Classic Covers: The Theater

Charlie Chaplin Fans

Norman Rockwell was thrilled when he sold his first Post cover in 1916. “I used to sit in the studio with a copy of the Post laid across my knees,” Rockwell wrote in his autobiography. “’Must be 2 million people look at that cover,’ I’d say to myself. ‘At least. Probably more. Two million subscribers and then their wives, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles, friends. Wow! All looking at my cover.’” Needless to say, his fantasy of himself as a famous illustrator came true in spades.

This cover was one of his finest of that era, with an already masterful use of light—in this case reflected from the flickering screen onto the delighted faces of the theatergoers.

Old Folks at the Theater

Pops clearly thinks Vaudeville is a hoot in this 1916 cover, but the more puritanical Missus does not approve. This is the only Post cover by Watson Barratt, about whom little is known today.

It is interesting to note an article inside this issue on World War I by H.G. Wells and one of many stories the Post published by the delightful P.G. Wodehouse.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Next to the Bible, Harriett Beecher Stowe’s novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, was the best-selling book of the 19th century. Yes, it has long been decried for racial stereotypes, but Stowe made it clear that no Christian could condone slavery. This 1927 cover by Edgar Franklin Wittmack shows an Opera House featuring the play. We’re guessing the actor shown here was portraying the cruel slave owner whose name has become synonymous with greed and evil: Simon Legree. Artist Wittmack illustrated more than 20 Post covers.

Summer Stock

Norman Rockwell was full of surprises. On occasion, a Rockwell cover just doesn’t look “like a Rockwell.” Case in point is this 1939 illustration of a very pretty actress in full Elizabethan regalia. Contrast her elaborate costume with her stark “dressing room”—backstage at a barn, with an old crate serving as a dressing table. Her assistants? A couple of helpful barnyard residents.

Man Asleep in Theater

We laughed, we cried … we fell asleep. While the lovely lady with the hanky and the gentleman behind her appear to wipe away a tear, one moviegoer was moved … to nap. This 1940 cover was by Emery Clarke, who, while not a well-known artist, did half a dozen other Post covers.

Cousin Reginald is the Hero

In 1917-1919, Norman Rockwell painted a series of covers for Country Gentleman magazine, a sister publication to the Post. The characters he created were a group of often mischievous, if not downright ornery, country boys and their visiting city cousin, Reginald. Cousin Reginald was a geeky kid who was always bested by the kids’ rural activities: fishing, swimming, etc.

Rockwell must have finally tired of the tribulations he put Reginald through, for in this 1918 cover, cousin Reginald gets to be the hero. The cousins are in a rather clichéd school play, where the villain is throwing the poor maiden out for nonpayment of rent, when good old Reggie comes through with the deed to the house just in time! For more on these delightful covers see: “Norman Rockwell’s Cousin Reginald.”


Reprints of covers are available at Art.com.