James Swinnerton is one of the most creative, respected, and prolific comic artists from the first half of the 20th century. Yet to the disappointment of classic comics lovers, his work has seen little reproduction. Until now. This sumptuous volume covers Swinnerton’s six-decade career in comics, from his beginnings as a sports/editorial cartoonist for William Randolph Hearst in San Francisco to his years in the America’s Southwest desert, where his love for the land and its people came through in his comics and illustration.Swinnerton is an excellent storyteller offering a cinematic style with humor that is both slapstick and sophisticated. At the forefront is his long-running Little Jimmy comic strip. This namesake character began by mixing satire of New York society with stories of rural America. He then took the characters on the road to South America, Mexico, and then settling for many years in Swinnerton’s beloved Southwest. Also included in this book are his early one-shots and series like the rakish Mr. Jack and the anthropomorphic Mt. Ararat, and his 1940s stylized comic of the modern West, Rocky Mason.Swinnerton was famous for more than just comics. He wrote and illustrated the charming feature “The Canyon Kiddies” and similar titles for weekly magazines. In his later years he became known as a premier painter of desert landscapes. All of these are featured in this book.Jimmy! includes an illustrated biography by Paul C. Tumey and essays by co-editor Michael Tisserand, Eddie Campbell, and Donald Phelps. The comic strips in this volume are carefully restored to their original colors and printed at near-full size. As a bonus, the book also includes a set of four Swinnerton postcards featuring his main characters, facsimiles of the originals from 1906, ready for mailing. Swinnerton lovers will be delighted by the richness and variety of the works seen here. Those new to this uniquely American artist will likely join the growing numbers who appreciate his important role in the history of the comics.
