A New Yorker State Of Mind Digs Into The Issue Of May 30, 1936

A New Yorker State Of Mind: Reading Every Issue Of The New Yorker Magazine does its usual (and quite wonderful) deep dive into a long ago issue of the magazine. This week it’s The New Yorker of May 30, 1936.

Read it here

Cover by the one-and-only Rea Irvin. His A-Z Entry:

Rea Irvin  Born, San Francisco, 1881; died in the Virgin Islands,1972. Irvin was the cover artist for the New Yorker’s first issue, February 21, 1925. He was the magazine’s first art and only art supervisor (some refer to him as its first art editor) holding the position from 1925 until 1939 when James Geraghty assumed the title of art editor. Irvin then became art director and remained in that position until William Shawn officially succeeded Harold Ross in early 1952. Irvin’s last original work for the magazine was the magazine’s cover of July 12, 1958. The February 21, 1925 Eustace Tilley cover had been reproduced every year on the magazine’s anniversary until 1994, when R. Crumb’s Tilley-inspired cover appeared. Tilley has since reappeared, with other artists substituting from time-to-time. Number of New Yorker covers (not including the repeat appearances of the first cover every anniversary up to 1991): 179. Number of cartoons contributed: 261.

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Perlman’s Pod

Asher Perlman, who began contributing to The New Yorker in 2021, has announced he’s starting a podcast. His latest cartoon collection is Hi, It’s Me Again (Andrews McMeel).

From Mr. Perlman:

The Monday Tilley Watch takes a glancing look at the art and artists of the latest issue of The New Yorker

The Cartoonists and Cartoons

Fifteen cartoons, fifteen cartoonists. No newbies. One duo, that we know of (the Spill counts duos as one cartoonist). The longest active cartoonist contributor in the issue is Roz Chast, whose first New Yorker cartoon appeared in the issue of July 3, 1978.

This week’s cartoons (in a slideshow).

The Cartoon Caption Contest (Hartley Lin provides the drawing for this week’s contest).

The Rea Irvin Talk Watch 

This week marks the 9th “anniversary” of Rea Irvin’s perfect Talk heading (above) disappearing from The New Yorker (only to be replaced — if you can believe it! — by a redrawn version courtesy of a contemporary illustrator). Using the word “anniversary” seems like a bad fit…here at the Spill it’s head shaking time. The abandonment of Mr. Irvin’s work continues to haunt. Read more here.

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Rea Irvin’s A-Z:

Rea Irvin (pictured above. Self portrait above from Meet the Artist) Born, San Francisco, 1881; died in the Virgin Islands,1972. Irvin was the cover artist for the New Yorker’s first issue, February 21, 1925. He was the magazine’s first art and only art supervisor (some refer to him as its first art editor) holding the position from 1925 until 1939 when James Geraghty assumed the title of art editor. Irvin then became art director and remained in that position until William Shawn officially succeeded Harold Ross in early 1952. Irvin’s last original work for the magazine was the magazine’s cover of July 12, 1958. The February 21, 1925 Eustace Tilley cover had been reproduced every year on the magazine’s anniversary until 1994, when R. Crumb’s Tilley-inspired cover appeared. Tilley has since reappeared, with other artists substituting from time-to-time. Number of New Yorker covers (not including the repeat appearances of the first cover every anniversary up to 1991): 179. Number of cartoons contributed: 261.

James Thurber, speaking to Alistaire Cooke on Omnibus:

“…after I had sold a few to the New Yorker magazine, Andy White, my colleague there, found me carefully shading in something and he said, “ Hey, stop that, don’t do that — if you ever became good you’d be mediocre.” 

This somewhat famous quote has stuck with me for decades (I’m not really sure how famous it is). It seems, on its face, simple advice, but I believe there’s way more to it than “Hey…don’t do that.” E.B. White, who of course was an advocate of clarity in writing, was heading off a notion that so many fledgling artists develop — that they should aspire to becoming “better” at drawing. If that’s really what you want to do, than, “Hey…do that!”  But I believe the hunt for “better” can sometimes stifle the artist (please remember I said, “sometimes”).

One of the very best things about The New Yorker is that it embraced Thurber’s art as it was, not as New Yorker editors might wish it would be. That’s one of the wonders of the magazine’s editorial DNA: staying out of an artist’s way. Back in 2013, in my interview with veteran artist, Dana Fradon, he discussed The New Yorker’s Art editor, James Geraghty. Mr. Fradon said Geraghty’s editorial direction was simply, “Make it beautiful.” Thanks to the magazine’s hands-off policy, and E.B. White’s two cents, Thurber did Thurber (beautifully!) and we are all the luckier for it.

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James Thurber Born, Columbus, Ohio, December 8, 1894. Died 1961, New York City. New Yorker work: 1927 -1961, with several pieces run posthumously. According to the New Yorker’s legendary editor, William Shawn, “In the early days, a small company of writers, artists, and editors — E.B. White, James Thurber, Peter Arno, and Katharine White among them — did more to make the magazine what it is than can be measured.”

Key cartoon collection: The Seal in the Bedroom and Other Predicaments (Harper & Bros., 1932). Key anthology (writings & drawings): The Thurber Carnival (Harper & Row, 1945). There have been a number of Thurber biographies. Burton Bernstein’s Thurber (Dodd, Mead, 1975) and Harrison Kinney’s James Thurber: His Life and Times (Henry Holt & Co., 1995) are essential. Website

I love it when a Thurber moment comes out of the blue. In this case the moment involves a 2020 Esquire article on Jerry Stiller, who played George Costanza’s father, Frank, on Seinfeld.

It’s difficult to imagine Seinfeld with Jerry Stiller’s Frank Costanza character as meek, but according to the article that’s exactly how Frank was originally conceived. We’ll never know how that would’ve worked out, but the way it did work out was comedy gold (I don’t suppose it’s necessary to mention that Jerry Stiller’s real life son, Ben Stiller directed, co-produced, and starred in a modern day take on Thurber’s Walter Mitty…well, no matter — I just mentioned it).

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James Thurber Born, Columbus, Ohio, December 8, 1894. Died 1961, New York City. New Yorker work: 1927 -1961, with several pieces run posthumously. According to the New Yorker’s legendary editor, William Shawn, “In the early days, a small company of writers, artists, and editors — E.B. White, James Thurber, Peter Arno, and Katharine White among them — did more to make the magazine what it is than can be measured.”

Key cartoon collection: The Seal in the Bedroom and Other Predicaments (Harper & Bros., 1932). Key anthology (writings & drawings): The Thurber Carnival (Harper & Row, 1945). There have been a number of Thurber biographies. Burton Bernstein’s Thurber (Dodd, Mead, 1975) and Harrison Kinney’s James Thurber: His Life and Times (Henry Holt & Co., 1995) are essential. Website

The New Yorker’s 1st Basketball Cartoon and 1st Basketball Cover

With basketball fever gripping Gotham City, I thought it was time to take stock of New Yorker basketball 1sts (cartoon and cover). According to the magazine’s database, the very first New Yorker basketball cartoon appeared in the issue of December 23, 1933. The artist: Robert Day.

Robt. Day’s A-Z Entry:

Robert Day (photo from This Week anthology, 1954) Born, 1900, San Bernardino, California. Died, February, 1985, Gravette, Arkansas. New Yorker work: 1931 -1976. Collection: All Out For the Sack Race! (Random House, 1945).

And according to the database, the first basketball themed cover appeared March 10, 1951. Cover artist: the great Abe Birnbaum:

Abe Birnbaum’s A-Z Entry:

Abe Birnbaum Born, New York City, 1899. Died June 19, 1966, New York City. New Yorker work: 1929 -1974. Mr. Birnbaum began at the New Yorker as a cartoonist, contributing a handful before switching to cover work, of which he produced 141. He also provided spot drawings and illustrations. According to Mr. Birnbaum’s New York Times obit, his work was exhibited at The Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Carnegie Institute.

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MAD‘s Addams & Peter Arno Parodies

Thanks to a Facebook post by the EC Fan-Addict Club, this 1955 MAD Magazine parody of Charles Addams famous Family came to my attention. When I sought out the entire magazine online (MAD No.26 1955), I found this great site that allows us to see every page of back issues. What I found, when paging through, was a Peter Arno parody sitting right next to the Addams parody. Both drawings were executed by MAD artist, Will Elder.

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                                             Arthur Getz’s Memorial Day Cover

I could be wrong about this, but I believe that this Arthur Getz cover, dated May 30, 1958, is the first Memorial Day themed New Yorker cover (I looked through every end of May issue from 1925 to 1958). The cover shows us  The Eternal Light Flagstaff located in Manhattan’s Madison Square Park, along its west side on Broadway.

The screen grab from Google’s street map shows the monument today (the base mostly obscured by a blossom tree. A few of the buildings Mr. Getz painted remain along Broadway.

Dedicated on Veteran’s Day in the mid 1920s, the monument, according to the New York Department of Records includes a:

star-shaped luminaire at the top of the pole [that] is intended to be lit at all times as an eternal tribute to those who paid the supreme sacrifice. 

More about the Eternal Light Flagstaff here, with history and photos

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Arthur Getz’s A-Z Entry:

Arthur Getz Born, Passaic, New Jersey, 1913; died, 1996. NYer work: 1938 -1988. Primarily a cover artist, he had one cartoon published: March 15, 1958. (You might say his career was a mirror image of George Price’s, who was one of the most prolific cartoonists, with over 1200 published, and one cover). According to the official Getz website, he was the most prolific of all New Yorker cover artists, having 213 appear during the fifty years he contributed to the magazine. The official Getz website, containing his biography.

As Summer begins, here’s a cartoon sampler for you from the archives.

The New Yorker, July 23, 1984:

The New Yorker, June 18, 2001:

The New Yorker, September 3, 2001:

The New Yorker, August 21, 2000:

The New Yorker, August 26, 2013:

The New Yorker, June 13, 1983:

Exhibit (In Spain!) Of Interest: Andrea Arroyo and Felipe Galindo

An exhibit of work by this married duo. Andrea Arroyo first contributed to The New Yorker in 1992; Felipe Galindo began contributing to The New Yorker in 2002.

Andrea Arroyo’s website.

Felipe Galindo’s website.

–photos courtesy of Ms. Arroyo and Mr. Galindo

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Now That’s A Cover!

Here’s a beauty from C.E.M. (Charles E. Martin) who contributed 434 cartoons and 187(!) covers in his 49 year run at the magazine. Interesting (to me) that he began his New Yorker career strictly as a cover artist (his first was the issue of August 6, 1938, signed “Chas. Martin”). His first cartoon did not appear until February of 1947.

What I love about the October 22, 1966 cover is the easy to overlook old building at the bottom. Martin is giving us a familiar New York City site: the old hanging in despite the forward march of the new.

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C.E.M.’s A-Z Entry

Charles E. Martin ( C.E.M.) (photo left above from Think Small, a cartoon collection produced by Volkswagon. Photo right, courtesy of Roxie Munro) Born in Chelsie, Mass., 1910, died June 18, 1995, Portland, Maine. New Yorker work: 1938 – 1987.

A New York Times story published online today (“David Sedaris Has Two Apartments For His Two Picassos”) features a number of photos of the writer David Sedaris’s Manhattan home(s). In the last photo, Mr. Sedaris sits in front of a framed Charles Addams drawing hovering over his shoulder. The drawing was published in The New Yorker, August 26, 1972, It features a spouting whale in a swimming pool. A couple stands off to the side. The woman says to the man: “Thar she blows? Is that all you can say?” 

I was surprised when I saw the drawing this morning. Why surprised? Because I did a similar, (though not truly identical) drawing of a (non-spouting) whale in a swimming pool. It was published in The New Yorker August 26, 2013:

It hasn’t happened that often, but when something of mine comes graphically uncomfortably close to a previously published drawing by another cartoonist, I feel a bit sheepish about it. I console myself by thinking that, in decades of drawing thousands of cartoons (many of them involving swimming pools*, and some involving whales, including another drawing with a whale in a swimming pool**) these intersections are bound to happen. In 1972, I was in my first year of college (go Newark State!) and just beginning to pester The New Yorker‘s art editor, James Geraghty, with my earliest stabs at cartoons. It’s possible I saw the Addams swimming pool drawing that August (altho I confess I did not remember it until seeing this Sedaris article). I suppose it only took 41 years for the idea of a whale in a swimming pool to slip out of the haze of memory and into my cartoon consciousness. If that’s what happened.

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*(from The New Yorker, July 3, 2023)

** (from The New Yorker, July 8, 2019)

Peter Kuper’s Spy Vs. Spy Poster For MAD Issue #600

Peter Kuper, who began contributing to The New Yorker in 2011, has posted his Spy Vs. Spy poster appearing in MAD Issue #600 (Mr. Kuper has written and illustrated that feature since 1997).

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Interview Of Interest: Ivan Ehlers.

From Printmag.com, June 12, 2026, “Ivan Ehlers’ Political Cartoons Feel More Important Than Ever.” 

A short interview with Mr. Ehlers who began contributing to The New Yorker in July of 2021. Visit his website here.

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The Tilley Watch Online, June 8-12, 2026

An end of the week listing of New Yorker artists whose work has appeared on newyorker.com features

Daily Cartoon: Jorge Penne, Ngozi Ukazu, Bob Eckstein, Keith Knight, (the duo of) Jason Chatfield & Scott Dooley.

Artist At Large: Millie von Platen’s “Superstitious Behaviors Of Knicks Superfans”

Sketchbook: Zoe Si’s “Power Play: Behind The Music of ‘Heated Rivalry'”

Barry Blitt’s Kvetchbook: “Looksmaxxing For Dummies”