 |
The Party Wire
|
This Norman Rockwell painting, entitled The Party Wire, appeared on the cover of Leslie's on the March 22, 1919 issue...
(continued)
This was the sixth cover by Rockwell to appear on Leslie's and the only one in 1919. Only six Rockwell covers were published by Leslie's from 1916 to 1919. Rockwell only submitted to this smaller magazine after the bigger publishers had declined to publish the cover illustration.
Rockwell's preference and his first choice of publication was The Saturday Evening Post. He believed, and his career showed, that the cover of the Post was America's biggest showcase window for artists.
If you like The Party Wire, here is our list of Norman Rockwell magazine covers. There you will find links to all the magazine covers that Rockwell painted.
The Party Wire
Well, it would appear that there were no private telephone calls in rural America in 1919.At that time, and even later, the party wire was how most telephone service was provided. In the United States, before World War II, party lines were the usual way that residential telephone customers accessed local phone service.
The party wire was handy in case of emergency, such as fire.
However, privacy on the telephone was virtually non-existent with a party wire.
This lady has apparently just overheard something. Whether she is shocked, amazed or merely amused, her facial expression conveys speechlessness. We do not know whether she accidentally picked up the telephone receiver on purpose or not. We do, however, know that she can hang it back up any time she pleases.
Apparently, she gets some enjoyment out of being shocked! Hang up the phone, lady...
(continued)
Search Google for More Norman Rockwell Art
Graphics Protected by Digimarc.
Contact us for permission and details for using our content on your website.
The only thing required is a link back to this page.
