Thrift Shop Illustration Find: The American

By Mark Kaufman

I found the August 1956 issue of The American Magazine in a thrift shop yesterday. In a letter from the publisher, the Crowell-Collier Publishing Company on page 8, they announced that this would be the final issue of this magazine. The best bits were to be continued in Colliers and Companion magazines. I’m not sure what they considered the best bits, but lots of great illustrators and designers grace the pages of this swan song issue. Shown here is a lovely period illustration by Phil Dormont and a couple of spreads of a mystery novel with seven, count ’em seven David Stone Martin illustrations. Also featured are a bunch of spots from Seymour Chwast,  and illustrations by Darrel Greene, Arthur Sarnoff, and Tom Lovell. As an added bonus there is also an article by staff writer Vance Packard of The Hidden Persuaders fame and one by Rex Stout creator of Nero Wolfe.

What a terrific and surprising find. Because of the swift and dire changes in the publishing industry and the shift to digital, fifty-four years on I suspect we won’t be able to happen upon such a treasure trove of art, design and writing.