Thomas Starling Sullivant (November 4, 1854 – August 7, 1926) was an American

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

who signed his work T. S. Sullivant. His work appeared most frequently in the pages of the humorous ''

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...

'' magazine. Best known for his animal and ethnic caricatures, he also drew political cartoons and comic strip toppers, and illustrated children's books. He drew in a heavily cross-hatched pen-and-ink style, with humans and animals depicted with greatly exaggerated features that are nevertheless firmly rooted in his understanding of correct anatomy.

Personal history

Thomas Starling Sullivant was born in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, where his father,

William Starling Sullivant William Starling Sullivant (January 15, 1803 – April 30, 1873) was an early American botanist recognized as the foremost authority on bryophytes in the United States. Biography Sullivant was the oldest son of Lucas Sullivant and Sara (Sta ...

, was a leading bryologist. He was raised in Germany, where he may have studied art. At the age of 18, Sullivant left Columbus and lived in Europe for several years, eventually returning to live in Philadelphia. In 1885, he studied under

Thomas Eakins Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins (; July 25, 1844 – June 25, 1916) was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator. He is widely acknowledged to be one of the most important American artists. For the length ...

at the

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) is a museum and private art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Seeking the opinion of artist

A. B. Frost Arthur Burdett Frost (January 17, 1851 – June 22, 1928), usually cited as A. B. Frost, was an American illustrator, graphic artist, painter and comics writer. He is best known for his illustrations of Brer Rabbit and other characters i ...

, Sullivant was told to send his art around to the top publications of the period. In 1886, when Sullivant was 32, his first published cartoons appeared in the minor humor magazine ''Truth''. The following year, he surfaced in the leading humor publication '' Puck'', and his work was also in other periodicals, including ''Harper's Weekly'' and ''Texas Siftings''. Soon he was seen in the pages of ''

'' with his "Aesop to Date" series and other cartoons. He studied with the Philadelphia painter

Edward Moran Edward Moran (August 19, 1829June 8, 1901) was an England, English-born United States, American artist of Marine art, maritime paintings. He is arguably most famous for his series of 13 historical paintings of History of the United States, United ...

, and he became an apprentice to illustrator E. B. Bensell, noted for his pen-and-ink drawings and wood engravings. ''

Godey's Lady's Book ''Godey's Lady's Book'', alternatively known as ''Godey's Magazine and Lady's Book'', was an American women's magazine that was published in Philadelphia from 1830 to 1878. It was the most widely circulated magazine in the period before the Civil ...

'' described Bensell as "an illustrator of the old school, who drew on the wooden block". Sullivant was a member of the

Philadelphia Sketch Club The Philadelphia Sketch Club, founded on November 20, 1860, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is one of America's oldest artists' clubs. The club's own web page proclaims it ''the'' oldest. Prominent members have included Joseph Pennell, Thomas Eaki ...

from 1888 to 1904. By the turn of the century, Sullivant switched from ''Life'' to ''

Judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

''. In 1904, he signed on to draw political cartoons for

William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst Sr. (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American businessman, newspaper publisher, and politician known for developing the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His flamboya ...

, continuing in that position until 1907. Leaving Hearst, he studied in Europe, returning to the pages of ''Life'' in 1911. He continued to contribute to ''Life'' until his death in 1926.

Style

Sullivant was a pen-and-ink artist, working during a time when penwork with meticulously cross-hatched shading, like that of

Charles Dana Gibson Charles Dana Gibson (September 14, 1867 – December 23, 1944) was an American illustrator. He was best known for his creation of the Gibson Girl, an iconic representation of the beautiful and independent Euro-American woman at the turn of the ...

, was particularly flourishing. While working technically within the rerstaints of such classical drawing, Sullivant and others like

and

E. W. Kemble Edward Winsor Kemble (January 18, 1861 – September 19, 1933), usually cited as E. W. Kemble, and sometimes referred to incorrectly as Edward Windsor Kemble, was an American illustrator. He is known best for illustrating the first edition of '' ...

, sought out new, playful means of expression. Sullivant played with distorting anatomy, perspective and animation. A striking feature was the greatly enlarged heads on hs figures, which, throughout the 1890s, became more and more exaggerated, an innovation pioneered by Frost that was widely imitated by his peers. Sullivant was noted largely for his animal caricatures and his character types—ethnic types like Irishmen, Jews and Negroes familiar in the American melting pot, as well as farmers, tramps and the suburban families which were emerging at the time. His "grotesque yet believable" animals were remarkably detailed and anatomically accurate, despite their gross exaggeration, and expressive in the moods, emotions and attitudes they displayed. The anatomical accuracy of his work was greatly helped by

Eadweard Muybridge Eadweard Muybridge (; 9 April 1830 – 8 May 1904, born Edward James Muggeridge) was an English photographer known for his pioneering work in photographic studies of motion, and early work in motion-picture projection. He adopted the first ...

's photographic studies of human and animal movement. It was the visuals and the action in his cartoons that were most often the "gag"—frequently the caption added little to the enjoyment of the cartoon. Sullivant had a penchant for using razor blades in his quest for perfection in his work, but not for the shading effects a razor can produced that many other cartoonists used it for. He used it to erase by scratching out work he was dissatisfied with, so he could draw on the paper again, saving only the parts of the drawing he could not part with. ''

Happy Hooligan ''Happy Hooligan'' is an American comic strip, the first major strip by the already celebrated cartoonist Frederick Burr Opper. It debuted with a Sunday strip on March 11, 1900 in the William Randolph Hearst newspapers, and was one of the first p ...

s Frederick Burr Opper commented on Sullivant's frequent razor blade use saying, "If Tom Sullivant scratched his head as much as his paper, he'd draw better cartoons!" His work became looser, more simplified and more exaggerated as Sullivant got older. According to animator

Nancy Beiman Nancy Beiman is a director, character designer, teacher, and animator. She attended the Character Animation program at CalArts. Career Animation In 1986, Beiman cofounded Caged Beagle Productions with business partner Dean Yeagle. She then move ...

, his later work, in his sixties, was the best of his career.

Legacy

Sullivant influenced numerous cartoonists, notably

Walt Kelly Walter Crawford Kelly Jr. (August 25, 1913 – October 18, 1973), commonly known as Walt Kelly, was an American animator and cartoonist, best known for the comic strip ''Pogo (comic strip), Pogo''. He began his animation career in 1936 at The Walt ...

, who hung a Sullivant original, "The Naming of the Animals", over his studio door; and

Jim Woodring James William Woodring (born October 11, 1952) is an American cartoonist, fine artist, writer and toy designer. He is best known for the dream-based comics he published in his magazine ''Jim'', and as the creator of the anthropomorphic cartoon ...

, who wrote a scholarly article on him for ''

The Comics Journal ''The Comics Journal'', often abbreviated ''TCJ'', is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels. Known for its lengthy interviews with comic creators, pointed editorials and scathing re ...

''. He had an enormous influence on the early history of American

animation Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...

, second perhaps after

Winsor McCay Zenas Winsor McCay ( – July 26, 1934) was an American cartoonist and animator. He is best known for the comic strip ''Little Nemo'' (1905–14; 1924–26) and the animated film ''Gertie the Dinosaur'' (1914). For contractual reasons, he worke ...

. He was especially influential in the Disney studios after

T. Hee Thornton Hee (March 26, 1911 – October 30, 1988) was an American animator, director, and teacher. He taught character design and caricature. Career Hee worked at Leon Schlesinger Productions from 1935–36 as a character designer. He de ...

brought in a collection of Sullivant clippings to use as inspiration for the "

Dance of the Hours ''Dance of the Hours'' (Italian: ') is a short ballet and is the act 3 finale of the opera '' La Gioconda'' composed by Amilcare Ponchielli. It depicts the hours of the day through solo and ensemble dances. The opera was first performed in 187 ...

" sequence in ''

Fantasia Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...

''. His influence is also apparent in

the Walrus ''The Walrus'' is an independent, non-profit Canadian media organization. It is multi-platform and produces an 8-issue-per-year magazine and online editorial content that includes current affairs, fiction, poetry, and podcasts, a national s ...

in ''

Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creatur ...

'' and the elephants in ''

Dumbo ''Dumbo'' is a 1941 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The fourth Disney animated feature film, it is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and Harold Pearl, a ...

''. Hee continued to use these clippings as a teacher at the

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both ...

well into the 1980s. Other animators who bore Sullivant's influence were John Randolph Bray and

Books

* ''Fables for the Times'' (R.H. Russel & Son, 1896) reprinted the series "Aesop to Date" from ''Life'' * ''Sullivant's ABC Zoo'' (The Old Wine Press, New York, 1946), collection of animal cartoons

Gallery

File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-10-20) To the Aid of the Gold Reserve.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-10-20) An Imitative Fowl.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-10-13) Bring the Minister.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-09-29) No Doubt.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-10-13) An Evening's Amusement.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-09-29) In Forgiving Mood.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-08-11) Life's Patent Keely Motor Elephant Philadelphia.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-06-23) Foller Your Nose.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-05-12) The First Huckster.jpg File:T. S. Sullivant (1898-05-05) The First Pun.jpg

References

Sources cited

* Marschall, Rick. "Penmen of the Past: T. S. Sullivant". ''

Nemo, the Classic Comics Library ''Nemo, the Classic Comics Library'' was a magazine devoted to the history and creators of vintage comic strips. Created by comics historian Rick Marschall, it was published between 1983 and 1990 by Fantagraphics. ''Nemo'' ran for 31 issues (th ...

'' #1, pages 70–74.

Fantagraphics Books Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint. History Founding Fantagraphics was found ...

, (June 1983). ISSN 0746-9438 * Beiman, Nancy. "The Comic Zoo of T. S. Sullivant". ''

'' #26, pages 12–40.

, (September 1987). ISSN 0746-9438

External links

T. S. Sullivant
* *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivant, T. S. American caricaturists American cartoonists American children's book illustrators 1854 births 1926 deaths Students of Thomas Eakins Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts alumni