Walter Martin Baumhofer (November 1, 1904September 23, 1987) was an American illustrator notable for his cover paintings seen on the pulp magazines of
Street & Smith
Street & Smith or Street & Smith Publications, Inc., was a New York City publisher specializing in inexpensive paperbacks and magazines referred to as dime novels and pulp magazine, pulp fiction. They also published comic books and sporting year ...
and other publishers.
Baumhofer's parents emigrated from Germany. His father Henry (Heinrich) came from
Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to:
Places
* Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica
*Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany
**Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony
* Ol ...
, his mother Marie from
Hanover
Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
. He was born and grew up in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
where his father had become a clerk at a local coffee company and then, in 1918, janitor at an apartment building, a situation which enabled the family to live rent free. Graduating from high school in 1922, Baumhofer went on a scholarship to
Pratt Institute
Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York. It has an additional campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The institute was founded in 18 ...
, where he studied under
Dean Cornwell
Dean Cornwell (March 5, 1892 – December 4, 1960) was a left-handedSaunders, David. Pulp Artists: Walter Baumhofer, 2009. /ref>
On June 28, 1935, he married to the equally accomplished illustration artist Alureda Leach Baumhofer (b Aug. 20, 1903; d. 1992), nicknamed Rita or Pete. She received a Certificate in Costume and Commercial Illustration from Pratt Institute in 1925, where she met Walter. She was most active with art déco fashion and commercial illustrations in the 1920s and 1930s
Illustrations
In 1925, he began drawing interior illustrations for ''
Adventure
An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...
'' magazine. Scott suggested he submit cover paintings to pulps, and the following year his first pulp cover appeared on ''Danger Trail''. He moved on to do covers for ''
Doc Savage
Doc Savage is a fictional character of the competent man hero type, who first appeared in American pulp magazines during the 1930s and 1940s. Real name Clark Savage Jr., he is a polymathic scientist, explorer, detective, and warrior who "right ...
Dime Mystery
''Dime Mystery Magazine'' was an American pulp magazine published from 1932 to 1950 by Popular Publications. Titled ''Dime Mystery Book Magazine'' during its first nine months, it contained ordinary Mystery fiction, mystery stories, includin ...
The Spider
The Spider is an American pulp-magazine hero of the 1930s and 1940s. The character was created by publisher Harry Steeger and written by a variety of authors for 118 monthly issues of '' The Spider'' from 1933 to 1943. ''The Spider'' sold well ...
''. Joining the American Artists agency in 1937, he sold to slick magazines, including ''
The American Magazine
''The American Magazine'' was a periodical publication founded in June 1906, a continuation of failed publications purchased a few years earlier from publishing mogul Miriam Leslie. It succeeded '' Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly'' (1876–1904) ...
'', ''
The American Weekly
''The American Weekly'' was a Sunday newspaper supplement published by the Hearst Corporation from November 1, 1896, until 1966.
History
During the 1890s, publications were inserted into Joseph Pulitzer's ''New York World'' and William Rando ...
'', ''
Collier's
}
''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter F. Collier, Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened i ...
'', ''
Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan may refer to:
Internationalism
* World citizen, one who eschews traditional geopolitical divisions derived from national citizenship
* Cosmopolitanism, the idea that all of humanity belongs to a single moral community
* Cosmopolitan ...
'', ''
Esquire
Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...
'', ''
McCalls
''McCall's'' was a monthly American women's magazine, published by the McCall Corporation, that enjoyed great popularity through much of the 20th century, peaking at a readership of 8.4 million in the early 1960s. The publication was establishe ...
'', ''
Redbook
''Redbook'' is an American women's magazine that is published by the Hearst Communications, Hearst magazine division. It is one of the "Seven Sisters (magazines), Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines. It ceased print publicatio ...
'' and ''
Woman's Day
''Woman's Day'' is an American women's magazine that covers such topics as homemaking, food, nutrition, physical fitness, physical attractiveness, and fashion. The print edition is one of the Seven Sisters (magazines), Seven Sisters magazines. ...
''. In the 1950s he worked for men's adventure magazines, such as '' Argosy'', ''
Sports Afield
''Sports Afield'' (SA) is an American outdoor magazine headquartered in Huntington Beach, California. Founded in 1887 by Claude King as a hunting and fishing magazine, it is the oldest published outdoor magazine in North America. The first issu ...
'' and ''
True
True most commonly refers to truth, the state of being in congruence with fact or reality.
True may also refer to:
Places
* True, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States
* True, Wisconsin, a town in the United States
* ...
''.Jones, Robert Kenneth. ''The Shudder Pulps: A History of the Weird Menace Magazines of the 1930s''. Wildside Press, 2007, (p.22,46).
Fine art
In 1945, Baumhofer and his wife Alureda moved to Long Island. Retiring from freelance magazine illustration, he created portraits, landscapes and Western scenes for fine art galleries. With the decline of pulps and reader's magazines in the late 1950s and early 1960s, due to the rise of the TV as evening entertainment, Baumhofer's illustrations lost its markets. Very few illustration work is known for the 1960s and 1970s. At the end of his life in the 1980s, he was rediscovered as a celebrated master of pulp and illustration art.
Archives
His legacy, documents, correspondence, drawings, some artwork, is preserved in the D.B. Dowd Modern Graphic History Library of Washington University in St. Louis (West Campus).
Gallery
File:Baumhofer American Legion Monthly Illustration 1921.jpg, ''American Legion Monthly Illustration'' (1921) oil on canvas, 24.25 inch. x 38.75 inch.