Edwin tunis
- Edwin Burdette Tunis (1897–1973) was an American painter, mural artist, book illustrator, radio announcer, actor, theater set designer and author.
- Follow Edwin Tunis and explore their bibliography from Amazon's Edwin Tunis Author Page.
- Edwin Tunis, author and artist, was born on December 8th, 1897.
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Edwin Tunis Collection
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Collection
Identifier: CLRC-1622
Scope and Contents
The collection contains five original black and white illustrations for the nonfiction children's book Frontier Living, written and illustrated by Edwin Tunis.
Dates
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use in the Elmer L. Andersen Library reading room.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection may be protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials. Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provision of the copyright law.
Biographical / Historical
Edwin Burdett Tunis was born in Cold Spring Harbor, New York in 1897. He attended the Maryland Institute of Art and Design and became a noted author and illustrator of children's books, most of which focused on history or the beginnings of industry. Frontier Li
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Archives West Finding Aid
The Edwin Tunis papers consist primarily of children's book production material and correspondence. The production material for each book may include research sketches, original illustrations, outlines, holograph drafts, drafts, dummies, printer's copies, galley proofs, page proofs, layouts, paste-ups, publicity materials, reviews, and sample book jackets. In most cases, the book publishing process is represented completely, from preliminary research materials to final galley proofs and page layouts.
Some personal papers are also represented, which include articles, bookplate sketches, Christmas cards and biographical material.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Authors, American--20th century
- Children's literature, American--Authorship
- Illustration of books--United States--20th century
- Illustrators--United States
Form or Genre Terms
- Book illustrations
- Book jackets
- Correspondence
- Dummies
- Galley proofs
- Manuscripts f
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In 1943, the McCormick Company commissioned Tunis to paint a “History of Spices” mural in its Baltimore harbor office. It was 145’ long and took him two and a half years to finish. While researching the subject, he discovered “there was no one book which recounted the whole basic story of the development of ships in a simple way that might interest young people.”
“An outline, a dummy, some pages of text, and one finished illustration went to a literary agent who sold Oars, Sail and Steam within a week, he said”
It was published in 1952, launching fifty-five-year-old Edwin Tunis on a brand new career.
Other books followed: Weapons, 1954; Wheels, 1955; Colonial Living 1957; Indians, 1959; Frontier Living, (a Newberry Medal Honors winner), 1961; Colonial Craftsmen, 1965; Shaw’s Fortune, 1966; The Young United States, ( runner-up for the National Book Award), 1969; Chipmunks on the Doorstep, 1971; The Tavern at the Ferry, (an A.L.A. Notable Book), 1973.
Tunis believed that “illustrations should be as pleasing as the illustrat
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