Just a short post this time around. I've been in England this week and have discovered that our man Bolles has been misleading us about the appearance of women on the other side of the pond. Consider the evidence on your left. Our cover girl to this 1935 issue of Spicy Stories has nothing in common with the Geordie's I've spied strolling the river walk, as attractive as they are. But perhaps I simply haven't looked hard enough, and so I will update you if my research yields any new insights. As some of you know Bolles did an entire series of covers on girls of the world and so my work must continue, undaunted.
12 comments:
A shapely lass indeed. Jack, Can you tell us how many covers Enoch did for Film Fun in 1922? I am trying to fill in the blanks. Thanks
Hi Gary,
I know of only two, the October and December issues. The October cover is as far as I know the first Bolles Film Fun cover, though I hope there are earier yet.
Jack
How elegant! Thanks for the scans of these Spicy Stories. They sure are hard to find!! BTW, Jack do you know if the Oct '22 Film Fun cover is a Bolles (the one of the flapper with wings sitting on top of a film projector)?
Oh duh! I just re-read the previous posts! I was wondering because there's a beautiful Life magazine cover of a flapper girl with similar butterfly wings done by JC Leyendecker a few years later. It sure looks like he got his idea from EB.
Hi Alan,
I'll have to check that out. I've found one Leyendecker trolley card ad that has the exact same composition as a Bolles but I don't know which was done first.
The Leyendecker Life cover you refer to is one of my faves, so I checked it out. A nice image of the Leyendecker is available here:
http://www.johncoulthart.com/feuilleton/2009/02/27/butterfly-women/
The Film Fun is indeed a Bolles:
http://www.filmfun.info/images/1922/1922-10.jpg
I've seen a good number of pulp and magazine covers with a similar motif to the Leyendecker from the likes of Greiner, Finlay, and others, but I don't really see that the Film Fun cover quite follows the Leyendecker (absolutely classic) as far as symmetry or color... Great work here, Jack, as always!
Beau
Wow! Thanks Darwination for that website. Its very cool!! Esp the Butterfly Women. The talent of teh golden era illustrators continues to amaze!
Wow Beau,
I've checked out the Film Fun mag site before but missed the great scan of the 10/22, which is the best I've ever seen of that cover. What amazes me is how that image, which to my knowledge is Bolles' first Film Fun cover, is so complete. Bolles hit the ground running with FF and didn't look back. The same was true for his some of his earliest Judge covers. Although there were a few misses his style was already very much in evidence.
Yes, that is a great scan of the OCT. 1922 FILM FUN, a issue I've seen on ebay only once in the last 3 years. For one reason or another, some issues or next to impossible to find. Jack, This might be a subject worth exploring in one of your postings. What do you feel are 4 or 6 issues that you seldom see? Right now I am looking for the Nov. and Dec. 1926 issues.
Hi Gary,
If it makes you feel any better there are a lot of early FF's I still need, and am unlikely to ever get considering prices these days. I like your idea about hard to find issues and I'll start working on it.
I just came across a 1922 Issue of Film Fun July issue, anyone know what it is worth? Thanks
Soft core fetishism seemed to be ok in the US in the 20s and 30s. French and German artists took it much further, but then Paris and Berlin were the premier 'Sin Cities' and as as a famous song writer said at the time... 'Anything Goes.'
Alan
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