In the United States at midcentury—a time of few opportunities for women in general and even fewer for African American women—Jackie Ormes (1911-85) blazed a trail as a popular cartoonist with the major black newspapers of the day. Jackie Ormes chronicles the life of this multiply talented, fascinating woman. Ormes's cartoon characters (including Torchy Brown, Candy, Patty-Jo, and Ginger) delighted readers of newspapers such as the Pittsburgh Courier and Chicago Defender and spawned other products, including an elegant black doll with a stylish wardrobe and "Torchy Togs" paper dolls in the funny papers. Ormes was a member of Chicago's black elite, with a social circle that included the leading political figures and entertainers of the day. Her politics, which fell decidedly to the left and were apparent to even a casual reader of her cartoons and comic strips, eventually led to her investigation by the FBI during the McCarthy era. The biography's more than 150 illustrations include photographs of Jackie Ormes and a large sampling of her cartoons and color comic strips, including some furnished by cartoonist and cartoon historian Tim Jackson. Her work provides an invaluable glimpse into American culture and history, with topics that include racial segregation, U.S. foreign policy, educational equality, the atom bomb, and environmental pollution, among other pressing issues of the times—and of today's world as well. Nancy Goldstein became fascinated with the story of Jackie Ormes while doing research on the Patty-Jo doll. She has published a number of articles on the history of dolls in the classical world and the United States. Visit the author's website at: www.jackieormes.com "In the first book devoted to Ormes, Goldstein not only recounts with enthusiasm the trailblazing cartoonist's remarkable story . . . but also keenly analyzes Ormes's influential cartoons and the role black newspapers played in the struggle for racial equality. With a generous selection of Ormes's forward-looking cartoons resurrected for the first time, this is one exciting and significant book. Viva Jackie Ormes."
—Booklist "Imagine if the only images of black people in the thirties, forties, and fifties were those in the mainstream media! Thank you, Jackie Ormes, for telling it like it was and recording it all with consummate grace, humor, and style. Ormes paved the way for me and we traveled many of the same paths—working as a journalist, struggling to make a way in the 'man's world' of cartooning, and addressing in our cartoons a range of issues still with us, even fifty years later. The importance of this book is immeasurable. Nancy Goldstein's commitment to uncovering Jackie's story—one that was clearly endangered—and providing this comprehensive collection of her work is nothing short of magnificent."
—Barbara Brandon-Croft, cartoonist and author of Where I'm Coming From "Double Trouble. . . . Jackie Ormes could draw like an angel, tell a great story, slyly insert a comment on racial inequity, and throw in a few sexy frocks, all with panache. The mainstream papers missed a lot by not having Ormes in their pages, but her community benefited by having an incredible artist tell their stories, undiluted by those same mainstream papers. This book fills in a missing historical connection for all of us who love comics and cartoonists and need to have all our stories told. Little girls, pick up your pens—start your strip now!"
—Nicole Hollander "I am so delighted to see an entire book about the great Jackie Ormes! This is a book that will appeal to multiple audiences: comics scholars, feminists, African Americans, and doll collectors."
—Trina Robbins, author of A Century of Women Cartoonists and The Great Women Cartoonists |
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Author Events Tuesday, February 9
7:00 p.m.
Ypsilanti District Library
Community Room
Ypsilanti, MI Sunday, March 21
3:00 p.m.
Brown Foundation
Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site,
Topeka, Kansas Tuesday, June 15
Cartoon Art Museum, San Francisco Saturday, June 19
Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center,
Santa Rosa, California
On the Web 1/12/2009: Read a review on Paul Gravett.com 11/14/2008: Read an article about the book on the Philadelphia Tribune 10/6/2008: Listen to an interview on WICN New England 9/19/2008: Read a review in the Women's Review of Books 8/19/2008: Read an article about the book on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 7/31/2008: Listen to a story on NPR's All Things Considered 4/24/2008: Read a review on Seeing Indigo 2/4/2008: Read an article about the book on Publishers Weekly 3/30/2008: Read a review on The New York Times Book Review 3/28/2008: Read a review on Joy Hog! 3/14/2008: Read a review on Scrubbles.net 2/17/2008: Listen to an interview with Nancy Goldstein on WBEZ, Chicago Listen to an interview with Nancy Goldstein (MP3) Read a Q&A with Nancy Goldstein (PDF)
Also of Interest
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