Who is that guy and why does he pop up on the cover of the New Yorker every once in a while? His name is Eustace Tilley and he looks like this
:
He was drawn in 1925 for the first cover of the magazine by Rea Irvin. He is clearly a dandy. He seems to show typical signs of being an aristocrat, schooled in looking haunty and used to being "above" and better than just about anyone. If he is the typical uppercrust guy, he is well-educated and can probably speak more than one language, maybe more than two. We can assume that he is wealthy. In the old days, he would be schooled in swordsmanship and might be a good shot, as with a dueling pistol.His speech, clothes, language and mannerisms run against the grain of egalitarian, middle-class
America and that is just the way he likes it. But be warned: if he takes a liking to you, you can expect to be charmed by his intelligence and wit, if not his assumptions about wealth and the world.
The New Yorker is running its 6th annual Eustace Tilley contest. 49 pages of images have been submitted. The current, modern version of a New York dandy, today's Eustace, can be viewed here. Note the tattoo on his neck.
My favorite of the submissions I looked at is on p.2, lower right corner, titled A Dandy Daddy. It seems up-to-date and a sign of the times. I think the 1925 Eustace would be quite surprised.
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Bill
Main blog: Fear, Fun and Filoz
Main web site: Kirbyvariety
