1944.01.01 “Pin Up Girl for ‘44”
By Ralph Lee (1906-1947)
14.7 x 23.3 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection
Ralph Lee was an editorial cartoonist for the Portland Oregonian. He died suddenly, at 41, in January 1947. His cousin, Art Bimrose, was the editorial cartoonist for the Oregonian for more than three decades. In 1937, the Oregonian hired him part-time to work on printing plates. Following Lee’s death, Bimrose was hired as the Sunday editorial cartoonist.
I am going with the title being correct and the noted date being a first of the year “typo” by Lee. Jan 1, 1944, makes more sense than 1943.
On Jan 1, 1943, Stalingrad was unresolved, Tunisia was ongoing, No Allied army had yet landed in Western Europe… so victory in Europe was conceptual, not palpable. And Jan 1 cartoons are all about the optimism for the year, not “hang on another year.”
On January 1, 1944 (mis-dated as 1943), Italy had fallen out of the Axis, the Eastern Front had clearly turned, and strategic bombing was relentless. “Victory in Europe” was no longer abstract, it was anticipated.
