1958 George White Political Cartoon of Florida and Uncle Sam
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Another Bright Spot.
The Florida State Fair and the launching of Explorer 1, the first U.S. satellite!
The Florida State Fair and the launching of Explorer 1, the first U.S. satellite!
This is a 1958 George White political cartoon of Uncle Sam distractedly and perhaps admiringly staring at Florida as the successful launch of Explorer 1 and the opening of the Florida State Fair grab his attention.A Closer Look
A gigantic Uncle Sam holding a telescope looms over the United States and stares distractedly at Florida. Two brightly-lit sites draw his attention: the successful launching of the 53rd Annual Florida State Fair and the successful launching of the first U.S. satellite, Explorer 1. Presumably using the telescope to survey the world outside the country, these two events which took place on either side of Florida were enough to hold Uncle Sam's attention (according to the Tampa Tribune at least). Explorer 1 was launched from Cape Canaveral on January 31, 1958, and the State Fair opened on February 4. A rocket that closely resembles the one that sent Explorer 1 into orbit flies past Uncle Sam, and even looks like it flies in one ear and out the other!Publication History and Census
This cartoon was drawn by George White and is stamped January 5, 1958. It was printed on the front page of the Wednesday, February 5, 1958, issue of the Tampa Tribune. As this is an original piece of artwork, this is a unique, one-of-a-kind piece.Cartographer
George White (1901 - March 7, 1964) was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and relocated to Tampa with this family in 1915. White studied art under Tampa artist Walter Collins and began work as a commercial artist at the Tampa Morning Tribune in 1928 and by 1934 was a regular cartoonist at the Tribune. Rather unconventionally, the paper featured his cartoons on the front page. His work displays the evolving course of America's domestic and geopolitics from the interwar period, through World War II, and into the Cold War. Further Details...
Condition
Very good. Manuscript.