Lot 2083
John Coleman Burroughs (American, 1913-1979), Danny
Lot Details & Additional Photographs
Sight size 9 1/4 x 6 3/4 in.; Frame dimensions 18 1/4 x 14 3/4 in.
Von Lengerke & Antoine, Chicago, Illinois
Von Lengerke & Antoine (VL&A) was a premier high-end sporting goods retailer in Chicago during the early 20th century, established in 1892. Known as the "Abercrombie & Fitch of the Midwest," it was renowned for elite hunting and fishing gear, but gained notoriety for selling firearms to Prohibition-era gangsters like Al Capone's crew. It was acquired by Abercrombie & Fitch in 1928.
John Coleman Burroughs was an American illustrator born in Chicago, best known for bringing his father Edgar Rice Burroughs's literary worlds to life on the page. Growing up on the family's California estate in Tarzana, named after his father's most famous creation, John showed an early talent for art and storytelling before graduating with honors from Pomona College in 1934. At just 23 years old, he began illustrating his father's books, ultimately producing over 125 illustrations for all titles published during the author's lifetime, as well as contributing to the John Carter Sunday newspaper strip, a Pellucidar comic book feature, and numerous Big Little Book covers. Beyond illustration, he was a writer in his own right, publishing his novel Treasure of the Black Falcon through Ballantine Books in 1967, and also created photography, Hollywood studio artwork, and wartime illustrations for Douglas Aircraft Company. Though Parkinson's disease curtailed his prolific career in his final years, his legacy as the artist who most vividly visualized his father's iconic fictional universes endures.
Toning and mat burn to the sheet, not examined outside the frame.
