Irving Phillips
Encyclopedia
Irving Walter Phillips (November 29, 1904 – October 28, 2000) was a noted American cartoonist, playwright, television scriptwriter, author, illustrator and educator who is best remembered for his daily newspaper comic panel The Strange World of Mr. Mum
.
Born in Wilton, Wisconsin
, Phillips began his career in show business as a violinist at the age of 17. He also played the saxophone and led his own orchestras. Phillips studied at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and freelanced cartoons to 36 different magazines during the Great Depression
. He eventually became head of the humor staff for Esquire
in the late 1930s.
Phillips scripted for motion pictures, including Song of the Open Road
(1944), which featured the film debut of Jane Powell
. Phillips also penned the Powell vehicle Delightfully Dangerous
in 1945.
For television, Phillips wrote or co-wrote more than 250 scripts, including a first-season episode of The Ruggles
(1949), one of the earliest family sitcoms on American television. He scripted plays for Matinee Theater, the afternoon anthology series telecast daily on NBC
. Phillips provided scripts and animation art for the American Broadcasting Company
children's program Curiosity Shop
(1971).
and later by the Field Newspaper Syndicate
. There was no Sunday edition until 1961. Mr. Mum was a portly, bald and bespectacled character, who—as his name suggests—silently observed various odd, surprising or even surreal scenes. He was sometimes accompanied by his similarly silent dog. Mum was described as a "bystander on life's outer limits," and the feature's anything-can-happen humor is cited as paving the way for such later strips as Herman
, The Far Side
, Rhymes With Orange
and Bizarro
. With never a word of dialog, the humor of the strip translated well internationally; this was an interesting stylistic choice given Phillips' résumé as a professional screenwriter.
After The Strange World of Mr. Mum ended, Phillips created a few dozen large, full-color paintings based on ideas from the strip. In 1979, he worked briefly on another strip, Barnaby Bungle.
did the introduction for The Best of Mr. Mum: from The Strange World of Mr. Mum (Putnam, 1965). That book was followed by The Strange World of Mr. Mum (1967) and the 92-page No Comment by Mr. Mum (Popular Library, 1971). He also wrote and illustrated a children's book, Twin Witches of Fingle Fu (1969).
His cartoons and other artwork were shown at the New York World's Fair
in 1964–1965 and at the National Cartoonist Society. His work was exhibited in solo shows at “Comedy in Art” at Arizona State University
and at the El Prado Gallery in Sedona, Arizona
. In 1969, Phillips won the International First Prize and Cup of the Salone dell'Umorismo of Bordighera, Italy. In 2010, a decade after Phillips' death, his paintings and original panels were exhibited at That's Entertainment
in Worcester, Massachusetts
in a show called Mr. Mum's the Word: An Exhibit of Comic Art and Haikus. Worcester-area poets presented works based on many of Phillips' paintings.
He taught cartooning and humor writing at Maricopa Tech and Phoenix College
in Phoenix, Arizona
. Zits creators Jerry Scott
and Jim Borgman
studied under Phillips.
Irving Phillips died in Santee, California
at age 95.
The Strange World of Mr. Mum
The Strange World of Mr. Mum was a surreal humor comic panel by Irving Phillips which was published from 1958 to 1974. At its peak, it appeared daily in 180 newspapers in 22 countries. Initially distributed by the Hall Syndicate, it was later handled by the Field Newspaper Syndicate. A Sunday...
.
Born in Wilton, Wisconsin
Wilton, Wisconsin
Wilton is a village in Monroe County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 519 at the 2000 census. The village is located partially within the Town of Wilton and partially within the Town of Wellington.-Geography:...
, Phillips began his career in show business as a violinist at the age of 17. He also played the saxophone and led his own orchestras. Phillips studied at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and freelanced cartoons to 36 different magazines during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. He eventually became head of the humor staff for Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
in the late 1930s.
Phillips scripted for motion pictures, including Song of the Open Road
Song of the Open Road
Song of the Open Road is a 1944 musical comedy film directed by S. Sylvan Simon, from a screenplay by Irving Phillips and Edward Verdier.-Overview:...
(1944), which featured the film debut of Jane Powell
Jane Powell
Jane Powell is an American singer, dancer and actress.After rising to fame as a singer in her home state of Oregon, Powell was signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer while still in her teens...
. Phillips also penned the Powell vehicle Delightfully Dangerous
Delightfully Dangerous
-Cast:*Jane Powell as Sherry Williams*Ralph Bellamy as Arthur Hale*Constance Moore as Josephine 'Jo' Williams / Bubbles Barton*Morton Gould as Himself - Bandleader*Arthur Treacher as Jeffers, Hale's Butler*Louise Beavers as Hannah, Jo's Maid...
in 1945.
For television, Phillips wrote or co-wrote more than 250 scripts, including a first-season episode of The Ruggles
The Ruggles
The Ruggles is an early American family-oriented situation comedies. The series, broadcast live on ABC, with a few episodes recorded on kinescope, began November 3, 1949--a month after radio hit The Life of Riley moved to television on NBC---and ended on June 19, 1952...
(1949), one of the earliest family sitcoms on American television. He scripted plays for Matinee Theater, the afternoon anthology series telecast daily on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. Phillips provided scripts and animation art for the American Broadcasting Company
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
children's program Curiosity Shop
Curiosity Shop
Curiosity Shop was an American children's educational television program produced by ABC-TV in 1971, capitalizing on the success of Sesame Street....
(1971).
Cartoonist
As a cartoonist, he created the comics series Scuffy, which ran from 1945 to 1951. From 1958 to 1974, Phillips produced his best-known work, The Strange World of Mr. Mum, a pantomime panel which ran in 180 newspapers in 22 countries. It was initially distributed by the Hall SyndicatePublishers-Hall Syndicate
Publishers-Hall Syndicate was a newspaper syndicate founded in 1944 by Robert M. Hall, the company's president and general manager.Hall had worked for The Providence Journal during high school, followed by three years at Northeastern Law School and four years at Brown University...
and later by the Field Newspaper Syndicate
Field Enterprises
Field Enterprises was a private holding company founded on August 31, 1944, by Marshall Field III and others whose main asset was the Chicago Sun. That same year the company acquired the book publishers Simon & Schuster and Pocket Books....
. There was no Sunday edition until 1961. Mr. Mum was a portly, bald and bespectacled character, who—as his name suggests—silently observed various odd, surprising or even surreal scenes. He was sometimes accompanied by his similarly silent dog. Mum was described as a "bystander on life's outer limits," and the feature's anything-can-happen humor is cited as paving the way for such later strips as Herman
Herman (comic strip)
Herman was a comic strip written and drawn by Jim Unger. While the daily ran as a single panel with a typeset caption, it expanded on Sunday as a full multi-panel strip with balloons.It was syndicated from 1975 to 1992, when Unger retired...
, The Far Side
The Far Side
The Far Side is a popular single-panel comic created by Gary Larson and syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate, which ran from January 1, 1980, to January 1, 1995. Its surrealistic humor is often based on uncomfortable social situations, improbable events, an anthropomorphic view of the world,...
, Rhymes With Orange
Rhymes With Orange
Rhymes with Orange is an American comic strip written and drawn by Hilary B. Price and distributed by King Features Syndicate. The strip was first syndicated in 1995....
and Bizarro
Bizarro (comic strip)
Bizarro is a single-panel cartoon written and drawn by cartoonist Dan Piraro. Launched January 22, 1985, the panel appears daily in 350 markets throughout North and South America, Europe and Asia...
. With never a word of dialog, the humor of the strip translated well internationally; this was an interesting stylistic choice given Phillips' résumé as a professional screenwriter.
After The Strange World of Mr. Mum ended, Phillips created a few dozen large, full-color paintings based on ideas from the strip. In 1979, he worked briefly on another strip, Barnaby Bungle.
Playwright
Scripting and cartooning experiences intersected in Phillips's 1955 play called The Funnyman. The play features a cartoonist who decides to discontinue a feature called Mr. Rumple, but the Rumple character objects to being canceled. Rumple must persuade his creator to continue his existence.Author
Phillips assembled several book collections of his comic panel. HerblockHerblock
Herbert Lawrence Block, commonly known as Herblock , was an American editorial cartoonist and author best known for his commentary on national domestic and foreign policy from a liberal perspective.-Career:...
did the introduction for The Best of Mr. Mum: from The Strange World of Mr. Mum (Putnam, 1965). That book was followed by The Strange World of Mr. Mum (1967) and the 92-page No Comment by Mr. Mum (Popular Library, 1971). He also wrote and illustrated a children's book, Twin Witches of Fingle Fu (1969).
Awards and exhibitions
1964 New York World's Fair
The 1964/1965 New York World's Fair was the third major world's fair to be held in New York City. Hailing itself as a "universal and international" exposition, the fair's theme was "Peace Through Understanding," dedicated to "Man's Achievement on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe";...
in 1964–1965 and at the National Cartoonist Society. His work was exhibited in solo shows at “Comedy in Art” at Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
and at the El Prado Gallery in Sedona, Arizona
Sedona, Arizona
Sedona is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona...
. In 1969, Phillips won the International First Prize and Cup of the Salone dell'Umorismo of Bordighera, Italy. In 2010, a decade after Phillips' death, his paintings and original panels were exhibited at That's Entertainment
That's Entertainment (comic shop)
That's Entertainment is an Eisner Award-winning comics and collectibles store in Worcester, Massachusetts. Michael Warshaw concisely referred to the store in a Worcester Magazine article on 5/5/05 as "the pop culture emporium located in the ancient former auto dealership at 244 Park Ave." The...
in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
in a show called Mr. Mum's the Word: An Exhibit of Comic Art and Haikus. Worcester-area poets presented works based on many of Phillips' paintings.
He taught cartooning and humor writing at Maricopa Tech and Phoenix College
Phoenix College
Phoenix College is a community college located in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Founded in 1920, it is one of the oldest community colleges in the country....
in Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
. Zits creators Jerry Scott
Jerry Scott
Jerry Scott in South Bend, Indiana. He is an American cartoonist, co-creator of Baby Blues and co-creator of Zits.-Career:...
and Jim Borgman
Jim Borgman
James Mark Borgman is an American cartoonist. He is known for his political cartoons and his nationally syndicated comic strip Zits.-Personal:...
studied under Phillips.
Irving Phillips died in Santee, California
Santee, California
Santee is a suburban city in San Diego County, California with a population of 53,413 at the 2010 census. Although it is a part of the East County region, Santee is located just from the Pacific Ocean. The city is connected to the coastline by State Route 52, a six-lane freeway that runs from...
at age 95.