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Cyril Kenneth Bird (Fougasse)   - Please Let Passengers off the Car First – After All, One of Them Might be You!!

Please Let Passengers off the Car First – After All, One of Them Might be You!!

Cyril Kenneth Bird (Fougasse)   (English, 1887 – 1965)
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Why is this image in the public domain?
It was commissioned by the United Kingdom Government prior to 1971
Cyril Kenneth Bird (Fougasse)  

Cyril Kenneth Bird CBE, known by the pen name Fougasse, was a British cartoonist.

He was perhaps best known for his work in Punch magazine (of which he served as editor from 1949 to 1953) and his World War II warning propaganda posters; "Careless talk costs lives" was one of the most popular. He also designed many posters for the London Underground.

Bird was born in London on 17 December 1887, the son of Arthur Bird, a company director. He was educated at Cheltenham College and King's College London (B.Sc.). While at King's College he attended evening art classes at the Regent Street Polytechnic and at the School of Photo-Engraving in Bolt Court.

He was seriously injured at the Battle of Gallipoli during World War I and invalided out of the British Army.

Bird first contributed to Punch in 1916, while convalescing, and also contributed to several other British newspapers and magazines, including the Graphic and Tatler. His pen name was based on the fougasse, a type of mine.

As one of the best known cartoonists of the time, he was one of 170 authors who created doll-sized books exclusively for Queen Mary's Dolls' House; his illustrated verse tale, written on postage stamp-sized pages, was published as a regular-sized hardback in 2012 by the Royal Collection and Walker Books.

In the course of the 1920s and 1930s, his drawings evolved from the traditionally representational to an innovative, spare, style that was both unique and popular, featuring in many advertising campaigns as well as in magazine editorial. He became art editor of Punch from 1937 to 1949, then editor until 1953. He was the only cartoonist ever to edit the magazine. During World War II, he worked unpaid for the Ministry of Information, designing humorous but effective propaganda posters including the famous "Careless Talk Costs Lives" series. For this work he was awarded the honour of Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1946. In 1951 he was elected as Master of the Art Workers' Guild.

He illustrated and co-wrote several humorous books with W. D. H. McCullough. These included the very successful Aces Made Easy – or Pons asinorum in a nutshell, on the subject of contract bridge, in 1934, and You Have Been Warned – A Complete Guide to the Road, in 1935.

In the mid-1950s, he taught at the Christian Science Sunday School in the Sloane Square church, which has since been converted into the Cadogan Hall concert hall. He died in London, aged 77.

Since 2009 his cartoon of a butler carrying a tray has been used to illustrate the front page of British Airways' First Class menus, continuing an association with the airline which goes back to the 1930s when Fougasse penned advertising posters for BA's forerunner, Imperial Airways.

Bird married Mary Holden Caldwell on 16 September 1914.

In Collection: World War II Posters (View all 879)

Seeing it Through

Seeing it Through

Eric Henri Kennington (English, 1888 – 1960)
Are You Guilty, Your Leaky Water Tap Wastes

Are You Guilty, Your Leaky Water Tap Wastes

Anonymous
Scrap It

Scrap It

Pat Keely (English, 1901-1970)
That They Shall Not Perish from the Earth

That They Shall Not Perish from the Earth (1942-1945)

Martha Sawyers (American, 1902-1988)
Every Man to His Job – A Square Peg in a Square Hole

Every Man to His Job – A Square Peg in a Square Hole

Frank Newbould (English, 1887 – 1951)
She’s in the Ranks Too! – Caring for Evacuees is a National Service

She’s in the Ranks Too! – Caring for Evacuees is a National Service

Anonymous
Sit Tight On Them…And They Hatch

Sit Tight On Them…And They Hatch

Anonymous
You Can Help to Build Me a Gun

You Can Help to Build Me a Gun

Anonymous
Button your lip! Loose talk can cost lives

Button your lip! Loose talk can cost lives (1942)

Otto Soglow (American, 1900 – 1975)
Be a victory farm volunteer in the U.S. Crop Corps. See your principal.

Be a victory farm volunteer in the U.S. Crop Corps. See your principal. (1943)

Anonymous
Can’t You See, You Must Buy Victory Bonds

Can’t You See, You Must Buy Victory Bonds

Alex McLaren (Canadian, 20th Century)
Save to Beat the Devil!

Save to Beat the Devil!

Harold V Shaw (Canadian, 1902-1975)
Jenny on the job gets her beauty sleep

Jenny on the job gets her beauty sleep (1943)

Kula Robbins
Until He Comes Back! Buy Victory Bonds

Until He Comes Back! Buy Victory Bonds

Anonymous
The South African Red Cross Society

The South African Red Cross Society

E. Ullmann
View all 879 Artworks

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License: All public domain files can be freely used for personal and commercial projects.
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