Good Housekeeping's Christmas Cook Book 1958

Good Housekeeping's Christmas Cook Book, ©1958. Illustrations by Davi Botts. Davi was busy during the midcentury era, illustrating many paper doll collections, not to mention other cook books. She illustrated another edition of the Good Housekeeping series of cook books: Book of Cookies. Cakes & Tortes was another one (but not GH). Her work shines off the page with joy and fun. A perfect fit to illustrate the Christmas cook book for GH, wouldn't you think? Click on each image to view it larger:


Here's a selection of various spot illos.




Fun use of the separation between the columns here.


A selection of various section headers.


Now, eggnog - that's what I'M talking about. Actually, I dig it without the alcohol. I know, I'm weird.

More links for you to clicky-click:

My Vintage Christmas set
My Vintage Cooking set
My Fun Ephemera set

and...

Vintage Cookbooks Group
Vintage Christmas: 1945-1970 Group
Midcentury Illustrated Group

Summer in Full Effect

It's here. It's definitely here and we can feel it. Summer has arrived in Portland—they say that the summer usually doesn't "officially" arrive here until around July 4th, and by golly, they're right. We're expecting temps in the 90s this week—I know that's no biggie to most of you on the eastern seaboard, but over here in the great northwest, it's kind of a big deal.

To kick it off, here's some summery vintage scans for you:


Fun Avis ad from Sunset magazine, January 1962.

At bottom:
"Now! If you want safety belts, you can have them up front at no extra charge on most '62 models."

Umm...gee, thanks, Avis!


Seattle Welcome Guide
Nice little pamphlet from the Seattle Convention and Tourist Bureau. 1959. No illustrator credit.


Dubble Bubble ad in Family Circle magazine, August 1953.


From Music 'Round The Clock, Follett Publishing Company, 1955. Illustrator is Val Samuelson.

Summer is the time for jungle gyms and freaky kids, apparently.

Ooo! Some leftover fireworks from 4th of July:


Mayflower Dairy Magic

Fun little booklet for Mayflower dairy products. No date, no illustrator credit. Thinking it's probably early 50s, based on the look and style of the photographs they have on the back cover (not shown in my Flickr or here). The little cook there is so fun. Yay! Cooking!


Anytime you've got a little cook with a wand pointing to a big star with the word CHEESE in the middle, I'm going to scan it, people.






Yay! Cottage cheese! Ice cream! Yay!

Summer is here.

Kretschmer Wheat Germ Recipes

More inspiration for you guys, this time from Kretschmer Wheat Germ, circa 1971. Even though it's dated a little later from what I normally post, the illustrations found in this little cookbooklet (yes, I made that word up) are fun, colorful and lively. It's an interesting group of illustrations here because they almost serve as a bridge from the cheerful & simplistic 50's cookbook illos to the more decorative and graphic, pen & ink style of spot illustrations seen in the late-60's and 1970's. I'm no expert on this, just a simple observation.

The Versatile (and Unknown) Lou Peters

 

 Matt, of Scrubbles fame reminded me recently of an artist that I had planned on writing about several years ago but completely forgot, thanks to the many gaps in my aging brain. Back when I was just starting to collect vintage cookbooks and booklets for all the fun and whimsical artwork that filled their pages, I noticed that I'd find some of the same books over and over again. And the Good Housekeeping Cookbook series was a big repeat offender. Like Ray Conniff albums at a thrift store, you'd see them everywhere. I began to wonder about these cookbooks: were they incredibly popular or complete duds? Surpisingly, they possessed some of the more engaging illustrations you could find within this sub-culture of art. They must've offered some mighty good money back then to the artists because each volume (there's over 20) is covered from front to back in wonderful two-color illustrations, all completely different, and -- here's the kicker for me -- all with artist credit! Unbelievable. As I began to collect this particular series, I noticed that a few had similar styles and, upon further investigating, found out that three were illustrated by the same guy: Lou Peters. These three GHK volumes have always been high on my list of favorites in this series, mainly for the sophistication that Lou put into each cookbook. And what's even more interesting for me is that each were done in a style wildly different from the other. There were some similarities as to how he posed the characters, the way that he would draw the female figure (in your typical glamorous atomic housewife way), that were unmistakable to my eye. But for the most part, the overall feel and style of each of these cookbooks were unique and original unto themselves. So who was this Lou Peters? I wish I could tell you. No one knows. Doing a Google search on the man will bring up nada. Was he a member of any illustrator society or organization? If so, there's a good chance that there'll be a bio on him. But finding this out requires time and energy -- both of which is in short supply for me. If anyone out there could help me out here, that'd be great. I'd love to know more about the guy. In the meantime, enjoy Lou's artwork for the Good Housekeeping Cookbook series in my Lou Peters Illustrations Flickr set. Here's a glance at the three Good Housekeeping cookbooks he illustrated: Click on each image to view larger. The Summertime Cook Book was the more fun of the three. The characters are more cartoony and stylized, but still infused with Lou's sophistication:

Quick 'N' Easy was the more outlandish one, with bold black used against bold colors. The lines were bigger and more harsh, in an attempt to have a more "modern" feel to the cookbook. If you notice, there's a definite attitude being expressed in the look of the women. In fact, that's Lou's stronghold -- the way he depicts the female figure in all these illustrations. There's a possible chance that he did some fashion illustration at one point?

   

 Last, but not least, is the Appetizer Book, with Lou taking a more elegant and polished approach here. His brush strokes are simple, yet refined. The colors are not as harsh in this cookbook, softened by being sponged on and set against a light gray. And every single woman looks as if they stepped out of a swank fashion magazine. The guys can't compare to the glitzy housewives in this cookbook!

 

There's more that I scanned, so check out the entire set. Check out Matt's Flickr set of The New England Cookbook that Lou illustrated. Here's a great example of how Lou expertly utilized the entire page -- great composition and excellent use of the two-color press. Also, be sure to check out fellow mid-century illustration lover Carol's Flickr -- there's more from Lou's GHK cookbooks in her Illustration/Advertising set. And please, if anyone has more information about Lou Peters, let me know. You would make me a very happy man. UPDATE: Nothing on the guy, yet. But my own mother has done some detective work, even going so far as to calling Good Housekeeping in New York. (They said that anyone who worked at GHK during the 50's and 60's wouldn't be here anymore. Umm, duh.) She also contacted the Society of Illustrators, and they don't have anything on the guy. (Thanks for the sleuth work, Mama!) There are a few more venues to try out. Does anyone have a copy of Walt Reed's Illustrator in America? If so, let me know if Lou Peters is listed. (Probably not, at this rate.) Another option: does anyone have a copy of the latest Who's Who of American Art? See if he's in that volume as well. (Again, probably not, but worth a shot.) Thanks!

My Big Fat Summer Post

Summer's approaching (although it really doesn't feel like it here, especially since I still have to wear a light jacket in the morning and evening -- what's up wit dat?) so I thought I'd kickoff the season with a nice big, fat post featuring some vintage 1950's goodies of mine. When you think of summer, outdoor cooking and grilling barbeque first come to mind, right? Right! So here's some fun (and a few quirky) items that I've collected throughout the past couple of years. And honestly, I don't know how to grill. I just love to collect these things for the crazy drawings found inside 'em. Can you blame me? (Click on each to view larger.)

The following booklet was found glued to the inside of the August 1959 issue of Better Homes & Gardens magazine, as part of a series. Some nice illustrations attributed to an "M. Trinque":











Covered Barbeque Cooking: a booklet that came with the Weber Covered Barbeque Kettle. No date or illustrator given. I wasn't digging the cover too much here, but the cool lettering was what piqued my interest. Luckily, there were some pretty cool illustrations on each page, alternating from red to yellow. Here are a few of the better ones:







Suggestions for Outdoor Cooking, from Royal Chef Grills. No mention of copyright date or illustrator. Dad's the only one with a nose in this one piece. Mommy looks...strange. And yet...a knockout. They're outside in the woods but Mom still has high heels on:



Big Boy Barbecue Book: A Picture Treasury of Barbecuing. From Tested Recipe Institute, Inc. Copyright 1956, 1957. No illustrator credit given:







And of course, this one's for all you vegetarians out there (there's plenty here in Portland). Mmmm...umm! Enjoy!



Next is: Outdoor Chef, a cookbook for grilling outdoors, copyright 1958. No illustrator credit given. A very peculiar cookbook because of the wooden cover, front and back. Probably a nice touch for the outdoorsman, I'm assuming. Also, a better chance of the cookbook not getting burned so easily if just a regular paper cover? Who knows. It's hinged on the front there, with leather binding. Nice. And cool spot illustrations to boot:







The following are two metal presentation trays from the 50's, each consisting of the same illustrations, just rearranged differently. This was obviously a set (I've seen other items with the exact same illos). If I was your average, everyday obsessive collector, I'd probably have the entire set by now. But I have a life, you see. (Modeled with grace and style by everyone's favorite hula girl.)





And now, I'm happy to end this massive summer outdoor cooking barbeque post with....The Grillette! A magnificent mini grill complete with briquettes and charcoal lighter fluid, all neatly packed up tight and ready for on-the-go outdoor grilling. Perfect for that "I haven't got the time or money for a big grill" husband who prefers to cook his choice steak on miniature grilling stands. A pretty nifty idea, probably best used in impromptu camping situations I'm guessing. Anyway, this sweet little doo-dad set me back a mere $10. Nice. It's now a part of my office decor. Behold:



Look, it's handy:




Check it out -- when you pull off the cardboard cover, it looks like this:


Then, presto! Instant grilling!


Here's what you get:



To see more of The Grillette and more illustrations from the various cookbooks mentioned above, be sure to check out my Vintage Outdoor Cooking Flickr set. Fresh! Hot off the grill!

Okay, that's it! Go have fun in the sun, kids. Don't burn yourself now, ya hear?