Friday, October 26, 2012

Abner Dean's Big Brother

Nineteen Eighty-four by George Orwell would seem an odd choice to be pictured by a cartoonist, but Life commissioned Abner Dean to illustrate its review of the famous novel in its July 4, 1949 issue.

Dean, who was known at the time as an absurdist, had several books of cartoons, not typical gag-style, but riffs on the human condition.

Two earlier articles about Dean from Life follow the Nineteen Eighty-four review.

Dean, real name Abner Epstein, was born in 1910, and died in 1982.

Copyright 1945, 1947, 1949, 2012 Time-Life Inc.









From Life, December 10, 1945:




From >Life, December 1, 1947:




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2 comments:

  1. David Miller12:08 AM

    Great piece. Abner Dean is not well known today, but made his mark in the 40s and 50s. He is hard to define. Cartoonist or satirist? Either way, very unique. Big Brother looks like Stalin. Thanks for posting.

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  2. Kirk2:25 PM

    It's interesting to see Abner Dean's stuff surrounded by the more typical Life magazine offerings. Even Orwell seems conventional compared to Dean.

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