Brian Coppola :: JFK, his era and family

"Our New Age" (May 19, 1963)

Artists: Gene Fawcette (Penciller) , Gene Fawcette (Inker) , Athelstan Spilhaus (Writer)

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Artwork Details

Title:	"Our New Age" (May 19, 1963)
Artist:	Gene Fawcette (Penciller)
Artist:	Gene Fawcette (Inker)
Artist:	Athelstan Spilhaus (Writer)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Interior Page
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	866
Likes on CAF:	0 1
Comments:	0
Added to Site:	12/25/2015
Comic Art Archive:

Description

When Dr. Athelstan Spilhaus met President Kennedy in 1962, JFK told him, �The only science I ever learned was from your comic strip in the Boston Globe.�

The comic strip that Kennedy was referring to was called �Our New Age� and ran in about 110 Sunday newspapers all around the world from 1958 until 1975. Much like Arthur Radebaugh�s mid-century futurism comic �Closer Than We Think,� which ran from 1958 until 1963, �Our New Age� was a shining example of techno-utopian idealism.

Not all of the strips were futuristic, but they all had that particular brand of optimism that characterized postwar American thinking about science and technology. Athelstan Spilhaus wrote �Our New Age� from its inception until 1973, but it went through three different illustrators: first Earl Cros, then E.C. Felton, then Gene Fawcette (who did this example and the other three that I have).

As Spilhaus tells it, he was inspired to start the comic strip in October of 1957 after the Soviets launched Sputnik � the first human-made satellite � into space. He was concerned that American kids weren�t showing enough interest in science and technology. �Rather than fight my own kids reading the funnies, which is a stupid thing to do, I decided to put something good into the comics, something that was more fun and that might give a little subliminal education,� he said.

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About the Owner

	Brian Coppola Premium Gallery Owner
Joined:	March 2009
Last Login:	January 2026
Country:	UNITED STATES
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