Harrington, Wallace :: Milton Caniff

Milton Caniff - Steve Canyon daily - 6 August 1951

Artist: Milton Caniff (All)

5 Comments - 1,898 Views - 2 Likes

Milton Caniff - Steve Canyon daily - 6 August 1951 Comic Art

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Artwork Details

Title:	Milton Caniff - Steve Canyon daily - 6 August 1951
Artist:	Milton Caniff (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Comic Strip
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	1,898
Likes on CAF:	2 3
Comments:	5
Added to Site:	7/11/2016
Comic Art Archive:

Description

In 1946 there were no creator's rights. Milton Caniff had created and drawn Terry and the Pirates for over 13 years, making it a very successful strip. Yet all rights for the strip belonged to the Chicago Tribune newspaper syndicate.

In what was then a bold move, Caniff negotiated with the Field Enterprises syndicate offering to create a new strip for them... but he would retain ownership. Thus, in December of 1946, Caniff's final episode of Terry and the Pirates appeared (and then George Wunder took over the strip) and his new strip, Steve Canyon, debuted in 168 newspapers weeks later on January 13 1947. As many are aware, he continued Steve Canyon for over forty years until it ended on 4 June 1988... almost two months after he passed away.

This is a daily from 6 August 1951, over 4.5 years into the series, where the early characters are nearly fully formed. As always, Canyon was not only a symbol of the Air Force, but always complementary; as we see here in the last panel. And nice planes!

Just recently, there was a bit of a controversy on ComicArt-L regarding someone putting their stamp on the back of an original. Here is an example of how comic art was treated in 1952. When I bought this strip it arrived in a simple black frame, with a stamp showing it was done in November of 1952. Not only was the backing cardboard, but the strip had been glued to another board and trimmed almost to the panel borders. I know we are all more aware of conservation now; obviously in 1952 that was not the case.

As much as I wish the framer had not done that, I am glad this one survived. It is obviously one Caniff sent out to a fellow Ohioan.. before the bulk of them were donated to Ohio State University.

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About the Owner

	Wallace Harrington ( 27 ) Premium Gallery Owner
Joined:	December 2004
Last Login:	September 2025
Ebay Id:	wwh27539
Country:	UNITED STATES
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Comments on this Artwork

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Christophe Bedel
Member Since 2004

Posted on 7/11/2016

Great strip, congrats !

Christophe Bedel
Member Since 2004

Posted on 7/11/2016

Great strip, congrats !

David K
Member Since 2008

Posted on 7/12/2016

Top example! Love it!!

Jean Andre Macchini
Member Since 2006

Posted on 12/20/2016

Very nice ! Congrats !

Full Mag Veteran Stories Illustrated
Member Since 2017

Posted on 12/20/2017

Great piece by an exceptional artist who does not get his due among the "art crowd" as a result of the genre in which he practiced his trade. At Full Mag, we are always in touch with veterans for more stories. Just today, I was in touch with a friend who, after reading Volume 1 of Full Mag, was putting out the call to the Air Commando Association (ACA) and Air America folks for more stories for Full Mag. Due to that, I was at the ACA site and I noticed that Caniff was their very first Hall of Famer ! I of course knew of Caniff's exceptional talent and his 40+ year run on Steve Canyon, but I had no idea of his particular association with ACA. Air Commandos are the predecessors or today's SOCOM ! What a talent. Many of the veterans I have interviewed have referenced Steve Canyon in all sorts of ways from the names applied to aircraft that are borrowed from Terry/Canyon, to aircraft bailout instructions written on latrine walls that were like "Steve Canyon" and more.

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