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One of the few Homer Davenport sporting cartoons with vignettes I have found. Davenport was really the first popular Americana newspaper sporting cartoonist, before Swinnerton, Dorgan and all the rest. George Dixon was a Canadian pugilist. He was the first black world boxing champion in any weight class (the heavyweight champion title was strictly reserved for white men until the era of Jack Johnson), while also being the first ever Canadian-born boxing champion. Ring Magazine founder Nat Fleischer ranked Dixon as the #1 Featherweight of all-time. New York Journal, Sept 26, 1896
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I love the sports cartoons of the early strip cartoonists and political cartoonists. They were uninhibited, fun, probably often done while drunk, and really capture the spirit of those early fights. Davenport was often challenged as an artist, for instance with anatomy, but it is hard not to appreciate the fun and the spirit of this cartoon!
ReplyDeleteGreat to see your newest post, John! (from Alan C.)
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