Amadee Wohlschlaeger

Amadee Wohlschlaeger (1911–2014) was a 20th-century American sports cartoonist in St. Louis. He was known professionally as just "Amadee" as he signed his cartoons that way. He was long-time sports cartoonist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, in an era when newspaper sports pages usually featured a prominent cartoon as an essential element of their layout.[1]

Life and career

Wohlschlaeger was born on December 3, 1911 in St. Louis and grew up in the Carondelet neighborhood in the far south of that city,[1] where he developed a passion for drawing when a small child.[2] He did not attend high school (although he did later take art classes at Washington University), starting at age 14 at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, where his father was a printer, as a copy boy earning $7.50 (about $101.37[3] in 2016 dollars) a week. In 1929 at age 17 he was hired into the paper's art department.[1]

In 1932, Wohlschlaeger took over as the artist for the Post-Dispatch's Weatherbird, which was created in 1901 and remains in continuous daily use. He was the fourth artist to draw the Weatherbird. Wohlschlaeger drew the Weatherbird, usually accompanied by a pithy observation on current events, for almost fifty years, from 1932 to 1981. His Weatherbird marked D-Day, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and many other notable events.[1]

Wohlschlaeger drew his first sports cartoon for the paper in 1936.[1] Among his contributions was his "Cardinals Camp Capers" cartoon, sent in from spring training.

In 1939 he filled in as the Post-Dispatch's editorial cartoonist, drawing caricatures of Hitler and Mussolini as well as local politicians.[1]

Wohlschlaeger drew many covers for the Sporting News, which was then produced in St. Louis and known as "The Baseball Bible".[1][4] He also drew covers for University of Missouri football programs for over thirty years,[5] and covers for the annual St. Louis Baseball Writers dinner.[4]

“ He was using a technique largely forgotten today. It was Ebony graphite and pencil on something called social board... Amadee actually learned a lot of this stuff from cartoonists in the 1890's. So you can make a direct line back from Amadee to 19th century newspapering almost. ”
— Dan Martin, Post Dispatch cartoonist dies at 102[6]

Wohlschlaeger retired in 1981.[7] He was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1992.[5]

Wohlschlaeger was married to Violet Wohlschlaeger; they had a son, Amadee Wohlschlaeger Jr.[8] Wohlschlaeger died June 24, 2014 in St. Louis County.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Michael D. Sorkin (June 25, 2014). "Amadee dies at 102; Weatherbird artist was one of the last of the great sports cartoonists". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Amadee". Mathis Jones Communications. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  3. ↑ Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Community Development Project. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
  4. 1 2 Dick Kaegel. "Renowned St. Louis cartoonist Amadee dies at 102". MLB.com. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  5. 1 2 "Missouri Sports Hall of Fame Inductee – Amadee Wohlschlaeger". Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  6. ↑ Patricia Clark (June 25, 2014). "Post Dispatch cartoonist dies at 102". Fox2. KTVI. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Amadee Wohlschlaeger's Weatherbirds". StL Today. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Services set for artist Amadee Wohlschlaeger". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. June 25, 2014. Retrieved September 4, 2016.

Publications

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