Family & Social Life

Original artwork, of page 6, for the book, Two Little Miners, written by Margaret Wise Brown with illustrations by Richard Scarry, and published by Simon & Schuster in New York, New York, in 1949. Two Little Miners is part of the Little Golden Books Civic Series. These books introduced young children to the everyday working man, fundamental occupations and essential public service jobs such as policeman, fireman and postman.

Scarry's physical depiction of the two miners and some of the elements depicted in the home scenes are reminiscent of immigrants from southern Europe. According to the online resource, eWV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia, “individuals of Italian extraction constitute one of the most important ethnic groups in West Virginia’s population. Most of these Italian Americans date their connection with the state to ancestors who were recruited during the early years of the 20th century to serve the labor needs of West Virginia’s rapidly developing industrial economy. With more than 17,000 Italian immigrants in the state by 1910, they made up 30 percent of West Virginia’s foreign-born population.”

“The great majority of Italian immigrants were employed in the coal industry as pick-and-shovel miners. West Virginia mines were among the most mechanized in this country, but miners born in America or northern Europe generally operated the new machines and usually earned better money, while their counterparts from less favored regions did the handwork.”

Better known for his animal characters and the Busytown series, Richard Scarry (1919-1994) was one of the most prolific 20th-century authors and illustrators of children’s books. He attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston until he was drafted into the army during World War II. After the war, Scarry worked as a freelance artist and contracted with Simon & Schuster to work on the Little Golden Book series. His first illustrations appeared in Two Little Miners, a 1949 story written by Margaret Wise Brown. Scarry’s most popular Little Golden Book was Best Word Book Ever, published in 1963. He published more than 500 children’s books, most depicting animals who took on human characteristics.

Various artists. side 1: Slow Drag [part 1]; side 2: Slow Drag [part 2] (Clef 103), from the album, Norman Granz" Jazz At the Philharmonic, Vol. 6 (Clef 100).
78 rpm.

The cover art for this album was by David Stone Martin (born David Livingstone Martin, 1913-1992). Martin was an American artist best known for his illustrations on jazz album covers for labels including Mercury, Asch, Clef, Disc, and Dial. Many of his commissions were from Martin’s longtime friend, American jazz record producer and concert promoter Norman Granz (1918-2001).

This original artwork was used for the book Bugs Bunny by Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc., with illustrations adapted by Tom McKimson and Al Dempster. Published by Simon and Schuster in New York, New York, in 1949, pg. 10-11

Many of the stories published in the early years of Little Golden Books included classics such as Mother Goose, fables and fairy tales. After the war, a new era of prosperity emerged in America. This optimism coupled with the baby boom encouraged Americans to create an idealized world, where family and home were fundamental attributes and life was full of opportunities. The introduction of TV into the home had great impact on American society and culture, and its impact on Little Golden Books was no exception.

In the 19th century, consumer products such as toys, books and games were already used as a tie into historical events, sports and famous people, and this phenomenon was expanded with the introduction of radio, movies and television. These new means of communication generated a whole new cast of characters and the impact on Golden Books was significant. A license with Walt Disney granted Little Golden Books the right to publish stories about some of Disney’s earliest creations, including favorites such as Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo and Sleeping Beauty. Moreover, the books began to feature television personalities like Howdy Doody, Roy Rogers and Captain Kangaroo, as well as popular Saturday morning cartoon characters like Woody Woodpecker, Bugs Bunny and Huckleberry Hound. These new agreements with Warner Brothers and Hanna-Barbera significantly reduced the development of original stories as the books featured stories taken from children’s television shows. This opened the flood gates to create consumer products associated with popular movie and cartoon personalities. This practice continues today and proves to be a very lucrative endeavor.

Born in 1911 in Atlantic City New Jersey, Al Dempster moved to California and studied at the Art Center school in LA. He joined the staff of Disney in 1939 as a layout trainee and shortly after was promoted to the Background department. His early works included Fantasia and Dumbo. He left Disney in 1945 but returned to Disney studio by 1952 where he worked on such renowned movies as Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty, Santa's Toy Shoppe, Jungle Book and the Rescuers and Winnie the Pooh. He worked on more than a dozen Disney golden books. He died in 2001 and posthumously received the coveted Disney Legends Award in 2006 for his outstanding achievements and contribution to the Disney legacy.

Tom Mckimson (1907-1998) was best known for his work as an animator at Warner Bros. Studio. He joined Disney in 1928 but left in 1932 and moved over to work with Warner Bros., where he was credited with the original design for Tweety Bird. While working with Warner Bros. he also illustrated comic books for Dell Comics, including Bugs Bunny and Road Runner. He left Warner Bros. in 1947 and became the Art Director for Western Publishing, the original publishing company for Golden Books.

Original artwork, of page 19, for the book Tootle, written by Gertrude Crampton with illustrations by Tibor Gergely, published by Golden Press in New York, New York, in 1945.

Born in Budapest, Hungary into a middle-class Jewish family, Tibor Gergely (1900-1978) was captivated by art and culture at a young age. Known as a graphic illustrator and a caricature artist, Gergely’s early works documented Jewish life before the rise of Hitler. By 1939 the political situation in Europe was dire, and Gergely and his wife immigrated to America. They settled in New York and his love affair with the city never waned. He was enchanted with his new life in a postwar New York that included skyscrapers, rushing traffic and the excitement of life in the big city.

By 1940 Gergely was working for the American Artists and Writers Guild and became a popular illustrator for Little Golden Books, providing drawings for more than seventy books, including illustrations for The Taxi that Hurried, Make Way for the Thruway, Five Little Firemen and Tootle. His portrayals of America's rapidly expanding transportation systems and the recognition of public servants foretold the dramatic social and cultural events that would impact American society in the 1950s.

Original artwork, of page 14, for the book Johnny's Machines, written by Helen Palmer with illustrations by Cornelius De Witt, and published by Simon & Schuster in New York, New York, in 1949.

Cornelius De Witt (1905-1956) was born in Germany but spent most of his life in and around New York. De Witt worked successfully in several mediums including printmaking, painting and illustration. De Witt‘s realistic style of drawing created distinctly visual images and in turn children found the books easy to read and comprehend. He was best known for his Golden book on the human body.

side 1: Juanita Hall with South Pacific Orchestra. Bali Ha'i: side 2: Mary Martin with South Pacific Orchestra. I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair (Columbia 4562-M), from the album, South Pacific (Columbia MM-850).
78 rpm.

This recording is of the Original Broadway cast for the 1949 musicalSouth Pacific, composed by Richard Rogers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. South Pacific opened at the Majestic Theatre on April 7, 1949, running for 1,925 performances. It received ten Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Score, Best Libretto, including awards in all four acting categories for Mary Martin, Ezio Pinza, Juanita Hall, and Myron McCormick. In 1950, the musical won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Come Play House written by Edith Osswald with illustrations by Eloise Wilkin. This book was published by Simon and Schuster in New York, New York, in 1948.

A Graduate of the Rochester Institute of Technology, Eloise Wilkin (1904-1987) studied illustration. In her early years she worked as a freelance artist in New York City, illustrating schoolbooks for children learning to read, paper dolls and puzzles. She was married and raising a family in upstate New York when she started working from home creating illustrations for Little Golden Books in 1946. A prolific illustrator, Wilkin's work is easily identifiable for her adorable images of children with round faces and rosy pink cheeks. It is reported that she modeled her characters on her own family members and friends. Her beautifully detailed settings and backgrounds demonstrate her meticulous research and attention to detail. Her depiction of the idyllic home and family life reflected the post war optimism of the 1950s. She worked for Little Golden Books until 1984 and continued to design dolls for Vogue and Madame Alexander.

A stalwart Catholic, Wilkins was much attuned to the awakening social conscious of the 1960s. In 1964, the National Urban League, headed up by Whitney Young, brought attention to what he considered a fundamental omission on the part of the juvenile publishing world who he accused of racial stereotyping. Indeed, there were no children of color depicted in this vast category of books, but Eleanor Wilkin was one of the first illustrators to include an integrated classroom in We Like Kindergarten.

Pete Daily's Dixieland Band. side 1: Sensation; side 2: Original Dixieland One-Step (Capitol 15432), from the album, Pete Daily's Dixieland Band (Capitol CC-183).
78 rpm.

This album cover was painted by American artist William George (b. 1930). George is an American illustrator and painter who studied under Norman Rockwell. George’s work has been featured on album covers, paperback crime and western covers, and magazine covers.

Original artwork, of page 23, for the book The Taxi that Hurried, written by Lucy Sprague Mitchell, Irma Simonton Black and Jessie Stanton with illustrations by Tibor Gergely, and published by Golden Press in New York, New York, in 1946.

Born in Budapest, Hungary into a middle-class Jewish family, Tibor Gergely (1900-1978) was captivated by art and culture at a young age. Known as a graphic illustrator and a caricature artist, Gergely’s early works documented Jewish life before the rise of Hitler. By 1939 the political situation in Europe was dire, and Gergely and his wife immigrated to America. They settled in New York and his love affair with the city never waned. He was enchanted with his new life in a postwar New York that included skyscrapers, rushing traffic and the excitement of life in the big city.

A member of the American Artists and Writers Guild, Gergely became a prominent illustrator for Little Golden Books, providing drawings for more than seventy books, including Tootle, Five Little Firemen, and Scuffy the Tugboat. His illustrations for The Taxi that Hurried and Make Way for the Thruway portray the celebrated automobile and the expanding highway system, both destined to bring dramatic social and cultural changes to American life.

Original artwork, of page 10, for the book Johnny's Machines, written by Helen Palmer with illustrations by Cornelius De Witt, and published by Simon & Schuster in New York, New York, in 1949.

Cornelius De Witt (1905-1956) was born in Germany but spent most of his life in and around New York. De Witt worked successfully in several mediums including printmaking, painting and illustration. De Witt‘s realistic style of drawing created distinctly visual images and in turn children found the books easy to read and comprehend. He was best known for his Golden book on the human body.

Original artwork, of page 14, for the book, Two Little Miners, written by Margaret Wise Brown with illustrations by Richard Scarry, and published by Simon & Schuster in New York, New York, in 1949. Two Little Miners is part of the Little Golden Books Civic Series. These books introduced young children to the everyday working man, fundamental occupations and essential public service jobs such as policeman, fireman and postman.

Scarry's physical depiction of the two miners and some of the elements depicted in the home scenes are reminiscent of immigrants from southern Europe. According to the online resource, eWV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia, “individuals of Italian extraction constitute one of the most important ethnic groups in West Virginia’s population. Most of these Italian Americans date their connection with the state to ancestors who were recruited during the early years of the 20th century to serve the labor needs of West Virginia’s rapidly developing industrial economy. With more than 17,000 Italian immigrants in the state by 1910, they made up 30 percent of West Virginia’s foreign-born population.”

“The great majority of Italian immigrants were employed in the coal industry as pick-and-shovel miners. West Virginia mines were among the most mechanized in this country, but miners born in America or northern Europe generally operated the new machines and usually earned better money, while their counterparts from less favored regions did the handwork.”

Better known for his animal characters and the Busytown series, Richard Scarry (1919-1994) was one of the most prolific 20th-century authors and illustrators of children’s books. He attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston until he was drafted into the army during World War II. After the war, Scarry worked as a freelance artist and contracted with Simon & Schuster to work on the Little Golden Book series. His first illustrations appeared in Two Little Miners, a 1949 story written by Margaret Wise Brown. Scarry’s most popular Little Golden Book was Best Word Book Ever, published in 1963. He published more than 500 children’s books, most depicting animals who took on human characteristics.

Original artwork, of page 23, for the book Johnny's Machines, written by Helen Palmer with illustrations by Cornelius De Witt, and published by Simon & Schuster in New York, New York, in 1949.

Cornelius De Witt (1905-1956) was born in Germany but spent most of his life in and around New York. De Witt worked successfully in several mediums including printmaking, painting and illustration. De Witt‘s realistic style of drawing created distinctly visual images and in turn children found the books easy to read and comprehend. He was best known for his Golden book on the human body.