Lot 65: (ART.) CAMPBELL, E. SIMMS.

Series of 6 camera-ready pen-and-ink comic strips for "Phantom Island," each an 8-frame strip, on sheets measuring 14x23 inches; most with portion of tissue overlay sheets with directions to the printer. New York, 1940-45 E. Simms Campbell is best remembered for his "naughty" Esquire girls. He attended New York's Art Student's League together with his good friend Romare Bearden in the 1930s. He was the first openly known Black cartoonist working for mainstream white publications in an era when segregation was still commonplace. His artwork appeared in every issue of Esquire from 1933 to 1958. Beyond his success drawing sexy young damsels for the mainstream white press, Campbell penned a number of comic strips for the consumption of a purely Black audience. Such a comic strip was "Phantom Island" which combined Captain Hook style pirates with enemy submarines, battling it out for truth, justice, and the American way.