Bruce McCall
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article or section is written like an advertisement. Please help rewrite this article from a neutral point of view. Mark blatant advertising which would require a fundamental rewrite in order to become encyclopedic for speedy deletion, using {{db-spam}}. (December 2007) |
Bruce McCall (b. 1935) is a Canadian author and illustrator, best known for his frequent contributions to The New Yorker.
Born and raised in Simcoe, Ontario, Canada, he was fascinated by comic books and showed an early aptitude for drawing fantastical flying machines, blimps, bulbous-nosed muscle cars and futuristic dioramas.
As a boy, McCall dreamed of becoming a famous illustrator.
In his memoir, Thin Ice (1997), McCall admitted that he was never good at physical activity as a boy, but could count on his mother to encourage his creativity. Bruce's father T.C. was imperious and unemotional, and left his alcoholic wife Peg without the attention she needed. Peg and the children tried to strike an attachment to him, but his stormy moods frequently pushed them aside.
Such a dysfunctional household and lonely childhood might explain McCall's reliance on humour as a means of self-expression, providing spiritual uplift during depressing times.
Without any serious technical training, McCall began his illustration career drawing cars for Ford Motor Company in Toronto in the 1950s. After several decades in advertising, he sought opportunities elsewhere in the publishing industry.
He went to New York City, and was hired by National Lampoon and made a name for himself as an artist with intelligent and whimsical humor.
He has illustrated magazine covers, regularly appearing in The New Yorker and other magazines. He has been a contributor to the magazine since 1979.
McCall is also a humourist, and has written essays on some of the social ironies of modern life. He writes frequently for the "Shouts & Murmurs" section of The New Yorker.
McCall lives on the Upper West Side of New York near Central Park.
[edit] Books
- (1982) Zany Afternoons ISBN 0-394-42683-5
- (1997) Thin Ice ISBN 0-679-76959-5 (memoir)
- (2001) The Last Dream-o-Rama ISBN 0-609-60801-0
- (2003) All Meat Looks Like South America ISBN 0-609-60802-9
[edit] With Thierry Poncelet
- (1993) Sit!: The Dog Portraits of Thierry Poncelet, art by Thierry Poncelet, text by Bruce McCall
[edit] External links
- The New Yorker Q&A
- Bruce McCall in The Nation
- New York Times profile
- Cover at National Lampoon
- Robert Fulford on Bruce McCall
- Humor article by McCall titled Getting Started
- Art Directors Club biography, portrait and images of work
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
