Charles Addams: Ski Bump

Among those New Yorker artists whose work is prized by collectors, few generate the consistent excitement that Charles Addams does. His 1949 cartoon of a skier unexpectedly coming upon a mound in the snow demonstrates Addams's mastery of technique. His linework and his brushwork are superb. You can almost feel the spray of the snow and the stitching on the sweater. It's an extraordinary piece. And it's funny too, highlighting Addams's delightfully macabre sense of humor.

Charles Addams
Original art
The New Yorker, January 15, 1949, p. 32

The original cartoon went on the auction block yesterday at Heritage Auctions. The action in the salesroom was probably not as frenzied as it would be for one of his Addams Family drawings—or for his more famous ski cartoon—but the bidding certainly did not disappoint. A hammer price of $19,000 is more than respectable for a seventy-five year old New Yorker cartoon.

Charles Addams
Framed original art
The New Yorker, January 15, 1949, p. 32

An undated invoice from Graphics International, Ltd.

Charles Addams
Heritage Auctions sale of April 23, 2024

https://fineart.ha.com/itm/paintings/charles-addams-american-1912-1988-skier-the-new-yorker-magazine-cartoon-january-15-1949ink-wash-on/a/8161-71083.s?ic2=mytracked-lotspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyTrackedLots-101116#

Charles Addams
Heritage Auctions item description

The drawing merited a full page in The New Yorker, something you really don't see there anymore. I think we can all agree that it was worth the space.

Charles Addams
The New Yorker, January 15, 1949, p. 32

Charles Addams
Original art
The New Yorker, January 15, 1949, p. 32

A cartoon by Charles Addams and a Profiles illustration by Lorenz [?]

https://archives.newyorker.com/newyorker/1949-01-15/flipbook/032/

Frank Emerson Denison

Lorenz [?]

The New Yorker, January 15, 1949, p. 33

Note:  It occurs to me that some of you youngsters may not know what I mean when I write of Charles Addams's "more famous ski cartoon." Well, it's a classic from The New Yorker's issue of January 13, 1940 and you can find it in the archives here.

The obituary of previous art owner Kevin P. Connell (1941-2017) may be examined here. When the cartoon was first published, he wasn't quite eight. The death notice states he was a "Key advance man for the 1968 Presidential campaign of Robert F. Kennedy & organizer for George McGovern's [Senate] reelection." My guess is that Connell purchased the Addams art in the 1960s. In the 1950s he was simply too young, and by the 1970s I think the art might have cost more than $500.

Is the profile illustration signed Lorenz? Lucaz? Waz? Who is this artist?

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William Steig's Small Fry: Questioning of Prisoner

"Small Fry," William Steig's long-running series of drawings in The New Yorker, presented the lower-class children of the city engaged in play. At times, their activities reflected the darkening adult world around them. During the Second World War, for example, the cartoons took on more serious themes taken from the headlines. Questioning of prisoner, published in 1943, is a novel take on the effects of the war in Europe at home. The original art was sold last month at Swann Galleries in the Illustration Art sale.

"Small Fry"
Questioning of prisoner
William Steig
Original art
The New Yorker, February 13, 1943, p. 19

William Steig
Swann Galleries, Illustration Art, December 14, 2023
Hammer price

https://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/Lots/auction-lot/WILLIAM-STEIG-Questioning-of-Prisoner?saleno=2656&lotNo=75&refNo=810940

William Steig
Swann Galleries, Illustration Art
December 14, 2023
Price realized with buyer's premium

Drawings by George Price and William Steig

https://archives.newyorker.com/newyorker/1943-02-13/flipbook/018/

"Small Fry"
Questioning of prisoner
William Steig
Original art
The New Yorker, February 13, 1943, p. 19

"Small Fry"
Questioning of prisoner
William Steig
The New Yorker, February 13, 1943, p. 19

On the facing page, cartoonist George Price takes to the ski slopes, and there's a dark undertone to this drawing as well.

04547

My Entry in The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #879

There's a line at the Pearly Gates and a skier who bypasses it in The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest #879 from the issue of December 18, 2023. My sporting caption is shown below. The drawing is by Feggo, whom I like to call Felipe Galindo.

"I wanted the express entrance to have curling."

These captions didn't stick the landing:

"With a lift ticket you get express check-in."
"We also combine a lift ticket with TSA PreCheck."
"The ski jump is for atheists."
"It's the latest way to jump the line."
"Another gatecrasher."
"Guess what else a lift ticket buys."
"We never said the system was fair."

January 13, 2024 Update:  The Finalists

January 15, 2024 Update:  I voted for the caption from Alexandria.

January 26, 2024 Update:  The Winner 

04540

Joe Dator: The Art of Procrastination

Joe Dator's New Yorker cartoon from the issue of January 6, 2020 describes a dilemma familiar to those who work at home, and perhaps to everyone else too. The original art was sold on eBay January 9 for a reasonable But It Now price of $750. Prior to publication, shading must have been added digitally.

"I don't understand it—no matter how much I drink coffee, play
on my phone, refresh my email, look up things online, go to the
kitchen for snacks, message my friends,  scroll Twitter,
and play with the cats, I still can't get any writing done."
Joe Dator
Original art
The New Yorker, January 6, 2020, p. 39

Detail

Detail

Verso

Joe Dator
eBay listing ended January 9, 2022

https://www.ebay.com/itm/284598994308?hash=item42436c0584%3Ag%3AM0cAAOSwiz9h2IGH&nma=true&si=64J6TuENCQvl%252FEQuIbsoMEcDQlw%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Joe Dator
eBay item description

Ski spot by Filip Fröhlich and cartoon by Joe Dator

https://archives.newyorker.com/newyorker/2020-01-06/flipbook/38/

Note:  I've learned my lesson and did not use Joe Dator's title, Procrastinating Writer, for the title of my post.

Ski spot by Filip Fröhlich

Image added August 7, 2022

04032

Middy and Whitney Darrow's Copy of Chas Addams' Nightcrawlers

Cartoonists fortunate enough to publish collections of their work have been known on occasion to create especially nice presentation copies of such books for their fellow cartoonists. Such is certainly the case with the copy of Nightcrawlers (1957) personalized by Charles Addams to fellow New Yorker cartoonist Whitney Darrow, Jr., and his wife Mildred, who was known as Middy. The book includes a full-page original drawing of the Addams Family's Uncle Fester shaded with a monochromatic green wash. He is shown raising above his head a sign on which we read the inscription, "For Middy + Whitney/with love/Charlie." 

Chas Addams' Nightcrawlers (1957)

"For Middy + Whitney
with love
Charlie"

The color cartoon on the front free endpaper originally appeared on the New Yorker's cover of February 2, 1957:

Title Page

The so-called Publishers' Foreword merely enumerates Addams' other collections in print.

The Publishers' Foreword

"Well, Kendrick, still think I'm just an alarmist?"

The rear free endpaper reproduces the New Yorker's cover of June 22, 1957, then quite recently published. The cover apparently depicts Pech, the Scottish term for gnomes, engaging in some contemporary gaming.

For purposes of orientation, that's New York City's Automat, now defunct, depicted in the cartoon on the back cover and the roof of the Addams Family mansion, never defunct, on the front cover.

Charles Addams
eBay Listing Retrieved December 13, 2019

https://www.ebay.com/itm/NIGHTCRAWLERS-SIGNED-by-CHARLES-ADDAMS-to-Cartoonist-WHITNEY-DARROW-1st-in-DJ/383310080468?hash=item593f0fa9d4:g:ZJUAAOSw0vdd7r5S

Charles Addams
eBay Item Description

Charles Addams
The New Yorker, February 2, 1957

Charles Addams
The New Yorker, June 22, 1957

  

Note:  The blog archives also contain cartoonist Roy Doty's copy of "Stop, Miss!" (1957) by Whitney Darrow, Jr., and cartoonist David Pascal's copy of The Art of The New Yorker 1925-1995 by Lee Lorenz. There are also numerous books by Art Spiegelman from the library of collagist and illustrator Stephen Kroninger. Mr. Kroninger has also shared with us books from his library personalized by Terry Gilliam, a cartoonist even before he became an animator and a director, and by Mark Alan Stamaty. Possibly there could be other books archived herein which I don't recall. It's not a topic I've thought about all that much, to be truthful.

Still, there must be quite a bit of this sort of stuff out there and it would be nice to get a bit more of it in here, if you catch my drift. So readers with access to books by cartoonists, particularly New Yorker cartoonists (and Terry Gilliam since he's here anyway) which are dedicated, inscribed, or otherwise embellished to other cartoonists, collagists, illustrators—that sort—please scan or photograph the relevant images and send them along to me here at the blog via my easy-to remember email address. I'm sure it's on the blog somewhere.

At press time, the book remains available on eBay for $5,500. It could make a very nice gift for, say, a friend or a blogger you know.


December 26, 2019 Update:  The asking price has risen considerably.

January 13, 2020 Update:  Discounted by 30%, it's now more or less back to the original asking price.

November 17, 2023 Update:  The price is up again, maybe a nod to the holiday season or else to the increased demand for Addams originals.

03107