Category: Found in the Collection (page 17 of 53)

Found in the Collection: Jack T. Chick’s “Times Have Changed?”

Yes, this pre-Flintstones single-panel feature was indeed created by that Jack T. Chick. Quite possibly one of the most widely distributed self-publishers, with fleets of believers getting his work into the hands of the general public in subway stations, rest stops, and public gathering places across the nation (and in over 100 languages overseas), Chick is largely known for his Christian evangelical mini-comics known as Chick Tracts. These pamphlets, nondiscriminatory in their discrimination, target theories of evolution, homosexuality, nearly all religious groups, feminism, and even Harry Potter.

But before becoming the prince of propaganda, Chick worked alongside writer P.S. Clayton on the feature Times Have Changed? which ran from November 16, 1953 through 1955. This earlier, softer form of cultural criticism revolved around the intertwined lives of humans and dinosaurs (perhaps some foreshadowing here of later themes), and how little our ways have changed over time.

P.S. Clayton and Jack T. Chick’s “Times Have Changed?”, from The San Francisco Academy of Comic Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum

P.S. Clayton and Jack T. Chick's "Times Have Changed?" From the San Francisco Academy of Comic Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum

P.S. Clayton and Jack T. Chick’s “Times Have Changed?” From the San Francisco Academy of Comic Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum

P.S. Clayton and Jack T. Chick's "Times Have Changed?" From the San Francisco Academy of Comic Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum

P.S. Clayton and Jack T. Chick’s “Times Have Changed?” From the San Francisco Academy of Comic Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum

P.S. Clayton and Jack T. Chick's "Times Have Changed?" From the San Francisco Academy of Comic Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum

P.S. Clayton and Jack T. Chick’s “Times Have Changed?” From the San Francisco Academy of Comic Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum

Despite the over 700 million published copies of his evangelical tracts, Jack T. Chick himself has managed to remain reclusive, giving few to no interviews since the 1970s. If you know more about Chick’s other early work, please let us know!

Found in the Collection: Jeff Keate!

Beyond a tremendous amount of art auction websites hocking his originals (showing the sheer magnitude of gag work that he did in his day), there isn’t a ton of information out there about Canadian-born cartoonist Jeff Keate. He churned out his feature “Time Out!” of sports-related gag cartoons for the Publishers Syndicate for  nearly ten years, had work in Colliers, The Saturday Evening Post, Cracked, Humorama and others, and produced a hard to find newspaper strip called Rufus for just over a year. Keate also illustrated Charles D. Rice’s instructional book on cartooning Squeans, Plewds and Briffits, or How to be a Cartoonist in 1954.

Below, the rough for a gag cartoon that we stumbled upon in our collection that made our morning here at the Cartoon Library:

"Who made this pencil mark on my memo pad?", original cartoon rough by Jeff Keate. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge)

“Who made this pencil mark on my memo pad?”, original cartoon rough by Jeff Keate. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge)

Ah, the beauty of the gag cartoon. Sometimes that’s all it takes! In an article about Keate from the August 19th, 1950 issue of Editor & Publisher magazine, he described his desire to intentionally make cartoons and comics with no other meaning or purpose than a laugh: “I really think there’s a crying need for humor. My page won’t carry any message.”

”I’m sure it’s positively indecent... if we could just figure it out.” original gag cartoon by Jeff Keate. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge)

“I’m sure it’s positively indecent… if we could just figure it out.” original gag cartoon by Jeff Keate. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge)

Keate was raised in British Columbia, and attended college first in Grand Rapids, MI, followed by the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, class of 1936. He relocated to NYC in 1945, which is where his cartooning career really took off–averaging 20 magazine cartoons per week.

Original Jeff Keate gag cartoon for the Saturday Evening Post. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon LIbrary & Museum (click to enlarge)

Original Jeff Keate gag cartoon for the Saturday Evening Post. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon LIbrary & Museum (click to enlarge)

In his Editor & Publisher interview, Keate mentions that his inspiration for being a cartoonist came from his father’s own unfulfilled dreams to draw comics, and support of his sons pursuit. A lumber industry man, the elder Keate would hang frames around the scribbles that young Jeff drew on the walls of their home as a kid rather than punish him.

”We don’t just titter and say ’Well, accidents will happen’ here, Purvis!” original gag cartoon for the Saturday Evening Post. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge).

“We don’t just titter and say ‘Well, accidents will happen’ here, Purvis!” original gag cartoon for the Saturday Evening Post. From the International Museum of Cartoon Art Collection, The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (click to enlarge).

If you have more biographical information on Jeff Keate, we’d love for you to share!

Speaking of great Canadian cartoonists, we are thrilled to be attending the Toronto Comics & Art Festival (TCAF) this weekend to promote the Cartoon Library and take donations for the Dylan Williams Collection- be sure to say hello!

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