Frank Fogarty - Rare "Illuminated Scroll" Signed by Many Cartoonists!

Frank Fogarty (1887-1978) was a cartoonist known primarily for two comic strip features. Clarence ran for nearly 20 years, from 1929 to 1948, while he worked on Mr. and Mrs., the Sunday strip he took over after Clare Briggs’ passing, from 1930 to 1947. Both strips were syndicated by the New York Herald Tribune, which is an important factoid that I’ll get back to in a bit. Fogarty later became nicknamed "Holy Pictures" Fogarty by his brethren, for the “illuminated scrolls” he would create for special events. These harkened back to the medieval illuminated manuscripts, and Fogarty created them for a number of famous individuals, including: John F. Kennedy, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John Wayne, Jack Dempsey, Neil Simon, Igor Sikorsky, and the comedy duo Bob and Ray. In this case, Fogarty created one of his illuminated works for Harry S. Stanton, the retiring manager of the New York Herald Tribune. The piece appears to be done on actual vellum, and depicts Stanton flying from a trapeze, past all the newspapers he worked for, winding up at Harvey Cedars, in Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Fogarty has added a couple of small vignettes of Stanton on the sides, as well as some incredible decorations. And then there are the signatures. The piece is signed by a host of cartoonists from the Herald Trib, including Harrison Cady, Jay Ding Darling, Harry Haenigsen, Ellison Hoover, Mal Eaton, Tom Gill, Jay Irving and Dow Walling. The piece is also signed by other notables, including the well-known journalists, George Fielding Eliot and Mark Sullivan. Measuring 15”x 14”, you can see an even tone on the piece. You’ll also note that it does not lay flat, due to this being true vellum. The colors and ink work all remain strong. This is a wonderfully historic piece, representing a particular moment in time in the newspaper and cartooning business. A changing of the guard. And Fogarty represents it quite beautifully. $175.00 + 20.00 shipping. This piece will be shipped boxed.