Jackie Ormes: The First African American Woman Cartoonist

by Nancy Goldstein, Jackie Ormes (Contributor)

At a time of few opportunities for women in general and even fewer for African American women, Jackie Ormes (1911–85) blazed a trail as a popular cartoonist with the major black newspapers of the day. Her cartoon characters (including Torchy Brown, Candy, Patty-Jo, and Ginger) delighted readers and spawned other products, including an elegant doll with a stylish wardrobe and “Torchy Togs” paper dolls. Ormes was a member of Chicago’s black elite, with a social circle that included the leading political figures and entertainers of the day. Her cartoons and comic strips provide an invaluable glimpse into American culture and history, with topics that include racial segregation, U.S. foreign policy, educational equality, the atom bomb, and environmental pollution, among other pressing issues of the times—and of today’s world as well. This celebrated biography features a large sampling of Ormes’s cartoons and comic strips, and a new preface.

 

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction, Comics, Art, African American, Womens

240 pages, Hardcover

First published February 21, 2008

Reviews

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a biography and retrospective presentation of the work of Jackie Ormes, a cartoonist for Black publications in the 1930’s, 40’s and 50’s. Her work featured strong female characters who, like herself, were stylish, smart and have the period’s pin up girl image. The many reproductions of the comics showcase her art.

Her first foray into commercial comics, “Dixie to Harlem” ran in the Pittsburgh Currier and its regional affiliates making Ormes the first Black nationally distributed cartoonist. This four panel strip ran for a year in the 1930’s. It was followed by “Candy” a single panel rendering of a wise-cracking, maid. Both characters were savvy and glamorous.

Ormes’s longest running series (1945-1956) was Patty-Jo ‘n’ Ginger. Patty-Jo is a precocious 5 year old who lives with her adult sister. The cartoon is a single panel with detail beyond what you normally see in newsprint. The text is not a bubble, but a single line beneath the box commenting on issues of the day: Brown v. Board of Education, Emmitt Till, wages, the McCarthy HUAC hearings, nuclear weapons, the Korean War, Polio and the March of Dimes as well as everyday life. The accompanying annotations are excellent noting the issues, message as well as the art’s detail such as the upscale clothing (i.e. Dior) and furnishings (i.e. Haywood-Wakefield).

From 1950-1954 a color supplement of comics carried the “Torchy in Heartbeats” series for which Ormes refashioned Torchy from her 1930’s series. The stories, told in color panels, are typical of the genre. The first in the sample begins “Torchy, deeply in love with Dan but unable to stop his march down the path of crime, sees him slain in a raid on a gambling casino and packs her bags”. The strips sometimes ended with high fashion paper dolls (“Torchy Togs”) designed and described by Torchy who calls to readers to “get out your scissors and dress me up.” Many of these strips are lost since supplements were not always microfilmed.

After a summary of Ormes's life and work there is the final chapter on Ormes’s FBI file showing J Edgar Hoover’s institution to be squandering tax payer dollars.

Author Nancy Goldstein came to Ormes through her interest in dolls. Ormes was a pioneer in what we call today – brand extension. She created a Patty-Jo doll and promoted it and its clothing through the cartoon. She also marketed her characters on Christmas tree bulbs.

The text has excellent documentation with notes. There is good index and a super bibliography. The participating libraries and institutions are credited for offering their comic boxes and strips available for this publication.

Highly recommended, especially for those interested in comics.

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

A dry but informative biography of a pioneering cartoonist.

The best part of the book is the generous sampling of Ormes' cartoons from her four major comic strips that appeared from the 1930s through 1950s. Most of the selected strips are humorous gags or romantic soap opera, but some are politically based criticism of very specific events that require explanation by the author to help make sense of them.

Nancy Goldstein came at the project from an interest in the Patty-Joe doll that was licensed from Ormes' Patty-Jo 'n' Ginger comic panel, so there are a lot of details about Ormes' involvement with the Terri Lee company that didn't do much for me.

My interest in Ormes comes from two recent picture books:
• Holding Her Own: The Exceptional Life of Jackie Ormes by Traci N. Todd and Shannon Wright
• Jackie Ormes Draws the Future: The Remarkable Life of a Pioneering Cartoonist by Liz Montague

I hope someday someone is able to produce a definitive collection of all Ormes work that does justice to the glamorous and independent women she showcased.


FOR REFERENCE:

Contents: Preface -- Introduction -- Chapter 1. Small-Town Roots, Big-City Ambitions -- Chapter 2. The Chicago Years -- Chapter 3. Newspapers, Comic Strips, Cartoons -- Chapter 4. Torchy Brown in "Dixie to Harlem" -- Chapter 5. Candy -- Chapter 6. Patty-Jo 'n' Ginger -- Chapter 7. Torchy in Heartbeats -- Chapter 8. The Patty-Joe Doll -- Conclusion -- Correcting the Record -- Excerpts from the FBI File of Jackie Ormes -- Notes -- Selected Bibliography -- Acknowledgments -- Index

[PoligirlReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm giving this a five, not due to the quality of the writing (that's about a 3/3.5), but because of Goldstein's effort to bring a relatively unknown vanguard back to public attention.

This book suffers from a lot of problems: rambling, disjointed paragraphs, stilted writing style, a poor layout, etc. She is hardly a disinterested writer--at times she turns very fan girl. I attribute a lot of that to the fact she's got pretty limited sources. One of her primary ones is Ormes' own sister, so it's not great, but it does make sense.

I can overlook all of this, because the subject matter, Jackie Ormes, is so fascinating. Journalist, cartoonist, society lady, subject of an FBI investigation, Ormes led an incredible life, and I am grateful to Goldstein for being able to uncover so much with so little existing evidence.

Her background is in dolls and doll history, and that comes across readily in her description of the Patty-Jo doll.

I, for one, feel horrified and ashamed that Ormes does not get the attention she deserves. Hopefully this book changes that.

[Allan]

While it s not unusual that I had never heard of Jackie Ormes, it is unfortunate. I have always been interested in the early days of comic art and have read many histories of comic books and cartooning without coming across her name.[return][return]Why is Jackie Ormes so important? Not only was she an entertaining African-American cartoonist, but she was also an important contributor to the American civil rights movement by making sure her voice was heard in the best way she knew how. She was never afraid to confront prejudice and racist bigotry in her strips, but remained entertaining while she did it. Her work at different times appeared in the Chicago Defender and, later, the Pittsburgh Courier, a paper that had regional editions and delivered news, opinion and Jackie s cartoons to the African American family from coast to coast.[return][return]In 1945 she began what is arguably her best, and certainly most political work, Patty-Jo n Ginger. The precocious and politically wise Patty-Jo was able to speak the truth as honestly as perhaps only Boondocks and Doonsbury have mastered today, and certainly in a much more volatile era. The single panel cartoon expounding on taxes, labor strikes, McCarthyism, and the vagaries of abstract art, as well as fashions and relations between the sexes was an outlet for Ormes frontline political voice, leading eventually to her being investigated by the FBI during the McCarthy Inquisition.[return][return]Jackie Ormes was always interested in fashion and in 1950 she created Torchy in Heartbeats, a multi-paneled feature that ran for four years of adventure and romance and included, as a bonus, fashion paper dolls called Torchy s Togs.[return][return]Nancy Goldstein s book is very well researched, despite the lack of documents such as personal letters, letters to editors or articles and essays about her cartooning. The book is a pleasure to read and I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the work of Jackie Ormes, the first African American woman cartoonist.

[Demetria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cool book. The life of an African American female cartoonist in the mid-twentieth century may or may not sound interesting to you, but Nancy Goldstein does a great job of bring the story of Jackie Ormes to life. There are a lot of black "firsts" that are little known and this is one of those really interesting stories of a true trailblazer. Definitely worth the read.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a somewhat lackluster treatment of a fascinating and important woman.

First, the positives: Jackie Ormes, who worked as a cartoonist in the black press for nearly three decades, definitely is past due for a full book-length treatment. Because her work was mainly single-panel cartoons, and because she did not work in the mainstream press, Ormes has often been overlooked in discussions of the history of comics and cartooning. It's wonderful that this has been remedied. The book is a thing of beauty, as well; nice glossy pages, big margins, and a large enough format that the sometimes-muddy reproductions of Ormes' art (muddy because they have been reproduced from microfilm, not due to any fault of the author) are intelligible and as clear as possible. There are eighty reproductions of Ormes' popular "Patty-Jo n' Ginger" single-panel comic, as well as representative samples of her serial comics "Dixie to Harlem" and "Torchy in Heartbeats."

Nancy Goldstein's writing, however, is pedestrian, and she frequently repeats the same information. The first section of the book, a biography of Ormes, is something of a slog because of this. Perhaps the biggest problem, from my perspective, is that Goldstein originally came to the topic of Ormes' life through interest in doll collecting and the Patty-Jo doll. Thus, Goldstein's analyses of Ormes' talents and role as an artist are pretty shallow, and frequently glossed over in favor of discussion of the fashions displayed in the comics and information about the Patty-Jo doll. The book tends to feel a bit like it's neither fish nor fowl; the biography is pretty sketchy, the art isn't deeply analyzed, and even the interesting historical and sociological aspects of the Patty-Jo doll are often glossed over.

In all, I would tend to think of this book as a good start. Ormes deserved the book-length treatment, and perhaps this volume will spark interest in her life and artwork, giving rise to better books in the future.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have so much respect for the research that was done to tell the story of Ormes. I hope more information comes to light to further tell her story! The writing was very dry but I pushed through knowing it's importance and how hard the author worked to collect the information.

[Annette · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received Jackie Ormes: The First African American Woman Cartoonist by Nancy Goldstein as part of the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program. It took several weeks to get the book, so I decided it must have gotten lost. When it finally arrived in the mail, the book was warped and seemed to have been wet. I was a little disappointed. The accompanying letter was soiled too, so it must have happened in the mail. [return][return]The cover was attractive so I looked forward to jumping into the reading experience. Although the book was well-researched, it lacked many of the primary source documents I would expect from a book focused on a cartoonist's life. She describes cartoons rather than showing them. She talks about locations in Chicago rather than showing a map or photos of a particular location. She talks about many of the African American newspapers, but never shows a sample cover or page.[return][return]Ormes' work reflects the political and cultural atmosphere of the times (1937-1956) including environmental issues, the Cold War, women's roles, and racial segregation. As an African American woman, Jackie Ormes was able to speak directly to these issues through characters like Torchy Brown and Patty-Jo. In the Patty-Jo 'n' Ginger section of the book, the author did an excellent job of providing narrative to describe the background and political climate associated with each cartoon. However I was disappointed that the first section of the biography contained very few of Ormes' cartoons. Instead, selected cartoons were presented within chapters associated with specific characters. Because so many of Orme's cartoons reflect the particular era, it would have made sense to integrate them into the story of her life. Or, another approach would have been sections related to the key issues of the time and how her cartoons reflected these topics. Instead the book felt like a standard biography followed by a report about each character. [return][return]Being a fan of sequential art of all types, I found it odd that there was little focus on Ormes' technique as an artist. For instance, more time was spent discussing her doll collection than her interesting technique of incorporating paper dolls into her comic strips.[return][return]Although the book was informative, it was not very engaging. However as a fan of biography and sequential art, I enjoyed learning about Jackie Ormes' life and works.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

"In spite of the possibility that the FBI might use her art against her, and at considerable risk to her privacy, Ormes continued to express her outrage at foreign and domestic policy, racism, and class bigotry. Had the FBI scrutinized the cartoons, there strong polemical messages alone may have spurred investigation. Patty-Jo' n' Ginger and the last year of Torchy in Heartbeats especially communicate such messages in gag and storylines that now seem forward looking, such as arguing for equal education and environmental activism. Other cartoons boldly criticized U.S. weapons programs, American military adventurism, and government encroachment on privacy and on freedom of speech." Before I saw Jackie Ormes featured in a Google Doodle I had never heard of her. I was curious about her career and so I got this book from OPL. Turns out Ormes has a Nebraska connection: the dolls for her Patty-Jo comic were manufactured in Lincoln, which made Lincoln kind of progressive back in the day. I don't know why we don't talk about Ormes more. Her work seems important in the world of comics for a variety of reasons. The artwork in Torchy is a little too busy for me, but the Patty-Jo one panel comic takes Family Circus to town.

[Ayanna Dozier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nancy Goldstein’s tremendous biography on the work Jackie Ormes is a must buy for anyone who is slightly interested in comics and Black studies. Ormes was the first published Black woman cartoonist in the United States. Ormes is also notable for the creation of some of the first comic strip narrative representations of Black women in her strips, Torchy Brown in Dixie to Harlem (1937-8), Patty-Jo ’n’ Ginger (1946-54), and Torchy Brown in Heartbeats (1950-4). Goldstein balances biography with cultural analysis of Ormes life to help contextualize the socio-culture difficulties that Ormes went through as a Black woman cartoonist in the 1930s through the 1950s. Moreover, the book also houses a sample of Ormes’ work for the viewer to read which is a tremendous addition to an already fantastic study on Ormes. Goldstein’s biography is by no more complete, but is instead a wonderful introduction on an under examined cartoonist.

[Sean Kottke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first heard of Jackie Ormes via a September 1, 2020 Google Doodle celebrating her life and works (check it out at https://www.google.com/doodles/celebr...). That was just the hook for me to seek out more about her, and this book was a terrific find. Packed into this volume is a generous collection of Ormes' cartoons, as well as a remarkable resurrection of Ormes into the histories of women cartoonists, African-American cartoonists, mid-century modern design & fashion, the African-American press, and the doll industry. I've been reading critiques of ELA curriculum violence, that is, ways in which attempts to disrupt the canon too frequently center Black pain and trauma, rather than Black joy. This book provides a great source of artifacts and leads on texts to center Black joy.

[Melisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really struggled with this one. As interesting as the subject matter is, the writing was lackluster and repetitive. There didn't seem to be a clear focus; at first, it seemed vaguely chronological, with quite a few asides. Then another chapter would start somewhere in the middle of the history and repeat a lot of information alrwady given (or worse, conteadict information already given!), with a few more facts thrown in. It actually reads like four or five different biographical essays written by different people. It lost my attention quickly and often. I did enjoy reprints of Ormes' comic strips and the explanation that accompany them.

[Billy Hogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent look at one of the rare African-American female comic strip artists during the era of segregation. Ormes was not only a talented artist, but also a civic minded citizen who did charity worl and was very much involved with the Civil Rights Movement.

[Abby Frye · Rating 4 out of 5]

With book was full of so much information about what sounds like an incredible lady. While I enjoyed all the comics and pictures in the margins the paragraphs of added information in that space was a bit distracting for me at time.

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s great gems of information in this book, but it’s bogged down with a lot of unnecessary details. That said, the specific details about Jackie Ormes and the inclusion of her fabulous comics make it worth the read!

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting! Jackie Ormes was a talented artist/cartoonist,

[Allan · Rating 4 out of 5]

While it’s not unusual that I had never heard of Jackie Ormes, it is unfortunate. I have always been interested in the early days of comic art and have read many histories of comic books and cartooning without coming across her name.[return][return]Why is Jackie Ormes so important? Not only was she an entertaining African-American cartoonist, but she was also an important contributor to the American civil rights movement by making sure her voice was heard in the best way she knew how. She was never afraid to confront prejudice and racist bigotry in her strips, but remained entertaining while she did it. Her work at different times appeared in the Chicago Defender and, later, the Pittsburgh Courier, a paper that had regional editions and delivered news, opinion and Jackie’s cartoons to the African American family from coast to coast.[return][return]In 1945 she began what is arguably her best, and certainly most political work, Patty-Jo ‘n’ Ginger. The precocious and politically wise Patty-Jo was able to speak the truth as honestly as perhaps only Boondocks and Doonsbury have mastered today, and certainly in a much more volatile era. The single panel cartoon “expounding on taxes, labor strikes, McCarthyism, and the vagaries of abstract art, as well as fashions and relations between the sexes” was an outlet for Ormes’ frontline political voice, leading eventually to her being investigated by the FBI during the McCarthy Inquisition.[return][return]Jackie Ormes was always interested in fashion and in 1950 she created Torchy in Heartbeats, a multi-paneled feature that ran for four years of adventure and romance and included, as a bonus, fashion paper dolls called Torchy’s Togs.[return][return]Nancy Goldstein’s book is very well researched, despite the lack of documents such as personal letters, letters to editors or articles and essays about her cartooning. The book is a pleasure to read and I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the work of Jackie Ormes, the first African American woman cartoonist.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found out about Jackie Ormes while doing some research on Aaron McGruder & his comic strip The Boondocks; a Salon article describes Ormes' Patti-Jo as Huey's ancestor. That was the hook that led to amazing information and revelations about this pioneering African American woman cartoonist in the 30's, 40's and 50's. And now I love all of them: Ormes, Patti-Jo, Huey & McGruder--each fearless crusaders for racial and social justice.

My sophomores were geeked to learn about her, too: she's cool, they said. I primarily used this book for historical context for a few Patti-Jo 'n' Ginger comics so that they could practice making inferences; it was a great way for them to start to understand satire, too. We read an article about how she used her comics to "defy persistent derogatory images of black women and children"--it took a long time for them to unpack what that means, but it was important work (all around).

I wish I had the patience for straight up biography, so I have to admit only reading this in bits and pieces. I love that Goldstein, a historian of dolls, stumbled upon Ormes' unexplored story and put this together. Someday, when I'm retired and have patience to pay attention to the entirety of other people's lives, I'll come back to this once to fully digest the entirety of Ormes' intriguing life and work.

[James Crabtree · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book looks at the life and art of Jackie Ormes, a pioneering African-American cartoonist. Her artwork, as presented in this book, is good and she had practice in both single panels and strips. She also had a good handle on the humor end of cartooning, although some of her jokes do need a little explaining (which the book does).

While it is understandable that Ms. Ormes would be politically active during the period, some of the cartoons are definitely left-wing. What is frustrating is the author's interpretation of the communist subversion of the 1950s... "ACCUSED of membership in the CP" is a typical tag. The only concession that Ms. Goldstein makes to the likes of Noel Field, Alger Hiss and the Rosenbergs is the idea that FBI investigations into spies was "rarely" true. So, Ms. Ormes had an FBI file. She was hardly the only one.

Ms. Ormes' attitudes were no doubt common within the African-American community. With her sharp pen, I wonder how critical she would be of many of the race hucksters who prey on that community today. In any case, this book doesn't really look at that.

The book does look at Ormes' line of Patty Jo dolls as well.

[Teddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Born in 1911 there wasn't many good job opportunities for women, let alone black women but that didn't stop Jackie Ormes. From 1937 to 1956 Ormes created four cartoon and comic series for African American newspapers. Then from 1945 to 1956 she created the Patty-Jo 'n' Ginger cartoon which appeared in the Pittsburgh Courier. This lead to the creation of the Patty-Jo doll which, were very popular back in those days.

Nancy Goldstein became interested in Jackie Ormes while she was researching the Patty-Jo doll. Almost forgotten, especially by non-African American's Goldstein came across old cartoons in her research and became fascinated with Jackie Ormes.

Goldstein covers Jackie's life from childhood in a easy to read...

Read my full review here:

http://teddyrose.blogspot.com/2009/01...

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jackie Ormes is an interesting subject. I had no prior knowledge of her or her accomplishments and happened to run across her name (I have no idea where or how). I was fascinated because I had never heard of a female cartoonist, let alone an African American one. Ormes's work was produced during segregation so she had no national audience but was relegated to the "negro newspapers". At some point she was labeled a Communist and "watched" by the FBI (information on that is included in this book).

Some parts of this book are slow and deal with things that are not about Ormes herself but overall I would recommend it just for the fact that she is the only African American female cartoonist of her time.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who knew? I had never heard of Jackie Ormes until reading a review for this book in BUST magazine. She was, as the subtitle states, the first African American woman cartoonist. An extremely gifted artist, she was also known for the satirical political commentary. A true activist, she was also under suspicion during the McCarthy era.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating read about a woman almost totally overlooked by history. Some reviewers have been grouchy about the style in this book, but I applaud the author wholeheartedly. It must have been a huge task to track down information, photos, and original comics. I'm desperate to write a children's book about Jackie Ormes. So very grateful to Franny Howes for introducing me to this remarkable woman.

[Victoria Law · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wish there were more comics--both those Ormes created and what her fellow African-American male cartoonists were creating at the same time. But Im so glad that Goldstein wrote this book because, without it, I'd never have heard of Jackie Ormes or even have thought of African-American women cartoonists, let alone those writing with such a political slant during the McCarthy era.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jackie Ormes' story is definitely one worth telling. She's a cartooning pioneer, and I'd never heard of her until I picked up this book. I just wish Goldstein's writing had been a little stronger. Maybe now that Jackie's story is out there, someone else will pick up the ball and run with it.

[Krystie Herndon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing like learning about classy historical figures of whom you were previously unaware! This was a great story, with amazing photos and copies of Ms. Ormes's work. A super account of stellar research.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goldstein's non-objective affection for her topic can't ruin the experience of reading about this pioneering woman nor her remarkable body of work.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well-written and illustrated book about the first nationally syndicated African American cartoonist who also provided a positive influence to the black-doll making industrty.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another book to remind us that Black Americans have been making significant achievements for a very very very long time. Jackie Ormes was a phenomenal cartoonist. Fascinating.

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful--I already knew about these black goddesses from back in the day!