Everett Raymond Kinstler (August 5, 1926 – May 26, 2019) was an American artist, whose official portraits include Presidents

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

and

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

."Biography,"
Kinstler official website. Retrieved 23 June 2007. He was also a

pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit Engineering * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Molded pulp, a packaging material * ...

and

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

artist, whose work appeared mainly in the 1940s and 1950s.

Life and work

Everett Kinstler was born in 1926 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the son of Essie and Joseph Kunstler. He started his career age 16, drawing

paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with adhesive, glue rather than stitch (textile arts), stitches or Staple (fastener), staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) book ...

book covers, and book and magazine illustrations. He studied at the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...

and later taught there (1969 – 1974).Kinstler bio
''Who's Who of American Comics, 1928–1999''. Accessed July 1, 2014. Kinstler also studied at the

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, and others "to promote the fin ...

. Kinstler's influences included

Alex Raymond Alexander Gillespie Raymond Jr. (October 2, 1909 – September 6, 1956) was an American cartoonist who was best known for creating the '' Flash Gordon'' comic strip for King Features Syndicate in 1934. The strip was subsequently adapted into m ...

James Montgomery Flagg James Montgomery Flagg (June 18, 1877 – May 27, 1960) was an American artist, comics artist and illustrator. He worked in media ranging from fine art painting to cartooning, but is best remembered for his political posters, particularly his 1 ...

Howard Chandler Christy Howard Chandler Christy (January 10, 1872 – March 3, 1952) was an American artist and illustrator. Famous for the "Christy Girl" – a colorful and illustrious successor to the "Gibson Girl" – Christy is also widely known for his ico ...

Milton Caniff Milton Arthur Paul Caniff (; February 28, 1907 – April 3, 1988) was an People of the United States, American cartoonist famous for the ''Terry and the Pirates (comic strip), Terry and the Pirates'' and ''Steve Canyon'' comic strips. Biography ...

, and

Hal Foster Harold Rudolf Foster, FRSA (August 16, 1892 – July 25, 1982) was a Canadian-American comic strip artist and writer best known as the creator of the comic strip ''Prince Valiant''. His drawing style is noted for its high level of draftsmanship a ...

. Kinstler's pulp illustrations number in the hundreds, and cover many different genres including

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

, and war.

Popular Publications Popular Publications was one of the largest publishers of pulp magazines during its existence, at one point publishing 42 different titles per month. Company titles included detective fiction, detective, adventure novel, adventure, Romance nove ...

was among the largest publishers of pulps in which his black-and-white illustrations appeared. In comic books, he was particularly known for his

and

romance comic Romance comics is a comics genre depicting strong and close romantic love and its attendant complications such as jealousy, marriage, divorce, betrayal, and heartache. The term is generally associated with an American comic books genre published t ...

work. He worked extensively for

Avon Periodicals Avon Publications is one of the leading publishers of romance fiction. At Avon's initial stages, it was an American paperback book and comic book publisher. The shift in content occurred in the early 1970s with multiple Avon romance titles reac ...

, as well as

Ziff-Davis Publishing Company Ziff Davis, Inc. is an American digital media and internet company. First founded in 1927 by William Bernard Ziff Sr. and Bernard George Davis, the company primarily owns technology-oriented media websites, online shopping-related services, an ...

Dell Dell is an American based technology company. It develops, sells, repairs, and supports computers and related products and services. Dell is owned by its parent company, Dell Technologies. Dell sells personal computers (PCs), servers, data ...

Western Publishing Western Publishing, also known as Western Printing and Lithographing Company, was a Racine, Wisconsin, firm responsible for publishing the Little Golden Books. Its Golden Books Family Entertainment division also produced children's books and ...

National Periodicals DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

St. John Publications St. John Publications was an American publisher of magazines and comic books. During the 1947-1958 existence of its comic-book division, St. John established several industry firsts. Founded by Archer St. John, the firm was located in Manhattan a ...

Atlas Comics Atlas Comics may refer to * Atlas Comics (1950s) Atlas Comics is the 1950s comic book, comic-book publishing label that evolved into Marvel Comics. Magazine and mass market paperback, paperback novel publisher Martin Goodman (publisher), Martin ...

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

, and Gilberton. The titles he spent the most time on were Avon's '' Realistic Romances'', ''

Witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

'', and ''

White Princess of the Jungle ''White Princess of the Jungle'' is a jungle girl anthology comic book published quarterly by Avon Periodicals in the early 1950s. Issue 1 presents the origin of the White Princess of the Jungle, Taanda. The comic has been cited as an example o ...

''; and Ziff-Davis/St. John's ''Nightmare''. Beginning in the 1960s Kinstler shifted into the realm of portrait painting. He painted over 1200 portraits of leading figures in business, entertainment and government, including official portraits of eight U.S. Presidents, including

and

. Perhaps America's most important working portrait artist, Kinstler held a

Portraits, Inc. Portraits, Inc., is the world's oldest and largest commissioned portrait company. Founded in New York City in 1942, Portraits, Inc. specializes in commissioned oil painting, paintings or bronze sculpture, sculptures. Today the agency represents o ...

Lifetime Achievement Award for which a university scholarship is awarded each year in his name. NAC Portrait Room

For more than 70 years, Kinstler lived and worked at

The National Arts Club The National Arts Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and members club on Gramercy Park, Manhattan, New York City. It was founded in 1898 by Charles DeKay, an art and literary critic of the ''New York Times'' to "stimulate, foster, and promote public ...

, of which he was a member. He painted over 2,000 of his subjects at his studio at the Club – including President Reagan,

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (born August 3, 1926), known professionally as Tony Bennett, is an American retired singer of traditional pop standards, big band, show tunes, and jazz. Bennett is also a painter, having created works under his birth ...

, Salvador Dali,

Carol Burnett Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and writer. Her groundbreaking comedy variety show ''The Carol Burnett Show'', which originally aired on CBS was one of the first of its kind to be hosted ...

, and

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

– and many of his works are included in its permanent collection. In the fall of 2018, he was honored at the Club’s 120th anniversary celebration for his outstanding career and commitment to the arts. Among Kinstler's pupils were

Michael Shane Neal Michael Shane Neal (born November 23, 1968) is an American portrait artist who currently serves as the chairman of the Portrait Society of America. In 2020, Neal's painting of Congressman John Lewis was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution' ...

Dawn Whitelaw

Johanna Spinks Johanna Spinks is a British-born, Los Angeles-based oil portrait artist. Spinks is primarily a portrait artist of heirloom, family, corporate, religious, and bridal portraits, but also a landscape and still life painter. Spinks' work has been fea ...

, and Loryn Brazier. He died from heart failure in Bridgeport, CT on May 26, 2019 at the age of 92.

Awards

* Elected to the

, in 1970 * Copley Medal from the

Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery The National Portrait Gallery is a historic art museum between 7th, 9th, F, and G Streets NW in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Founded in 1962 and opened to the public in 1968, it is part of the Smithsonian Institution. Its collections f ...

, in 1999 *

Inkpot Award The Inkpot Award is an honor bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International. It is given to professionals in the fields of comic books, comic strips, animation, science fiction, and related areas of popular culture, at CCI's annual c ...

, in 2006

Comics bibliography (selected)

As either cover artist, interior penciller/inker or both:

Avon Periodicals

* '' Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch'' * ''

Jesse James Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, bank and train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the " Little Dixie" area of Western Missouri, James and his family maintained stro ...

'' * ''

Kit Carson Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 – May 23, 1868) was an American frontiersman. He was a fur trapper, wilderness guide, Indian agent, and U.S. Army officer. He became a frontier legend in his own lifetime by biographies and n ...

'' * ''

Geronimo Geronimo ( apm, Goyaałé, , ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a prominent leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache ba ...

'' * ''

Last of the Comanches ''Last of the Comanches'' is a 1953 American Western film directed by Andre DeToth and starring Broderick Crawford, Barbara Hale, Johnny Stewart and Lloyd Bridges. The film is a remake of the 1943 World War II film ''Sahara'', starring Humphrey ...

'' * '' Western Bandits'' * ''

Wild Bill Hickok James Butler Hickok (May 27, 1837August 2, 1876), better known as "Wild Bill" Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West known for his life on the frontier as a soldier, scout, lawman, gambler, showman, and actor, and for his involvement ...

'' * '' The Masked Bandit'' * '' The Dalton Boys'' * '' Sheriff Bob Dixon's Chuck Wagon'' * '' Realistic Romances'' * ''

Romantic Love Romance or romantic love is a feeling of love for, or a Interpersonal attraction, strong attraction towards another person, and the Courtship, courtship behaviors undertaken by an individual to express those overall feelings and resultant emot ...

'' * ''

Intimate Confessions Intimate may refer to: * Intimate examination, a physical examination for medical purposes that includes examination of the breasts, genitalia, or rectum of a patient * Intimate ion pair, the interactions between a cation, anion and surrounding so ...

'' * ''

Prison Break ''Prison Break'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial drama television show, television series created by Paul Scheuring for Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox. The series revolves around two brothers, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purce ...

'' * ''

Eerie ''Eerie'' was an American magazine of horror comics introduced in 1966 by Warren Publishing. Like '' Mad'', it was a black-and-white magazine intended for newsstand distribution and did not submit its stories to the comic book industry's voluntar ...

'' * '' Murderous Gangsters'' * ''

Prison Riot A prison riot is an act of concerted defiance or disorder by a group of prisoners against the prison administrators, prison officers, or other groups of prisoners. Prison riots have not been the subject of many academic studies or research inquir ...

'' * '' War Dogs of the U.S. Army'' * '' Boy Detective'' * Space Detective * Pancho Villa * '' Phantom Witch Doctor'' * ''

Dell Comics

* ''

Zorro Zorro (Spanish language, Spanish for 'fox') is a fictional character created in 1919 by American pulp magazine, pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed a ...

'' * ''

Four Color ''Four Color'', also known as ''Four Color Comics'' and ''Dell Four Color'', was an American comic book anthology series published by Dell Comics between 1939 and 1962. The title is a reference to the four basic colors used when printing comic ...

'' ** #491: ''Silvertip'' ** #534: ''Ernest Haycox's Western Marshall'' ** #651: ''Luke Short's King Colt'' ** #723: ''Santiago''

Other publishers

* ''

Flash Comics ''Flash Comics'' is a comics anthology published by All-American Publications and later by National Periodical Publications (DC Comics). The title had 104 issues published from January 1940 to February 1949. Despite the title, the anthology featu ...

'' (National Periodicals) * '' The Black Terror'' (Nedor Comics) * ''

The Black Hood The Black Hood is a fictional character created by MLJ Comics (later known as Archie Comics) during the period known as the " Golden Age of Comic Books". The Black Hood first appeared in '' Top-Notch Comics #9'', October 1940 and became one of ...

'' (MLJ Comics) * ''

All-American Comics ''All-American Comics'' was a comics anthology and the flagship title of comic book publisher All-American Publications, one of the forerunners of DC Comics. It ran for 102 issues from 1939 to 1948. Characters created for the title, including Green ...

'' (All-American Publications) * '' Blazing Sixguns'' (I. W. Publications) * ''

Wyatt Earp Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (March 19, 1848 – January 13, 1929) was an American lawman and gambler in the American West, including Dodge City, Deadwood, and Tombstone. Earp took part in the famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral, during which law ...

'' (Marvel Comics) * '' Cinderella Love'' (Ziff-Davis/St. John Publications) * ''Nightmare'' (Ziff-Davis/St. John Publications) * ''

Perfect Love "Perfect Love" is a song written by Sunny Russ and Stephony Smith, and recorded by American country music artist Trisha Yearwood. It was released in January 1998 as the third and final single from her compilation album '' (Songbook) A Collection o ...

'' (Ziff-Davis/St. John Publications) * '' Strange Worlds'' (Atlas Comics) * ''

The World Around Us ''The World Around Us'' was an Australian documentary television series that aired on the Seven Network between 1979 until 2006. It regularly showed documentaries which featured the likes of Malcolm Douglas and Sir David Attenborough. Pres ...

'' (Gilberton) * Mystery Comics (Standard Comics) * ''

Thrilling Comics ''Thrilling Comics'' is the title of a comic book series published by Standard Comics for 80 issues from 1940 to 1951. The first issue is the first appearance of the comic-book character Doc Strange, who debuted in a 37-page origin story. The "Thr ...

'' (Standard Comics)

Gallery

File:White Princess 3.jpg , Graphic art for ''

'' File:Strange Worlds 3.jpg , Graphic art for '' Strange Worlds'' File:Kaanga 01 IW.jpg , Graphic art for '' Kaanga''

Major exhibitions

* ''America Creative'', Vanderbilt University Fine Arts Gallery, Nashville, TN (2018)

References

External links

* *
samples of Kinstler's comics work

on Lambiek {{DEFAULTSORT:Kinstler, Everett 1926 births 2019 deaths 21st-century American painters 21st-century male artists 20th-century American painters American male painters American portrait painters American art educators Art Students League of New York alumni Painters from New York City Golden Age comics creators Science fiction artists