June 25, 2007
J.B. Handelsman, 1922-2007
The cartoonist
John Bernard (Bud) Handelsman, a longtime contributor to
The New Yorker,
Punch and
Playboy known for the intelligence of his writing and the range of his intellectual interests,
died on June 20 after a brief period of struggle with advanced lung cancer. He passed away at his home in Southampton, New York.
Handelsman was born in New York City in 1922, studied at the Art Students League and New York University, and served the in the Army during World War II. He married in 1950.
Moving to Great Britain, Handelsman began his cartooning career in earnest with sales to
Punch. He would write the "Freaky Fables" feature for the print humor institution for 11 years. While in Britain he began to develop American clients including
The New Yorker, where he developed a reputation for having a gentle touch regarding political and cultural issues and for being one of the best writers the magazine ever employed as a cartoonist.
The New Yorker's own
memorial piece in the latest "Talk of the Town" indicates that between 1961 and 2007 Handelsman drew around 950 cartoons for the magazine, in addition to five covers.
A slideshow is available here. As a book illustrator, he is perhaps best known for his work on the John Cleese/Robyn Skynner books
Families and How To Survive Them and
Life and How to Survive It. He also illustrated a number of children's history books for Scholastic.
He and his wife returned to New York in the early 1980s after their children had grown. He apparently
took part in the famous
New Yorker cartoonists lunches.
J.B. Handelsman is survived by his wife, Gertrude, a daughter, two sons, and multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A memorial service will be held this summer.
posted 3:18 am PST |
Permalink
Daily Blog Archives
November 2019
October 2019
September 2019
August 2019
July 2019
Full Archives