The R. F. Outcault Reader - vol. 8 no. 1

 The Burr McIntosh Monthly

by Richard D. Olson

        

One of America's first great pictorial magazines was the Burr McIntosh Monthly. The first issue was published April, 1903, and it appeared monthly until the last of the 86 issues was published May, 1910.

The magazine was primarily a collection of photographs bound by a ribbon strung through two holes near the spine so the page could be removed and framed. Its original published size was about 6 1/4" wide x 12" tall. In August, 1907 (issue #53), the magazine was changed to a larger format, about 7 1/4" wide x 12 1/4" tall. In January, 1910 (issue #82), the size was changed for the final five issues to 7" wide x 10" tall with a content that emphasized text rather than photography.

The Burr McIntosh Monthly featured the arts, but also included a variety of other themes such as sports and travel. One issue featured a cover by Alphonse Mucha, several issues carried early Coke ads, and nearly every issue had something that really captured my interest.

However, the reason I recently obtained a beautiful set of this magazine is because the work of R. F. Outcault appeared in several of the issues in a variety of formats ranging from full-page plates to small sketches accompanying text to ads for the legendary Buster Brown and His Bubble collection of prints as well as numerous other pieces of his art.

This issue of The R. F. Outcault Reader is providing a listing of all R. F. Outcault art in the magazine followed by a few representative illustrations, which are dated and may be identified in Table 1. Full page illustrations are capitalized in Table 1.

  

Table 1: R. F. Outcault References in the Burr McIntosh Monthly

## mm yyyy Description

02

05 1903 DICKEY OUTCAULT'S OPINION
03 06 1903 four small signed sketches to accompany another writer's text
04 08 1903 RICHARD F. OUTCAULT, photograph with mini-biography ad, three Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
06 09 1903 three small sketches to accompany poem ad, three Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
07 10 1903 R. F. OUTCAULT'S GOLF GIRL
08 11 1903 R. F. OUTCAULT'S HORSE SHOW GIRL
R. F. OUTCAULT'S FOOTBALL GIRL
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA VARSITY FOOTBALL TEAM 1903 ad, ten Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
09 12 1903 MRS. THOMAS BROWN AND HER SON BUSTER
THE JUGGLER ad, ten Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
10 01 1904 HAVING FUN IN THE WHITE HOUSE YARD
11 02 1904 R. F. OUTCAULT'S LEAP YEAR GIRL
12 03 1904 R. F. OUTCAULT'S AUTOMOBILE GIRL ad, ten Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
13 04 1904 six small sketches to accompany another writer's text
15 06 1904 ad, ten Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
24 03 1905 ad, ten Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
25 04 1905 ad, ten Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
31 10 1905 ad, Buster Brown Stockings
59 02 1908 ad, ten Buster Brown and His Bubble cartoons
72 03 1909 ad, THE JUGGLER print
73 04 1909 ad, THE GOLF GIRL print
74 05 1909 WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? print
75 06 1909 WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? print
76 06 1909 I'M JUST BARELY LIVIN' print
77 09 1909 I'M JUST BARELY LIVIN' print
79 10 1909 I'M JUST BARELY LIVIN' print
80 11 1909 FOOTBALL GIRL print
82 01 1910 82 01 1910 ad, FOOTBALL GIRL print
83 02 1910 83 02 1910 ad, WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? print
84 03 1910 84 03 1910 ad, WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? print (horizontal display) ad, WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? print (vertical display) ad, FOOTBALL GIRL print
86 05 1910 86 05 1910 ad, WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? print ad, FOOTBALL GIRL print

 Note: The Buster Brown and His Bubble set of postcards was also published as a portfolio of ten prints with image sizes of 9" x 11 ½" using the same black, red, green, and yellow colors used on the postcards; the portfolio was bound was a large ribbon just as the monthly magazines were bound.. These large prints are very striking and extremely rare. A few single prints, some imprinted with the name of a local automobile dealer, are in the hands of collectors. At this time, I only know of one original collection of the bound portfolio; it is in NM/M condition and very beautiful.

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Richard D. Olson, Ph.D., 40 Infinity Drive, Poplarville, MS 39470-9006
(769) 717-4077
redoak2002@gmail.com


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