Ben Denison, In His Own Words: Part 5

Ben Denison was a Chicago illustrator during the mid-20th century. For a time before his death, Ben and I corresponded about his career. Unfortunately, due to Ben's failing health, our correspondence was cut short before Ben had managed to tell me his whole story. Recently Ben's daughter Mary shared some recollections of her dad's career and some rare examples of his work with me. Here at last is the conclusion of Ben Denison's story. ~ Leif

Mary Denison...

I don't know if he told you, but Dad was also a pretty good Dixieland cornetist. I've included a photo of him, probably taken by Ray Boldt.



Sometime during this era, in the late 50's early 60's, Ben was working at an illustration job in Chicago for Stevens, Biondi, DeCicco Art Studio. While he was at that job he was commissioned to paint "the Stations of the Cross" for St. Isaac Jogues - a Catholic Church in Niles, Illinois.



I truly believe these were his greatest work of art. They were written up in the Chicago Tribune Magazine and greatly admired.



From Ben's notes...

I was able to use the studio facilities and work on paintings whenever I didn't have a "paying job" to do. Just about everybody at SBD in Chicago posed for the 'the Stations'. Andy Aldridge was Jesus...



Lucia Lerner posed for Mary and two of the women of Jerusalem...



Elie Kalan for another and for Mary in the Pieta.



Fank Kalan was Simon of Cyrene.



Vince Salerno, Pontius Pilate.



Bill Baker, George Lopac, Eddy Augustiny and Alfredo Carrugatti were soldiers.



I was working at SBD's studio in New York City when I finally finished The Stations of the Cross. It was a job that I'd had three years to accomplish though, as usual, I ended up working all night the night before they were shipped off to Chicago to be framed, hung and dedicated.



During the time I worked on The Stations, Father Spring, the pastor of the parish, was very concerned that my paintings might be too modern. He on several occasions brought around church officials to check out the work.



I was still doing work for Playboy at that time - the sports car cartoon series...



... and they had run a double page spread of them with my picture and the caption "The Sporty Sporting Ben Denison."



Father Spring showed up at the house one evening, with a Bishop in tow who he introduced to me as the priest in charge of the art department at Notre Dame University. The Bishop looked me over when Father introduced me and said, "Ah, so this is the Sporty Sporting Ben Denison?!"

I was never sure who was supposed to be embarrassed about that.



He was very knowledgeable man who knew as much about illustration as he did gallery art. He was very complimentary about my paintings and I have to admit that I was very pleased and Father Spring's concerns were mollified.

I sound very casual about this but in actuality it was a very moving experience to have done these paintings.


Mary Denison...

In 1970, Ben took a job with John Deere advertising as the head of photography in hopes of making a better and more regular income. By 1973, he was on his own again. He was tiring of photography and returned to illustration.



One company I remember he and mom working for was Houghton Mifflin (text books). I remember seeing his illustrations in my childhood textbooks. I would always look in the back at the list of illustrators' names and find his drawings.



Dad's "Stations of the Cross" paintings were wonderful to look at as a child while I sat through a Latin mass I didn't really understand- all the time wondering about what my father was thinking while he painted those beautiful pictures.



I do remember later in life, he would joke that those paintings were his ticket into heaven.


(Ben Denison in later years with a series of his Dixieland-themed paintings)


* Many thanks to Mary Denison and the other members of the Denison family for their tremendous generosity and assistance in helping me bring Ben Denison's story together. ~ Leif

* Thanks to Heritage Auctions for allowing me to use the scan of Ben Denison's Playboy cartoon in this post.

Ben Denison, In His Own Words: Part 4

Ben Denison was a Chicago illustrator during the mid-20th century. For a time before his death, Ben and I corresponded about his career. Here is the 4th excerpt from our email exchange... ~ Leif



One lunch time, had to be in summer or early Fall 1953, I went down to the McConnel's Restaurant on the first floor of our building, took a table for two, ordered whatever and was eating, when this skinny dark haired guy with a pipe in his mouth asked if he could share my table. He sat down and we chatted a bit. I asked his name and he said, "Hugh Hefner. You?"

I introduced myself and asked the great question: "What d'ya do?" The conversation went on about him quitting Esquire magazine and how he was going to start his own publication in direct competition. Of course I had always wanted to be a famous magazine illustrator so after lunch I took him up to Stevens,Gross and showed him my samples.




And away we went. At that time he had an office across the street from the Catholic Cathedral. Irony: He rented the office space from the church.



For the first issue he had acquired two plum pieces. The first was the Marilyn Monroe photographs and second was Ray Bradbury's "Farenheit 451". Of course I did the illustrations, the first in line...



... and a second in color.



[Ben also produced the cartoon below for the first issue of Playboy ~ Leif]



After a year and a half at SG, Stephens, Biondi, DeCicco offered me a larger split and I moved a few blocks away.



When I first started with SBD, they were on the second floor of the post office on Huron or Erie & St. Clair. There my room mate was Arnie Kohn. Arnie was one of the Chicago School Artists, I'd met him in Chicago while I was freelancing there. He kept getting jobs away from me. We moved to Ohio Street and a much larger space.



We did lot of modelling for each other at SBD. In my illustration below, that's Bill Baker and his son on the left. The next was the mailman. The next was the maintenance man at the studio and the next was Phil Davies, a salesman. Don't remember the client.



Bill Baker, Lucia, Danny Toigo, Andy Aldridge, Eddie Augustiny, Araldo Carrugati, Carl Kock, Will Nelson, George Lopac, Reno Biondi of course. Reno could paint foam on a glass of beer and/or moisture on a bottle that would get your hands wet just looking at it.

(Below: advertising art by Reno Biondi, Collier's magazine, 1954)

(Bill Baker, 1951)

(Lucia, 1955)

(Eddie Augustiny, 1967)

(Carl Kock, 1964)


Frank DeCicco was a marvelous and resourceful salesman and the two of them made a great pair to work for. The Stevens of SBD was Barry Stevens who ran the New York office, which I'll get to later.



Below: A joint party between SBD and Steve Heiser Photography in the post office building just after I had started. The people on the upper left are Frank DeCicco (Frank may have had a drink or two too many - he was usually much more serious), Danny Toigo, Carl Kock and a pretty lady.



The band was (left to right) Eddy Augustiny on brushes, Ben Denison on cornet (I have learned to wear longer sox since), Al Getz, sales man, on accordian, Russ Enriques, salesman, on guitar.

Ben Denison, In His Own Words: Part 3

Ben Denison was a Chicago illustrator during the mid-20th century. For a time before his death, Ben and I corresponded about his career. In this 3rd excerpt from our email exchange, Ben recalls friends and acquaintances from his early days at Stevens,Gross Studios... ~ Leif

Earl Gross, a feisty dapper, super salesman & friend.


(Above: photo of Earl Gross, co-owner Stevens Gross art studio, below, SG trade ad, 1953)


My room mates at SG were Bob Addison and Bob Abbett, both marvelous talents.



Abbett, I can't find him on the internet but last I heard he was doing wild life and western art and was doing very well.

(Below, illustration by Bob Abbett from Reader's Digest Condensed Books, 1964)


Addison, besides his commercial work, did gallery paintings of circus scenes and churches and later a series of silk screen print of country houses.

(Below, illustration by Bob Addison from Childcraft, The How & Why Library, 1964)


They both had photographic memories, musically and artistically, and they were both entertaining and interesting. Wonderful guys. We were the trouble makers of the studio.

(Below, illustration by Ben Denison, date unknown)


Among the other's were H. Charles McBarron, who did military illustration.



We all posed for each other. In top photo forgotten SG salesman and me dead or dying...



... McBarron directing the battle.



Bottom: same salesman and me over the parapets.




Babe Jacobson: Chicago school oil painter I can't find!

Johnny DeLoy: Quit art and became a mail man.

Joyce Ballantyne was there of course.

(Below: detail from the SG trade ad shown above, illustration by Joyce Ballantyne)


... her husband, Eddie Augustiny was at Kling's.

(Below: Eddie Augustiny illustration, 1968)


Kling studio was east on Ohio.



Paul Wagener is the best artist I have ever known, but at Gross was in production and at Encyclopedia Brittanica an art director. Paul was a Captain of a Naval ship in the Pacific during WWII and is still living and drawing, sculpting and painting in Marietta Georgia. He just had his 90th birthday.

Austie White and the Sundblom studio was just around the corner.




Al Buehl's apprentice, Frank Kalan, a wonderful NYC illustrator - did really sweaty bodice ripper book covers. Frank was a best friend and took photos at Jackie and my wedding.

(Below, a Frank Kalan book cover from 1965)


Gil Elvgren was nearby.

(Below: Gil Elvgren pin-up, c. 1940s?))


Tom Hall, Hank and Marilyn Conover were dear friends. Artists whose names I can't remember in and out of Gross Studios.

(Below: Tom Hall illustration c. mid-1950s, bottom, Marilyn Conover book cover)



But most interesting was meeting Hugh Hefner and Art Paul, editor and art director of what was to become the Playboy magazine!

That comes on my next dispatch.

Next: Playboy and Stephens, Biondi, DiCicco