Charles henry chapman biography books


C. H. Chapman

American illustrator and cartoonist (–)

This article is about the illustrator. For the seismologist, see Chris Chapman (seismologist). For the guitarist, see Charles H. Chapman.

Charles Henry Chapman (April 1, – ), who signed his work as C. H. Chapman, was a British illustrator and cartoonist best known for his work in boys' story papers such as The Magnet where the character Billy Bunter appeared. He later illustrated Bunter cartoon strips and several Bunter books published in the s and s.

Life

Chapman was born in Thetford, Norfolk, on 1 April , and attended Kendrick School in Reading, Berkshire, where he created and illustrated a school magazine, The Kendrick Comet. He studied art at the University of Reading, after which he was apprenticed to an architect. He had his first drawing published in the story paper The Captain in , and over the next ten years drew for story papers and comics including Marvel, Pluck, the Boy's Friend, Boy's Herald, Boy's Leader, Illustrated Chips, Comic Cuts, Jester, Big Budget, and Ally Sloper's Half Holiday.[1]

From to he illustrated Charles Hamilton's Greyfriars School stories, featuring Billy Bunter, for The Magnet, also drawing the magazine's covers until [1] When the comic Knockout launched in with a Billy Bunter comic strip, Chapman drew the early instalments before being replaced by Frank Minnitt.[2][3] On the death of R. J. Macdonald in he took over illustrating the Billy Bunter novels. In the s and '60s he illustrated Cassell's Billy Bunter's Own annuals.[1][4] In the mids he moved to Wingfield, Tokers Green Lane, Tokers Green, to the north of Caversham, commuting daily from Reading to London by train for many years. He died in , survived by two daughters, Dorothy and Marjorie.[5]

References

  1. ^ abcAlan Clark, Dictionary of British Comic Artists, Writers and Editors, The British Library, , pp.
  2. ^Denis Gifford, Encyclopedia of Comic Characters, Longman, , p. 26
  3. ^C. H. Chapman on Lambiek Comiclopedia
  4. ^C. H. Chapman on The Wee Web Authors and Illustrators ArchiveArchived at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^John C. Chapman, C. H. Chapman - Reflections from a grandson, Book and Magazine Collector, 1 December