M. Coburn "Coby" Whitmore

Maxwell Coburn Whitmore, Jr. (June 11, 1913 - October 12, 1988)[1] was an American painter and magazine illustrator known for his Saturday Evening Post covers, and a commercial artist whose work included advertisements for Gallo Wine and other national brands. He additionally became known as a race-car designer.

Whitmore was inducted into the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame in 1978. Coby Whitmore was born in Dayton, Ohio, the son of Maxwell Coburn Whitmore Sr. and Charlotte Bosler, and attended the Dayton Art Institute.[2] Following an apprenticeship with the "Sundblom Circle" of Chicago, Illinois, illustrator Haddon Sundblom, Whitmore joined the Charles E. Cooper Studio, on West 57th Street in New York City, in 1943.[3][4] There he illustrated for leading magazines of the day and did other commercial art.

Whitmore and Jon Whitcomb were two of the top illustrators at Cooper, which in the 1940s and 1950s "monopolized the ladies' magazines like McCall's, Ladies Home Journal, and Good Housekeeping with postwar images of the ideal white American family centered around pretty, middle-class, female consumers living happily in new kitchens, new houses, driving new cars, living with handsome husbands, adorable children, and cute dogs".[5][6] Additionally, Whitmore, by then living in Briarcliff Manor, New York, teamed with former World War II fighter pilot John Fitch, an imported car dealer in White Plains, New York, to design and race sports cars in the 1950s and 1960s.[7][8][9]

Whitmore died in Hilton Head, South Carolina, in 1988 at age 75.[1] Whitmore's work influenced such comic-book artists as John Buscema,[10] John Romita, Sr.,[11] and Phil Noto.[12] Glen Murakami, producer of the 2000s Teen Titans animated series on Cartoon Network, cited Whitmore and fellow illustrator Bob Peak as "big influences on the loose, painterly style we have been using for the backgrounds".[13]

REFERENCES

Social Security Death Index record for "Whitmore, M. C.," Social Security Number 287-10-5182

Jump up ^ "M. Coburn Whitmore (1913 - 1988)". Ask Art: The Artists' Bluebook. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011.

Jump up ^ Mendez, Prof. A. E. "The Rules of Attraction: The Look of Love: The Rise and Fall of the Photo-Realistic Newspaper Strip, 1946–1970". Archived from the original on July 9, 2007. Additional WebCitation archive, July 16, 2009

Jump up ^ Pelotas, Geza. The Charles E. Cooper Studio. WebCitation archive.

Jump up ^ Heller, Steven, and Marshall Arisman. Inside the Business of Illustration (Allworth Press : 2004), ISBN 1-58115-386-4, ISBN 978-1-58115-386-6, p. 42

Jump up ^ "The Visual Telling of Stories: Coby Whitmore", Fulltable.com, n.d. WebCitation archive of page "Coby Whitmore: Gallery One - Illustrated Fiction"

Jump up ^ Frank, Michael "The Fitch Whitmore Le Mans Special in Detail", New Jersey Jaguar Touring Club, 2001. WebCitation archive.

Jump up ^ Blunk, Frank M. "Luxury Sports Car of Tomorrow Is Unveiled Here", The New York Times, July 8, 1966, Section: Sports, Page 60

Jump up ^ "Blackwood Takes Race; Hits 132 M. P.H. in National Modified Sports Car Test", The New York Times, February 22, 1953, Section: Sports, Page S7

Jump up ^ Spurlock, David J., and John Buscema, John Buscema Sketchbook (Vanguard Productions: Lebanon, N.J. 2001), Hardcover ISBN 1-887591-18-4, signed-numbered hardcover ISBN 1-887591-17-6, trade paperback ISBN 1-887591-19-2, p. 27.

Jump up ^ Spurlock, J. David, and John Romita. John Romita Sketchbook. (Vanguard Productions: Lebanon, N.J. 2002) ISBN 1-887591-27-3 ISBN 1-887591-29-X, p. 16

Jump up ^ Arrant, Chris. "Phil Noto on Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom", Newsarama, November 5, 2008. WebCitation archive.

Jump up ^ Glen Murakami interviewed in Worley, Rob. "Teen Titans, LXG, Hulk, Illuminati, X-Men: Comics2Film Wrap for July 14, 2003", Comic Book Resources, July 14, 2003. WebCitation archive.

Jump up ^ Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame. WebCitation archive.

Jump up ^ "Norman Rockwell Museum Presents First In-Depth Exhibition of Influential Illustrator’s Work", Norman Rockwell Museum press release, n.d. (dead link to original release). WebCitation archive to capsule description and date only of Al Parker exhibit