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Rob Stolzer

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Posts posted by Rob Stolzer

    [THREAD CLOSED - BACK WITH NEW THREAD END OF WEEK] WWII Work of Comic and Newspaper Strip Artists

    in Golden/Silver/Bronze Age Only

    Posted

    On 4/13/2024 at 2:10 PM, sfcityduck said:

    Rob, my apologies for the misreading knowing Bill Mauldin. One thing though: It sure doesn't make your collection, your knowledge, or your website any bit less impressive. If it was not for your blog on the Sicily Sketch Books - https://billmauldinart.com/ - I wouldn't have known their significance at all.

    And for those, like me, who remember Ralph Bakshi (the original LOTR animated film, American Pop, Wizards, etc.) fondly, check out another Rob's blogs (he has several) here: https://inkslingers.ink/2024/04/05/ralph-bakshi-construction-of-an-ink-slinger/  He may just have inspired me to seek out some new art by Ralph.

    No worries at all.  It's a lot of info to go through.  And since you mentioned Ralph, I should mention that he is a HUGE fan of Bill Mauldin's work.  In fact, Ralph worked with Mauldin to try and get a Willie and Joe animation special in the 1970s, but they could not get the TV studios interested.  Still, Ralph loved working with Mauldin. 

    I'll add one more Mauldin story.  Some of you might recall Lew Sayre Schwartz, one of Bob Kane's many, many Batman ghosts.  Lew was an art collector as well and he loved to chat.  In the 1940s, not long after Mauldin returned home from the Mediterranean Theater, he attended a National Cartoonists' Society event in NYC.  Mauldin was able to bring his Willy Jeep home with him from the war, and he gave Lew a ride to the function.  But Mauldin got so blasted at the event, he wound up driving down one of the one-way streets in NYC the wrong way.  If you've read the wonderful Todd DePastino biography about Mauldin, you'll know that he was a tea-tottaler before the war, but what he saw in Italy changed him forever.  He apparently felt a lot of guilt for having the success he did while so many people he knew were killed in battle. 

    Finally, before I drone on too long, if you're interested in this kind of stuff, please consider checking out my Gregor Duncan website.  Duncan was a well-known illustrator and even had stories in the first 10 issues of Whiz Comics before heading out to war.  He got to know Mauldin at the Stars & Stripes office, but was sadly killed in action just days later.  Duncan's comics work was not all that good, but it was an industry in its infancy and a way to put food on the table during the Depression  His illustration work was far better, but his life was fascinating.  He and his wife were in the club Cafe Society when Billie Holiday introduced "Strange Fruit".  Now that's something.

    [THREAD CLOSED - BACK WITH NEW THREAD END OF WEEK] WWII Work of Comic and Newspaper Strip Artists

    in Golden/Silver/Bronze Age Only

    Posted

    On 4/12/2024 at 10:27 AM, sfcityduck said:

    For Bedrock and those interested in the Mauldin Silicily Sketch Book, there's some additional detail you should know about the 45th Infantry Division:

    • The 45th was composed primarily of National Guard units from Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado (but also included soldiers from other states);
    • It was "federalized" (converted to an Army division) from state control on 16 Sept. 1940 (and Bill Mauldin joined it a few days earlier knowing that was happening);
    • For the invasion of Sicily, its first European theater engagement, it was assigned to II Corps under the command of Gen. Omar Bradley;
    • It stormed the beaches of Sicily and engaged in hard fighting as part of the successful effort to take Sicily;
    • The Italian government actually surrendered on 3 Sept. 1943 while the 45th Division was on Sicily - but German forces had occupied Italy and the war against Italy became a war to liberate Italy;
    • The 45th then stormed the beaches of mainland Italy, and proceeded to fight across Italy engaging in storied battles at Salerno, Monte Casino, Anzio, and ultimately liberated Rome and were the first allied troops to reach the Vatican;
    • The 45th was then re-assigned to invade Southern France and stormed the beaches at St. Maxime; 
    • The 45th then fought its way up through Northern France into Alsace, and then Germany. It took Homburg, crossed the Rhine, captured Nuremberg, and crossed the Danube;
    • The 45th then liberated Dachau concentration camp. It is honored in the U.S. Holocaust museum as a liberating unit;
    • It then captured Munich where it stayed until the surrender of Germany;
    • All in all, the 45th Division fought in 511 days of combat;
    • During the war it captured over 124,000 enemy soldiers; and
    • Soldiers of the 45th received 9 Medals of Honor, 61 Distinguished Service Crosses, 3 Distinguished Service Medals, 1,848 Silver Star Medals, 38 Legion of Merit medals, 59 Soldier's Medals, 5,744 Bronze Star Medals, and 52 Air Medals.  

    So, yeah, those soldier signatures are cool. Think about what those guys saw.

    The reason why Mauldin's WWII originals are so scarce is because he donated the bulk of them to the 45th Division Museum in Oklahoma City.

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    [THREAD CLOSED - BACK WITH NEW THREAD END OF WEEK] WWII Work of Comic and Newspaper Strip Artists

    in Golden/Silver/Bronze Age Only

    Posted

    Many thanks for the attribution and link to my website.  One clarification: I did not know Mauldin, though I wish I did.  I do think he's one of the most important wartime cartoonists ever to put pen to paper.  He influenced a bunch of the EC guys and I'm sure influenced M*A*S*H as well.

    One final note: I'm lucky enough to own that Bloody Ridge original, which is an incredible piece in context to what Mauldin wrote about it.

     

    Mauldin-Bill-Bloody-Ridge-Sicily-1943.jpg

    Scanning/Editing Advice for Stitching Images

    in Original Comic Art

    Posted

    On 9/19/2022 at 10:02 PM, timguerrero said:

    I use photoshop but when I stitch the images together the lines don't align properly if I zoom in on the image and I can just tell where I pasted the images together. It is really frustrating! Any help would be highly appreciated.

    I don't use the Photomerge function in Photoshop, but use both Auto-Align-Layers and Auto-Blend-Layers (under Edit in the top menu) frequently.  If you are scanning a large Sunday page and have six pieces to join, those two functions make it so much easier.  Plus, the Auto-Blend function removes the discoloration where pieces are joined.

    New Inkslingers Blog Post

    in Original Comic Art

    Posted

    For anyone interested in reading about odd, eccentric and sometimes forgotten cartoonists and illustrators, you might like to check out my website at inkslingers.ink

    The latest blog post is about the cartoonist Mal Eaton and his often wonderful Peter Piltdown Sunday page.  You can see that post here:

    Mal Eaton's Scratchy Big Feet

    I've pictured a bunch of nice Eaton artwork from my collection in the post.

    Thanks and take care.

    Best,

    Rob

    Help Identifying an ALEX NINO Page

    in Original Comic Art

    Posted

    Hi All,

    I've recently picked up the pages below from Anthony Snyder.  Anthony had them listed on his site as a DPS, but I have my doubts about that, as the action on the two pages doesn't appear to connect.  Anthony also did not know where the pieces were published and I'm hoping that one of you eagle-eyed Nino fans might now something about the page(s).

    Thanks in advance!

    Best,

    Rob

     

    Nino-Syder.jpg

    Help Identifying a Western Comic Strip

    in Original Comic Art

    Posted

    So I picked up a few odds and ends in one lot recently, including this old, possibly unpublished western comic strip.  This came with three daily strip fragments by Bob Oksner, so it's possible that it's by him.  A couple of the panels look to be swipes, possibly from EC Comics.  The second panel sure has a Williamson and/or Wood vibe to it.  Does anyone have a clue what this might be?

    Thanks.

    Best,

    Rob Stolzer

     

     

    Western-Daily-Unknown.jpg

    Rob's Next Eclectic Original Art eList

    in Original Comic Art Marketplace

    Posted

    Hi All,

    I'll be issuing my next eList of original cartoon artwork (and two rare books) in the next week or so.  If you would like to receive the list email, which goes out to my private mailing list first, please drop me a line at: rob@robstolzer.com.  There will be approximately 15 items on the list, going back to the turn of the last century.

    Thanks.

    Best,

    Rob

    Rob's Eclectic Comic Art for Sale!

    in Original Comic Art Marketplace

    Posted

    Hi All,

    I put 19 pieces up for sale in my CAF sale gallery on Monday evening.  There are plenty of nice items remaining, if you'd care to take a look: Rob's CAF Sales Gallery

    Folks on my mailing list get advanced notice of my sales, so if you'd like to be added to the mailing list for future sales, drop me a line at rob@robstolzer.com.  I'm likely done with sales lists for the year, and run no more than one a month, though they're not that regular.

    Thanks.

    Best,

    Rob

    eList of Original Comic Strip and Cartoon Art - Wilson McCoy + Gottfredson +

    in Original Comic Art Marketplace

    Posted

    Hi All,

    My next eList of original comic strip and cartoon art will be emailed tomorrow.  There are 11 items on the list, including a 1947 Phantom daily, a 1947 Mickey Mouse daily, and a Bill Mauldin cover to one of his books.  If you would like to receive this eList with the rest of my mailing list, please drop me a line at rob@robstolzer.com.  I send the list out at a specific time, to give everyone a shot at the artwork, no matter what time-zone you live in.

    Thanks.

    Best,

    Rob

    Original WWII Pin-Up Girls Panel by RUSSELL PATTERSON

    in Original Comic Art Marketplace

    Posted

    Hi All,

    I have a sweet WWII Pin-Up Girls panel by the great Russell Patterson currently up on eBay:

    Russell Patterson 1944 PIN-UP GIRLS

    Also, for those of you interested in older cartoon-illustration work, I have an early caricature by New Yorker great, Gluyas Williams, also listed on eBay.  The piece is from 1919:

    GLUYAS WILLIAMS 1919 Caricature

    Thanks for checking them out.

    Best,

    Rob

    20% OFF Rob's Eclectic Art CAF Sales Gallery

    in Original Comic Art Marketplace

    Posted

    Hi Everyone,

    For one week only, through next Friday, 15 December, I am offering any item in my Sales Gallery at 20% off of the listed price.  So if there are any pieces that you've been mulling over, now is the time to mull a little more!  I will be glad to hold pieces for a short time, but can only hold pieces at the discounted price if you contact me about them this week.  The gallery can be found at:

    Rob's CAF Sales Gallery - 20% OFF!

    I will be back with new art listings in the New Year, so want to take this opportunity to wish all of you a healthy and happy holiday season.  Many thanks and take care.

    Best,
    Rob