Andrew Airpump ask'd his Aunt her ailment, Davy Dolldrum dream'd he drove a Dragon, Jumping Jackey jeer'd a Jesting Juggler, and Rory Rumpus rode a raw-bon'd Race-horse among other antics in this antique alphabet of tongue twisters. Originally published in 1836, this charming collection of whimsical rhymes was redesigned 100 years later by some of the twentieth century's most celebrated typographers. The artists volunteered their services and worked independently of each other, resulting in a captivating pastiche in which the verses are rendered in a variety of typefaces and accompanied by woodcuts, line drawings, and other black-and-white illustrations.
[Title Page] BRUCE ROGERS. Born 1870, Lafayette, Ind. Designer of Books. Graduate Purdue University, B.S., 1890, honorary L.H.D., 1932. Honorary M.A. degree, Yale University, 1928. Member, art staff, Indianapolis News, 1891; designer, Indiana Illustrating Company, 1892-1894. To Boston, Mass., with L. Prang & Co., 1895. In charge of limited editions and general typography at The Riverside Press, Cambridge, Mass., 1895-1912. Independent designer in New York, 1913-1916, assisting Museum Press of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Designed Montaigne and Centaur type faces. In 1917 and later, associated with Emery Walker in London, Printing Adviser, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England, 1917-1919. Printing Adviser, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass., 1920 to date. In charge of limited editions and fine printing at The Printing House of William Edwin Rudge, Mt. Vernon, N. Y., 1920-1928. Among his many distinguished books are The Riverside Press editions of: The Essays of Montaigne, 1902-1904; i, 1904; The Song of Roland, 1906, and Geofroy Tory, 1909. The Centaur (Montague Press), 1915.The Grolier Club editions of: Franklin and His Press at Passy, 1914; Of the Just Shaping of Letters, 1917; The Pierrot of the Minute, 1923; Champ Fleury, 1927, and Fra Luca De Pacioli, 1933. Ancient Books and Modern Discoveries (Caxton Club, 1927). The Odyssey of Homer (Emery Walker, Ltd., 1932). His masterpiece is the magnificent Lectern Bible (Oxford University Press, 1935). Awarded Gold Medal of The American Institute of Graphic Arts, 1925, âfor distinguished achievement in typography.â An honorary member of the following clubs: Book Club of California, San Francisco; Club of Odd Volumes, Boston; John Barnard Associates, Cambridge, Mass.; Caxton Club, Chicago; Quarto Club, New York; Grolier Club, New York; Double Crown Club, London, England.
In addition to designing the TITLE PAGE of this edition, Mr. Rogers has also been responsible for AMBLING AMPERSAND, page 53.
[Introduction] HARRY MILLER LYDENBERG. Born 1874, Dayton, Ohio. Director of The New York Public Library. Harvard College, A.B., 1897. Cataloguer, Lenox Branch, N.Y.P.L., 1896; in charge manuscripts, N.Y.P.L., 1896-1899; Assistant to Director, N.Y.P.L., 1899-1908, Chief Reference Librarian, N.Y.P.L., 1908-1927; Assistant Director, N.Y.P.L., 1928-1934. Author: History of The New York Public Library, 1923; Life of John Shaw Billings, 1924; Paper or SawdustâA Plea For Good Paper For Good Books, 1924; The Care and Repair of Books (with John Archer), R. R. Bowker Co., 1931. Editor: Archibald Robertson, Lieutenant-General, Royal Engineers, His Diaries and Sketches in America, 1762-1780, 1930.
[Preface] PETER BEILENSON. Born 1905, New York, N.Y. Proprietor, The Walpole Printing Office (printing) and, with Mrs. Beilenson, The Peter Pauper Press (publishing), both of Mount Vernon, N.Y. College of the City of New York, 1925; Printing House of William Edwin Rudge, 1926-1928; Press of the Woolly Whale, 1928-1929; Village Press (Frederic W. Goudy) parts of 1927 and 1928. With Edmund B. Thompson founded Walpole Printing Office, 1929. Notable books designed: Batouala (Limited Editions Club, 1932); An Immoral Anthology, 1933; Prelude to Man, 1936.
[A] JOHN S. FASS. Born 1890, Lititz, Pa. Vice-President in charge of design and production, The Harbor Press, New York. Worked in a country newspaper office until after the War, then in various shops in Philadelphia and New York, including The Printing House of William Edwin Rudge. Notable books designed: Arabia Infelix and Other Poems (Fountain Press, 1929); The Study of Incunabula (Grolier Club, 1933); Typee (Limited Editions Club, 1935); Nursery Rhymes of New York City, illustrated by Ilse Bischoff, 1931; The Other Don Juan, illustrated by Steele Savage, 1932; and A Trip to the Prairies, 1934, the latter three printed and published by The Harbor Press.
In addition to designing the ANDREW AIRPUMP page of this edition, Mr. Fass has also been responsible for the typography of the HALF TITLE, INTRODUCTION, CONTENTS, HYMN, A NOTE ON THIS BOOK, WHOâS WHO, and the INDEX OF TYPE FACES pages.
[B] JOSEPH BLUMENTHAL. Born 1897, New York, N.Y. Director, The Spiral Press, New York. Cornell University, class of 1919. Designer of the Spiral type, now being cut by English Monotype, to be known as Emerson. Instructor in Printing Design and Production at the New School, New York. Notable books designed: The Day of Doom (Spiral Press, 1929); Collected Poems of Robert Frost (Random House, 1930); The Lyrics of Francois Villon (Limited Editions Club, 1933); Poems of W. H. Auden (Random House, 1934); A Further Range (Henry Holt and Co., 1936), etc.
[B] FRITZ EICHENBERG. Born 1901, Cologne, Germany. Artist, Illustrator, Wood Engraver. Studied art in Cologne, Germany, 1918-1923, and at The Academy of Graphic Arts, Leipzig, 1923-1925, specializing in wood-engraving, lithography and etching. For eight years staff artist, The Ullstein Press, Berlin. Illustrated German editions of Gulliverâs Travels and Till Eulenspiegel (Feuer Verlag, Leipzig, 1923); Crime and Punishment (Singer Verlag, Leipzig, 1924); as well as various modern childrenâs books for Schneider Verlag, Leipzig, 1925-1931. Contributed articles and drawings to Uhu, the German satirical periodical. Travelled extensively as a correspondent for various magazines and newspapers in England, France, Italy, Austria, Guatemala and Mexico. A collection of his woodcuts is in the Bibliographic Museum of Leipzig. Member American Artistsâ Congress; conducting workshop in Illustration at the New School, New York.
[C] GEORGE F. TRENHOLM. Born 1886, Cambridge, Mass. Artist and Designer, studio in Boston. Educated in Somerville, Mass., designed headbands, initials and decorations for school paper. Early work in art department for a color printing concern, then an engraving house. Studied under Charles E. Heil, the Boston painter; Votjech Preissig, in the Graphic Arts Class at Wentworth Institute; general design at The Massachusetts Normal Art School in Boston. In 1927, designed the alphabet of old style letters used in U.T.A. Apprenticeship Training course; three type faces (Trenholm Old Style, Trenholm Cursive, Trenholm Bold) for Barnhart Brothers and Spindler, and a variety of decorative ornaments and borders for the same foundry. Designed Georgian Cursive, 1934, for Machine Composition Company, Boston. In 1935, won first award (book type classification) in the contest sponsored by the Advertising Typographers of America. Member, The S...
