sailing ships, lighthouses, and the points of a compass. There are also some nautical knots. The scarf exists in several color combinations.
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When I manage to lose a must-win eBay auction, I hide my sorrows here on the blog, presenting the sale to the world as objectively as I can with nary a hint, I hope, of the heartbreak it wrought. After all, that is what someone with a blogger's mentality, or at least this blogger's mentality, does. How might a more creative person, a cartoonist, say, handle the bitter disappointment of a lost auction? The answer doesn't come up often publicly, but on June 2, New Yorker cartoonist Roz Chast lost out on a scarf designed by none other than the great Charles Addams, the very sort of item proudly featured here on the blog in the past. Sixteen days later, she took to Instagram and posted this:
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| To Whom It May Concern: Roz Chast Instagram post, June 18, 2021 |
So that's what a highly creative person does. My job as a blogging drudge is to provide the context. The eBay auction featured an Addams Family scarf produced by designer Richard A. Farrar. We have seen this scarf before, but we've never seen an actual sale price. Bidding started at $99 but quickly doubled. The final sale price was $312.
The Addams Family and its members had not been given names yet in the early 1950s when this scarf was likely produced. Characters were only given their names for the 1964 TV show. In this corner, let's call him Gomez:
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| Charles Addams eBay listing ended June 2, 2021 |
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| Charles Addams eBay Item Description |
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| Charles Addams eBay Bid History The final bid comes in with eight seconds remaining in the auction, a snipe. The underbidder is, assumedly, cartoonist Roz Chast. |
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What are illustrator Maira Kalman's favorite things? The cover of her 2014 book, My Favorite Things, may give us a fashionable hint or two. So may the drawing she made inside at least one autographed copy.
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| Maira Kalman AbeBooks listing accessed February 10, 2021 |
Note: This book is no longer available from the seller.
Other Maira Kalman books containing sketches or, better still, examples of her original illustration art are potentially the stuff of blog posts yet unwritten. Admirers of this illustrator are encouraged to send images.
Some of my favorite things are right here on this blog. Many aren't. If you'd like for me to see some of your favorite things and possibly include them in future posts here, why not send me a photo or two?
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| Georg Jensen eBay Listing Ended September 20, 2019 |
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| Georg Jensen eBay Item Description |
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| Georg Jensen brooch #88 with amethyst Post-1945, .925 silver, Drucker Antiques |
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| Georg Jensen brooch #88 with silverstone GI hallmark, .830 silver, trombone clasp |
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| Georg Jensen brooch #88 with silver stone
GI hallmark, .830 silver, trombone clasp
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I come to wive it wealthily in Padua;
If wealthily, then happily in Padua.
The Taming of the Shrew, Act I, scene ii
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| Music appreciation: Katherine and Hortensio's lesson |
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Actually, it is not strictly Shakespearean for Petruchio to use a whip on Katherine, even if it seems familiar now. The later stage practice comes from David Garrick's 1754 performing version Catharine and Petruchio. |
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| Petruchio and Katherine head off early on their honeymoon even before the wedding feast. |
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| Happily ever after, of course |
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| Richard A. Farrar tag |
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| Saks Fifth Avenue tag |
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| Detail of moon border |
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| Copyright and Mischa Richter's signature |
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| Mischa Richter Taming of the Shrew Scarf eBay listing accessed January 7, 2020 |
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| Mischa Richter Taming of the Shrew Scarf eBay item description accessed January 7, 2020 |
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| Sold for a best offer of $30 |
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| Mischa Richter Taming of the Shrew Scarf eBay listing ended November 6, 2023 with Buy It Now |
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| Mischa Richter Taming of the Shrew Scarf eBay item description |
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