J.C. Leyendecker Sports Numbers

As promised, today I'm doing a series of J.C. Leyendecker's sports themed work.

We start the show with a drop dead handsome and well built rower.

 

In the first of three football pieces in today's set,

we see J.C. Leyendecker's take on a Navy man.

 

Lifeguard

The females seem to be pretending to drown to get the lifeguard's attention,

but he doesn't seem to be having any of it.

 

Racer

Auto racing had become a big thing by the time Leyendecker did this Collier's cover.

 

1912

All I know about this one is the year, 1912, and the fact that we have a football player.

 

Play ball

Everyone looks serious in this baseball scene.

 

Story

There has to be a story here, but I don't know what it might be.

 

Tackle

This is The Tackle from 1909.  If you think football is brutal today,

it was even worse in the early 20th Century.

 

Rowers

These rowers look like they are a part of some sort of Roman procession.

I expect Liz Taylor to roll out of a carpet any moment.

 

Although golf features prominently in our last J.C. Leyendecker piece of the set, this is actually from and Arrow Collar and Shirt ad.  As is not unusual in Mr. Leyendecker's work, the men are engaged with each other and looking entirely past the female, who has to settle for the collie.

 

Thanksgiving with J.C. Leyendecker

My recent series on the work of J.C. Leyendecker produced a lot of interest, so I've decided

 to use some of his iconic Thanksgiving magazine covers for today's set.  Mr. L. had a virtual

 lock on the holiday covers of The Saturday Evening post for decades, and most of today's images 

are from that publication, although that did eventually change as you will see.  We start with 

1907 and a young Pilgrim about to shoot a strutting tom turkey.

 

1914

The 1914 Thanksgiving cover for the Post showed a wholesome

 looking young man coming home to Mother for the holiday.

The dog also seems to enjoy the homecoming.

 

1917

American soldiers had been in Europe barely a month when this 1917 cover ran.

The original is an oil on canvas work that recently sold at auction for big bucks.

 

 

1918

World War I had already ended by the time the 1918 cover ran,

but the editors used it because virtually all the troops were still "over there."

 

1921

And in case anyone didn't know that Leyendecker had a funny (and dark) side, 

look at this interestingly gruesome number from 1921.

 

1923

I used this version of the 1923 cover with the Post's overlays 

removed because it is the clearest copy I could find on line.

It's humorous, but has some telling historical elements.

At least the greedy Pilgrim isn't toting a gun.

 

1924 - Study and Completed

Above is Leyendecker's study for his 1924 Thanksgiving cover for the Saturday evening post.  

In the final version below, the gun is tucked away, and a bible is in its former spot.

 

1927

For 1927 Leyendecker beautifully depicted a napping older gentleman.

 

1928

By 1928 football had become part of the Thanksgiving tradition, and J.C. Leyendecker did a 

piece that combined the old and new quite well.  This is one of my personal favorites, 

and I'm adding a study for the Pilgrim below:

 

1939

I included this one for two reasons.  First, it is a very well done piece.  I initially thought I had found a rare Leyendecker work that didn't include men or boys, but there they are in the background.  Second, this is the last Saturday Evening Post Thanksgiving cover by Leyendecker I could find.  As you will see in the next panel, major career changes were on the horizon.