“Teachers don’t appreciate zingers …”

 

Jul/Aug 2003

I wonder how much time the average cartoonist spent at the principal’s office. Let’s just hope your school year goes better than depicted in these cartoons.

“I figured if I have to be here every day, I’d might as well make a little money.”

 

Mar/Apr 2007

This is known as free enterprise. It is also known as another free trip to the Principal’s Office.

“I suffer from test-taking anxiety, brought on by lack of studying.”

 

July/Aug 2003

Yep, that’ll do it. I don’t mean to encourage deceit, young lady, but you might leave off the second part of that sentence next time. Just go with the “test-taking anxiety” defense.

“You said we learn from our mistakes, so I must be learning a lot.”

 

Jan/Feb 2006

I have to say that, as defenses go, this isn’t bad. I don’t think Pop is buying it, but it was worth a try.

“Excuse me, but at what point during my career as a supermodel will I have need for English?”

 

Jul/Aug 1998

I foresee another trip to the Principal’s Office. This sassy cartoon appeared in the Post in 1998.

“My parents think I watch too much TV, so I’m not allowed to watch unless my homework is done by 8:00 p.m., 7:00 p.m. Central.”

 

Jul/Aug 2003

Geeze, where do parents get these notions? This is by Marty Bucella, one of the artists spotlighted in our “Meet the Cartoonist” feature.

“They call it the ‘Three R’s,’ and then say we can’t spell!”

 

Jul/Aug 2003

Well, kid, I can’t argue with your logic. I don’t know if you’re “smarter than a 5th grader,” but you may be smarter than the average adult!

“Does your mother always sign your report cards, ‘My Mom’?”

 

Sep/Oct 1998

Oops. This is from Bob Vojtko, who was featured in another one of our “Meet the Cartoonist” posts.

“I sure hope I grow up to be beautiful—’cause if I can’t get by on my looks, I’m doomed.”

 

Sep/Oct. 2006

One more, simply because I think it’s so darn cute.

Cartoons: Back-to-School The Saturday Evening Post

“Here Boy!”

"Here Boy!"Frances Tipton Hunter December 5, 1936

Now, where is that dog? A reader recently requested information about cover artist Frances Tipton Hunter (1896-1957). Hunter’s career spanned the 1920s through 1950s, and like many female artists of that time, she frequently focused on children and pets.

“Girl and Boy at Soda Fountain”

"Girl and Boy at Soda Fountain"Frances Tipton Hunter June 6,1936

This was Hunter’s first cover for The Saturday Evening Post. The expression on the little boy’s face when he realizes he forgot (or lost) his money makes this a favorite of mine. Hunter’s artistic talent revealed itself during her high school years. She graduated with honors from the Philadelphia Museum of Industrial Arts and did the same at The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and the Fleisher Art Memorial. She moved from Pennsylvania to New York where she illustrated children’s fashions for department stores.

“Boys in Principal’s Office”

"Boys in Principal’s Office"Frances Tipton Hunter September 12, 1936

In 1936, like today, when little boys get in fights, a trip to the principal’s office is in order. I love the anxious expression on the blond boy’s face. In the 1920s Hunter created a series of paper dolls for Ladies Home Journal that became so popular that a compendium of her doll artwork was later published. She also illustrated for Collier’s, Women’s Home Companion, and Good Housekeeping as well as being known for her work in advertisements, puzzles, and calendar art.

“Boy and Girl at Candy Counter”

"Boy and Girl at Candy Counter"Frances Tipton Hunter August 19, 1939

Oh, gracious, this takes me back! I can remember having a few pennies to spend on candy and taking forever to make the momentous decision. Hunter was said to imitate Rockwell in her idealized visions of children. Perhaps this is because she never had children of her own.

“Little Boy and Winter Underwear”

"Little Boy and Winter Underwear"Frances Tipton Hunter,br /> Feb 27, 1937

The life of an artist! Post editors suggested this idea for a cover, and the artist liked it. She wanted to sketch it from real life, so she found a spot in a Philadelphia department store and waited. “Well, she waited and waited,” editors wrote in this 1937 issue. “Little girls came in, with large mothers, and stolid, big boys with small mothers, but not a small boy in the lot. Hours passed, with Miss Hunter waiting patiently in her corner. Finally, when all seemed lost, in came the pair you see on the cover of this issue. Miss Hunter sat bolt upright, all eyes, sketch pad ready. She wanted the expression on the youngster’s face, particularly. And then came the big moment—the small fry glowered and muttered: mother held the despicable woolies. Miss Hunter poised her pencil.

“‘Turn around, Richard,’ said mother, ‘and I’ll measure these against your back.’” Sigh. Somehow our dedicated artist caught the perfect expression and the cover came out great.

“Girl and Boy on School Steps”

"Girl and Boy on School Steps"Frances Tipton Hunter May 25, 1940

Hunter painted big kids, too. In this 1940 cover, the young lady is concentrating on teaching her classmate the math formulas and he is concentrating on … well, I think you can guess. When Frances Tipton passed away in 1957, she left her artwork to be divided between the James V. Brown Library and the Lycoming County Historical Museum, both in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

“Kids Riding Trolley”

"Kids Riding Trolley" by Frances Tipton Hunter July 20, 1940

This 1940 cover of a boy and girl was another of eighteen covers Hunter did for the Post. For others, see the Curtis Publishing website.

What does any of this have to do with Ogden Nash? Just this: I found an illustration by Frances Tipton Hunter for a poem called “Remembrance of Tings to Come” published by Nash in the August 29, 1936 issue of the Post. Here is a link to that poem, with Miss Hunter’s illustration:

The Art of Frances Tipton Hunter The Saturday Evening Post

Suzan Wiener

Spring Hill, Florida

The Great Divide The Saturday Evening Post

Sticking out His Tongue
Richard Sargent
February 7, 1959

Artist Richard Sargent also shows us that principals, too, have their crosses to bear. In the February 1959 two-part cover, we see little Bobby greeting the principal happily in a “nice to see you, sir!” gesture. Gee, what a nice kid. But … the gesture changes in panel two, after the little stinker got in trouble in class. It looks as if he was sent to the Library next door to get a book on how to behave (Manners Are Fun, the title reads) and decides to let baldy know what he really thinks. Let’s hope that door doesn’t open and Mr. Principal sees that tongue sticking out. He’ll have more than a boring book to worry about.

School Boys Fighting—J.C. Leyendecker—April 1, 1911

At least little Bobby wasn’t sent to the principal’s office for fighting, as in the Frances Tipton Hunter cover from September 1936. Two boys stand disheveled outside the principal’s office: They have some explaining to do, starting with the black eye. Certainly not the first time this has happened. Artist J.C. Leyendecker showed us two schoolboys going at each other fast and furious way back in 1911. What is it about boys and fighting? Wait a minute. There is that Rockwell cover from May 1953 with the girl in pigtails boasting quite a shiner while sitting outside the principal’s office.

Rowdy Bus Ride—Amos Sewell—September 9, 1950

Let’s not forget the hardworking bus drivers. “At what point did I lose control?” The driver is musing in the September 1950 cover. Climbing over seats, pulling hair, and just being overall rowdy, this is quite a trip. And the school year is only beginning. Will the poor driver make it to Thanksgiving vacation?

Morning Coffee Break—Amos Sewell—September 12, 1959

Showing the other side of the coin is the September 12, 1959, cover by the same artist. After a summer of noise and bustling activity interspersed with whining complaints of “I’m bored,” Mom finally gets the kids off to school. And it is a sweet moment indeed as she kicks off her shoes, lies back, and enjoys a cup of coffee, with nary a thought for the poor bus driver. Hey, she’s done her time.

The Shiner—Norman Rockwell—May 23, 1953

But we’re being unfair here. Not all students are misbehaving little monsters, right? There’s the October 16, 1920, cover … never mind, that boy has a slingshot. OK, there’s artist Alan Foster’s September 1930 cover … never mind, that boy is writing “I was tardy” a hundred times on the blackboard. We’ve got it! Norman Rockwell’s June 26, 1926, cover of the schoolmaster extolling the virtues of the young scholar who seems to be grabbing “first in class” honors. May you shine as brightly this school year.

Gallery

Classic Covers: School Daze The Saturday Evening Post

Automated external defibrillators—AEDs for short—are designed to jump-start the heart in case of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Minutes count. And survival rates in public settings are dismally low. Fortunately, new research published in Circulation shows that equipping schools with the user-friendly devices helps prevent tragic deaths of students and others who fall victim to SCA on school grounds.

In the study of 1,710 U.S. high schools with at least one AED, nearly two-thirds of the SCA victims survived to hospital discharge, including nine of 14 student athletes and 14 of 22 teachers, coaches, visitors, and other adults (mean age 57).

In contrast, the overall survival rate of out-of-hospital SCA is less than 8 percent. Survival drops 7 percent to 10 percent for each minute defibrillation is delayed.

To implement a local AED program, study author Dr. Jonathan Drezner of the University of Washington in Seattle and colleagues strongly encourage high schools to: 1) develop an emergency action plan for sudden cardiac arrest in collaboration with local EMS; 2) practice and review the plan at least once a year; and 3) post the plan at each athletic venue.

Budgetary issues are not the only concern when exploring school AED programs.

“The tragic death of an adolescent has a profound effect on the community,” said Dr. Dianne Atkins of the University of Iowa in an accompanying editorial, “and the desire to protect this population may outweigh financial considerations.”

Remember the ABCs of using AEDs to save a life:
A) Recognize a heart emergency;
B) Open the AED box; and
C) Follow the prompts.

To read about lives saved by school AEDs, and how to launch a local initiative, visit The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association, The Louis J. Acompora Foundation, Parent Heart Watch, or Project Adam.

ABCs of AEDs: School Defibrillators Save Lives The Saturday Evening Post

The teacher is obviously not happy about a slacking student on Robert Robinson’s October 1918 cover. This boy’s unpardonable sin is falling asleep and daydreaming in class. Boys in 1918 probably often dreamed of fighting in the Great War to end all wars. He might be safer “Over There,” judging from the look on the teacher’s face and the firmness with which she’s holding that ruler.

A kinder, gentler teacher emerges in Fanny Young Cory’s May 1906 cover. The charming schoolmarm is helping one of the pupils tie her hat, making sure each adorable kid is properly turned out to go home.

It isn’t hard to figure out what the mother is saying in Amos Sewell’s December 1959 cover. “How can someone as smart as Johnny bring home such poor grades? Why, the boy is the brightest youngster we have ever seen!” The weary teacher shows signs of having heard the story more than once before.

Separation Anxietyby George HughesSeptember 11, 1948

If you identify with artist George Hughes’ September 1948 cover, you may not want to admit that you were one of those clingy kids who threw a royal fit when dropped off that first day of school. Showing one more reason why her job is not easy, the teacher is kindly trying to wrench the traumatized little girl from Mommy, while the expressions on the other kids’ faces are everything from laughter to “oh, dear.” Artist Hughes was something of an expert, having five girls and “the one who is crying on the cover is, of course, mine.”

Our salute would not be complete without the classic teacher cover, Norman Rockwell’s Happy Birthday, Miss Jones. Just when the teacher thinks she’s had enough of cramming figures and words into unreceptive little minds, they do something like this: scrawl “Happy Birthday, Miss Jones” on the chalkboard. As we’ve often said, Rockwell is all about faces, and Jones’ face says it all.

The boy in Stevan Dohanos’ September 1946 is bringing the teacher flowers. These were actual students from the fifth grade of Bedford Elementary School in Westport, Connecticut. We love the editors’ note in this issue: “At one point the artist asked their teacher to brush her hair back a little more severely. When she came back from the cloakroom with the new hairdo, the kids raised such a clamor of disapproval that Dohanos had to yield to overwhelming public opinion and sketch her as they like to see her.” The lesson? Don’t mess with our teacher!

Gallery

Classic Covers: A Salute to Teachers The Saturday Evening Post