(Photo: IMDB)
By Mark Celli
Robert McGinnis, one of the most prolific and talented artists to date to date, passed away on March 10th at the age of 99. Simply calling McGinnis an “artist” doesn’t give him justice. He has been a creative force of nature for over 40 years, and his work has permeated pop culture like most others.
McGinnis, a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, quickly became apparent, and he studied art at Ohio State University before joining the Merchant Marines during World War II. After the war, he was an apprentice at Disney, but was quickly drawn into the difficult world of New York’s promotion when Gotham was there. The heart of the profession. He found a piece depicting paperback covers, a huge market of the time. (It’s enough to buy a house and raise a family.) Magazines called and he provided art for Playboy, Time, Saturday Evening Post and more. His distinctive style and talent for female figures quickly caught the eye of Hollywood, and McGinnis painted the iconic artwork of 1961 Tiffany’s breakfast Film poster. Four years later, he painted the portrait of Sean Connery on the James Bond’s big hit Thunderball. United artists and Eon Productions have returned to him (and illustrator Frank McCarthy, who often collaborated). for You only live twice, in the secret service under Her, Diamonds allow you to live and die forever, Man with a golden gun others. Apart from 007, McGinnis explained important art Barbarella, semi-toughMatt Helm movie, Woodyrren Sleeping car And the non-eon 1967 spoofing version Casino RoyaleNot to mention many others. His favourite was his paintings of Walter Massau and Jack Lemon from the 1968s. Strange couple. When the Hollywood art director left the illustrations in favor of Photoshop images, McGinnis was once again going to paint the book’s cover, mainly for the hard case crime version. Hollywood returned him last in 2004 Incredible. (Sadly, his incredible art has not been used theatrically and was only produced as a limited run for Disney/Pixar executives.) He also returned to his passion for painting images of the Old West, becoming one of the genre’s most important artists.
Surprisingly, McGinnis was completely ecstatic at his great success, quietly robbing his deal in a small studio in Greenwich, Connecticut. As Don Smolen, the legendary Bond-age art director at UA, once said, “Bob is the only one who doesn’t believe Bob is a genius.”
The verdict of the film-going public has been around for a long time. And yes, Robert McGinnis is a genius and his work lives longer than all of us.
(Click here to learn more about Robert McGinnis.)
