A website devoted to the rediscovery of the works of early 20th century illustrator Henry E. Vallely (1881-1950). Perhaps best known for his chiaroscuro technique employed in Big Little Books, he also produced a large volume of work including fashion illustrations for women's magazines, spot illustrations for food periodicals, magazine covers and children's books. His art is distinctive and timeless and deserves the recognition that has until this time eluded it. Comments and contributions towards the preservation of the H. E. Vallely legacy are most welcome. All images are believed to be in the public domain unless otherwise noted.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Play Football

Although unsigned, this 1934 box cover for a Play Football board game bears all of the earmarks of a Vallely. In previous years he had illustrated two football themed dust jackets for Elmer A. Dawson's Garry Grayson series, and two years later would provide the cover for William Heyliger's tale of the gridiron, Fighting Blood. This is his first artwork for a board game that I'm aware of.

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posted by DSK at 12:09 | 4 comments

Friday, June 30, 2006

Wanna Buy a Duck?


In 1934, arguably at the height of his popularity, radio star Joe Penner was featured in his own book for Goldsmith Publishing's Radio Star Series. Similar to Big Little Books, the 64 page publication alternated pages of text by Harold Sherman with illustrations by Henry Vallely in a 5" x 5 1/8" x 1/2" format. Penner's catchphrase was "Wanna buy a duck?", hence the book's title Joe Penner's Duck Farm. This particular page (39) was acquired through eBay for just over $40 in March of 2006 - a steal!

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posted by DSK at 00:13 | 0 comments