George Ernest Studdy (Devonport, 23 June 1878 – 25 July 1948) was a British commercial artist. He is best remembered for his creation of Bonzo the dog, a fictional character in the early 1920s that first appeared in The Sketch Magazine.
George E. StuddyBonzo, on a postcard
Biographyedit
Studdy was born on 23 June 1878, in Devonport, Devon, England.[1] He was the second of three children of Ernest and Constance Studdy. His father was a lieutenant in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.[1] During his childhood, his foot was accidentally pierced by a pitchfork, which later prevented him from following his father into the army.[1]
He pursued his education at Clifton College, Bristol,[2] and then Dulwich College in London[1] while living with his aunt. He left the College and England in the summer of 1896.
He worked as a stockbroker with the Thames Iron Works.[1] He had always dreamed of going back to school, so with £100 given to him from his aunt, he attended night classes at the Heatherley School of Fine Art in London to study drawing as well as studying animal anatomy at Calderon's Animal School.[1]
After art school, he shared a studio with several friends from art school while working to complete a portfolio. He was able to sell a few of his sketches to local newspapers and magazines. A few newspapers later commissioned Studdy to draw action scenes to go along with articles on the Boer War.
In 1900, as Studdy's sketches started to gain popularity, Comic Cuts, Boys Own Weekly and Pick-Me-Up began to publish Studdy's sketches regularly. It was about this time that he started his long relationship with Valentine & Sons postcards of Dundee. One of the first set they published was a series of six sketches called "The Evolution of the Motor Car".[3]
In 1912, Studdy married Blanche Landrin. That same year he signed a contract with The Sketch to produce a weekly full-page drawing.[4]
When war broke out, he was commissioned by Gaumont to produce a series of short films called Studdy’s War Studies. Studdy later introduced Bonzo into his sketches.
His Bonzo character was a chubby little white pup with sparse black spots, a stubby tail, and big blue eyes. Bonzo became the inspiration for much commercial merchandise, such as cuddly and mechanical toys, ashtrays, pincushions, trinket boxes, car mascots, jigsaw puzzles, books, calendars, candies, and a profusion of postcards.
Bonzo's massive popularity allowed Studdy and his wife to live a very comfortable life until he died in 1948.[3][5][6][7]
Referencesedit
^ abcdefBryant, Mark; Heneage, Simon (1994). Dictionary of British cartoonists and caricaturists, 1730-1980. Scolar Press. pp. 211–212. ISBN9780859679763.
^Oakeley, E. M. (1897). Clifton College Annals and Register, 1860–1897. J. W. Arrowsmith. p. 168.
G. E. Studdy's Files on Collections Numérisées website, Cité Internationale de la bande dessinée et de l'Image, France
January 01, 1970
george, studdy, george, ernest, studdy, devonport, june, 1878, july, 1948, british, commercial, artist, best, remembered, creation, bonzo, fictional, character, early, 1920s, that, first, appeared, sketch, magazine, bonzo, postcardbiography, editstuddy, born, . George Ernest Studdy Devonport 23 June 1878 25 July 1948 was a British commercial artist He is best remembered for his creation of Bonzo the dog a fictional character in the early 1920s that first appeared in The Sketch Magazine George E Studdy Bonzo on a postcardBiography editStuddy was born on 23 June 1878 in Devonport Devon England 1 He was the second of three children of Ernest and Constance Studdy His father was a lieutenant in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders 1 During his childhood his foot was accidentally pierced by a pitchfork which later prevented him from following his father into the army 1 He pursued his education at Clifton College Bristol 2 and then Dulwich College in London 1 while living with his aunt He left the College and England in the summer of 1896 He worked as a stockbroker with the Thames Iron Works 1 He had always dreamed of going back to school so with 100 given to him from his aunt he attended night classes at the Heatherley School of Fine Art in London to study drawing as well as studying animal anatomy at Calderon s Animal School 1 After art school he shared a studio with several friends from art school while working to complete a portfolio He was able to sell a few of his sketches to local newspapers and magazines A few newspapers later commissioned Studdy to draw action scenes to go along with articles on the Boer War In 1900 as Studdy s sketches started to gain popularity Comic Cuts Boys Own Weekly and Pick Me Up began to publish Studdy s sketches regularly It was about this time that he started his long relationship with Valentine amp Sons postcards of Dundee One of the first set they published was a series of six sketches called The Evolution of the Motor Car 3 In 1912 Studdy married Blanche Landrin That same year he signed a contract with The Sketch to produce a weekly full page drawing 4 When war broke out he was commissioned by Gaumont to produce a series of short films called Studdy s War Studies Studdy later introduced Bonzo into his sketches His Bonzo character was a chubby little white pup with sparse black spots a stubby tail and big blue eyes Bonzo became the inspiration for much commercial merchandise such as cuddly and mechanical toys ashtrays pincushions trinket boxes car mascots jigsaw puzzles books calendars candies and a profusion of postcards Bonzo s massive popularity allowed Studdy and his wife to live a very comfortable life until he died in 1948 3 5 6 7 References edit a b c d e f Bryant Mark Heneage Simon 1994 Dictionary of British cartoonists and caricaturists 1730 1980 Scolar Press pp 211 212 ISBN 9780859679763 Oakeley E M 1897 Clifton College Annals and Register 1860 1897 J W Arrowsmith p 168 a b Fitzpatrick George Ernest Studdy George e Studdy biography George Studdy s Bonzo Bonanza Tales of a Superstar Dog 12 December 2016 BFI Screenonline Studdy G E 1878 1948 Biography External links editGeorge Studdy and Bonzo Dog reference website G E Studdy s Files on Collections Numerisees website Cite Internationale de la bande dessinee et de l Image France Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title George E Studdy amp oldid 1184361104, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
