Purchased, 2007 September
[identification of item], John Updike Ink Drawing of Dog With Caption "A Dog Long After Thurber," SPEC.RARE.MMS.0317, Rare Books and Manuscripts Library, Ohio State University
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Processed by: Ashleigh Minor, 2019 February; finding aid written by: Ashleigh Minor, 2019 February.
John Updike (1932-2009) was an American author who initially aspired to be a cartoonist when he was growing up. As a teenager, he solicited and collected signed copies of cartoons by prominent cartoon artists, including a dog by James Thurber. In 1954, Updike spent a year studying at the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art at the University of Oxford, but ultimately decided to pursue a career in writing over illustration. His interest in cartooning remained with him throughout his life, however, and is reflected in some of his fictional characters who are, or want to be, cartoonists. As a writer, Updike published over twenty novels, and an array of short story and poetry collections. He was the recipient of many awards throughout his career as an author, including two Pulitzer Prizes for Fiction.
The John Updike Ink Drawing of Dog With Caption "A Dog Long After Thurber" includes one signed cartoon drawing of a dog by John Updike, with the caption below "A Dog Long After Thurber." The 5.5 inch by 8.5 inch drawing on bond paper was done in honor of James Thurber for a fundraising event to benefit the Thurber House in Columbus, Ohio, circa 1990.