Bill Crawford is yet another cartoonist talent who spent his undergraduate years here at The Ohio State University, where he edited the cartoon magazine Sun Dial.
Original by Bill Crawford, The Bill Crawford Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum (click to enlarge)
He worked for years as a sports cartoonist for the Washington Daily News and the Washington Post, and was the chief editorial cartoonist for the Newspaper Enterprise Association.
Bill Crawford original. From the Bill Crawford Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge)
Some of his most charming and less seen work, however, were illustrations for various books throughout his career- including Milton Berle’s Out of My Trunk and The Zebra Derby by Max Shulman, among over 20 other publications. We absolutely love his free flowing yet stylized line, and the chain-gang image above is particularly marvelous as the prisoners look almost 3-D as they emerge from the featureless background.
Original art by Bill Crawford. From the Bill Crawford Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge)
In 1973, Crawford received the Silver T-Square Award from the National Cartoonist Society, and had been awarded Best Editorial Cartoonist by them 4 times prior to that. He was also an accomplished photographer and sculptor, and designed and sculpted the NCS “No. 1 Award” himself.
Original art by Bill Crawford. From the Bill Crawford Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge)
Crawford retired from cartooning in the 1970s, and passed away in Washington D.C. in 1982. In 1993, the Cartoon Library held a retrospective exhibition of Crawford’s work, samples from which can be seen here.
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