The Saturday Evening Post » 4th of July

Classic Cover: The Craziest 4th of July

Diana Denny — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 14:00:00 +0000

The craziest 4th of July? Why, that had to be 1914 in Tinkham’s Corners. I really feel for the pig.

The kids will have fun with this one! We have a magnifying glass below to view this unique cover from The Country Gentleman magazine in 1914, a sister publication of The Saturday Evening Post‘s for many years.

"4th of July Blaze at Tinkham’s Corners" Country Gentleman by Harrison Cady July 4, 1914

Harrison Cady was a comic strip artist who had an extremely long career. For more than 70 years he illustrated for The Country Gentleman, the Post, and Ladies Home Journal, among other magazines.

Cady created several covers with wacky doings in minute detail. Where’s Waldo, indeed! In this one, a large box of fireworks (just below the center of the scene) has exploded in Tinkham’s Corners. Horses are spooked, people are fleeing, and guns are going off accidentally in the midst of the mayhem. Just below and to the left of the exploding box is a gentleman whose rifle is discharging, taking out a streetlight. (Back then, some people fired rifles into the air to make a celebratory noise, which is why some of these lunatics are running around with them.) Up and to the left of him is a little rapscallion setting off the town’s Revolutionary War cannon. There are rotten kids in Tinkham’s Corners.

View the larger version of the cover below and see if you can find the following:

1) The pig with the firecrackers tied to its tail;
2) The no-good kids vandalizing the sign: “To Our Brave Soldiers and Sailors” (changing it to read ”Scolders and Failures”) (I told you there were rotten kids in Tinkham’s Corners);
3) The marching band;
4) The cat with it’s hackles up (hint: a rooftop);
5) The man getting squashed by a runaway horse and carriage;
6) The woman in the polka dot dress landing on her behind;
7) The man with a basket of eggs that are getting smashed;
8) The “Hop Sing Laundry”;
9) The most remarkable citizen of Tinkham’s Corners—the napping man!

We hope you have a fun, safe, and exciting 4th of July—just not this exciting!

Classic Cover: The Craziest 4th of July The Saturday Evening Post

The Spirit of the Fifth of July

Jeff Nilsson — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 14:00:13 +0000

On the day after the nation’s birthday, when the smoke from the fireworks has cleared, and we’ve cleaned up after guests, America will return to its job of building a nation. Rarely has that job seemed harder. National security, two wars, social unrest, and an economy that can’t seem to find its feet—Americans are supposed to be optimistic, but the current challenges would discourage anyone.

Ben Franklin was an optimist, but he never lost his ability to judge the odds. He knew that establishing the government was just the beginning of much work, and that the outcome was never certain. He knew the risks of rebellion; if England triumphed, he would die disgraced at the end of a rope.

He never assumed that the struggle for independence and security would end.

So, on a Fourth of July as troubled as any we’ve faced, we might appreciate Ben Franklin’s assessment of America beyond his own days. Writing to George Washington from Paris, in 1780, he said: “I must soon quit the Scene, but you may live to see our Country flourish, as it will amazingly and rapidly after the War is over. Like a Field of young Indian Corn, which long Fair weather and Sunshine has enfeebled and discolored, and which in that weak State, by a Thunder Gust, of violent Wind, Hail, and Rain, seem’d to be threaten’d with absolute Destruction; yet the Storm being past, it recovers fresh Verdure, shoots up with double Vigour, and delights the Eye, not of its Owner only, but of every observing Traveller.”

The Spirit of the Fifth of July The Saturday Evening Post

Classic Covers: The Fourth of July Throughout the Decades

Diana Denny — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 13:00:24 +0000

Artist Guernsey Moore did many turn-of-century covers (at the turn of the 20th century, not the 21st), and the June 30, 1900, issue appears to be our first Fourth of July cover. Using colonials as representative of the Fourth was popular before the days of fancy fireworks and Fourth of July parades, although firecrackers showed up early. The July 4, 1903, cover shows a man setting off firecrackers and milady, in long skirt, is less than thrilled with the noise (covering her ears was a hint). Hmmm, this theme seems familiar: fast forward to the roaring 20s and J.C. Leyendecker’s cover depicting a young boy setting off a cap gun to make patriotic noises and a little girl covering her ears. Apparently, females do not care for loud noises.

The July 1, 1939, cover by artist Arthur H. Fisher features a dramatic eagle against the stars and bars, complete with a don’t-mess-with-me glare. Shades of impending war? The next decade saw a delightful 1945 John Falter cover depicting a Fourth of July parade in Perkasie, Pennsylvania, complete with patriotic bunting, brass bands, and a crowd having fun. Alas, it wasn’t the real thing that year, as the townspeople didn’t have time for parades. “They’re busy writing letters to the girls and boys in service,” said the editors, who speculated that many a hometown soldier would enjoy the vicarious thrill of receiving the cover in their mail.

Another delightful celebration is shown on the July 4, 1953, cover by artist Ben Prins. The night sky is exploding with festive color and light, and the onlookers are mesmerized at the sight. Well, maybe with the exception of the young boy and girl chasing each other with sparklers (not advisable, by the way).

It would appear that of all our many artists, J.C. Leyendecker (we won’t say he was the most patriotic) stands above the crowd for the sheer number of Fourth of July covers. We’re counting 15, and like all of Leyendecker’s covers, they are a delight, as you can see below.

The Post, as you may know, is revamping and moving into new directions, as shown by our July/August 2009 cover by Eric Bowman, depicting “America the Beautiful” from the perspective of a new generation of talented illustrators. We welcome them with open arms!

But you didn’t really think we would leave our beloved Norman Rockwell out of our celebration, did you? His July 6, 1946, cover shows workmen cleaning the torch on the Statue of Liberty. The editors tell us this happened every year around this time, after which “the mighty lady of Bedloe’s Island (now called Liberty Island) sheds a brighter light, to the general satisfaction of free spirits everywhere.”

Gallery

Click Here to View as Slideshow.

Classic Covers: The Fourth of July Throughout the Decades The Saturday Evening Post

For Export, Lend-Lease

Robert Abrahams — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 14:00:15 +0000

Farmers, you ask for seed; we send you some,
Born of a crop we’ve been a long time growing;
We sowed it while a bitter wind was blowing,
And lived to reap it when the sun had come.

See that no tiniest grain we send is wasted.
You’ll have to plant it deep, to keep alive,
But cultivate it well, and it will thrive.
The crop this seed will yield, you’ve seldom tasted.

Take it, you who have to plant in fear.
American seed, go forth to every land;
Though tyrants all shall name you contraband,
The finest harvest man can seek is here.

This is the mighty seed called Liberty,
And he who sows that seed himself makes free.

For Export, Lend-Lease The Saturday Evening Post