Ronald Searle: Teenybopper in Demi-Paradise

This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall,
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England,

—Richard II

II.i

Ronald Searle's 1959 drawing of a pouting teenybopper with her guitar appeared in the July 28 number of Punch. This character illustrated the word Demi-paradise from John of Gaunt's "This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle" soliloquy. In 1961, the drawing was collected in Which Way Did He Go?

The presale estimate by Dreweatts 1759 Fine Sales was 1,000 to 1,500 GBP, with bidding starting at 950. 

Ronald Searle
Dreweatts 1759 Fine Sales listing accessed February 1, 2023

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/l-ronald-searle-british-1920-2011-teenie-bopper-183-c-683456e834?objectID=177268279&algIndex=upcoming_lots_prod&queryID=3e247c1cf26aad0232321f6cd9869d24

Ronald Searle
Dreweatts 1759 Fine Sales item description

The auction hammer price hit the high estimate.

Demi-paradise

https://ronaldsearle.blogspot.com/2006/06/london.html

March 9, 2023 Update:  The new owner of this piece has gone public on Instagram here.

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Ronald Searle: Birth of a Nation

The postwar decolonization of Africa began in the mid to late 1950s and continued until 1975 or so. Ronald Searle provided a serious political illustration for Punch in 1959 called, apparently, Birth of a Nation. Here the continent is depicted holding the adult but unborn African citizen in utero. The drawing, slipping out of its frame, was offered at auction last July in Los Angeles with a presale estimate of $200 to $300. It sold for $1,200.

Ronald Searle
Abell Auction listing ended July 7, 2022

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/ronald-searle-1920-2011-birth-of-a-nation-457-c-b584b55974

Ronald Searle
Punch, [11 March?] 1959

https://ukjarry.blogspot.com/2010/02/ronald-searle-3.html

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Ronald Searle: Pas de Quatre

The Berlin Conference of 1954 was a meeting of the "Big Four" foreign ministers of the United States (John Foster Dulles), Britain (Anthony Eden), France (Georges Bidault), and the Soviet Union (Vyacheslav Molotov) from 25 January to 18 February 1954.

—Wikipedia

The Berlin Conference was referred to as the Four Power Conference in Punch's number of January 27, 1954. A pas de quatre is a ballet choreographed for four dancers, but in the case of Ronald Searle's satirical drawing for that issue of Punch, it is intended for four nations. The original art, estimated at 800 to 1,200 GBP, sold for 1,700 GBP last month at auction. The Cold War conference it references went on to have only limited success, it having failed to resolve longstanding issues of the First Indochina War, the Korean War, and the postwar occupation of Germany.

The Soviet authorities have announced that they are sending the Moscow Ballet to entertain the Four Power Conference.
Ronald Searle
Original art
Punch, January 27, 1954, p. 137 [?]

The Soviet authorities have announced that they are sending the Moscow Ballet to entertain the Four Power Conference.
Ronald Searle
Framed original art
Punch, January 27, 1954, p. 137 [?]

Ronald Searle
Roseberys listing ended December 8, 2022

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/ronald-searle-cbe-rdi-british-1920-2011-pas-de-qu-319-c-06c4b38955?objectID=175690966&algIndex=archive_prod&queryID=413dbc0be481d9c54cdbbaf9a5d34101

The Soviet authorities have announced that they are sending the Moscow Ballet to entertain the Four Power Conference.
Ronald Searle
Punch, January 27, 1954, p. 137 [?]

https://magazine.punch.co.uk/image/I00009gvlkPbluNY

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Chon Day: How to Train Your Parrot

Cartoonist Chon Day is best remembered for his work for the American magazine market, particularly the New Yorker and the Saturday Evening Post. It is noteworthy that a work of original cartoon art recently sold on eBay that was published in the British humor magazine Punch. The paper has some condition issues, but the gag is still amusing. Decades ago someone, perhaps even the artist, thoughtfully added the city London in parentheses to distinguish the famous magazine from any other Punch publications that might be out there. Those of us who would like to know the date of publication rather than the city of publication can only shake our collective heads.

Chon Day, "Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous[....]"
Punch

Chon Day, "Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous[....]"
Punch

Chon Day detail

Chon Day's signature

The caption

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-CHON-DAY-pen-And-Ink-Cartoon-Sketch-PUNCH-Signed-/121159217851?ssPageName=VIP%3Awatchlink%3Atop%3Aen&fromMakeTrack=true&nma=true&si=UB68sj2DvLx%252F9kdb54zXrlCgzYs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Buy-It-Now Price

Chon Day, "Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous...Hi, Gorgeous[....]"
Punch

Note:  More of my blog posts about the art of Chon Day may be seen here.

A portion of Chon Day's New Yorker work is in the Condé Nast Store here.

New Yorker cartoon editor Bob Mankoff believes Chon Day created the perfect cartoon. Read about it here.

Enjoy a septet of classic Chon Day cartoons from the Saturday Evening Post here.

See a Chon Day cartoon on The Pictorial Arts blog accompanied by my insightful comment here.

A couple of my blog posts about Punch cartoons in general may be seen here.

Don't forget to pipe up if you know the issue of Punch in which this was published!

Now bye, Gorgeous!

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