Bruce Minney
Encyclopedia
Bruce Minney is a prolific American artist who has worked in a variety of media. He was a commercial illustrator for over 40 years producing paintings for men’s adventure
magazines, paperbacks, and storyboards. Later he moved to ceramics and won numerous awards for his efforts. His most recent work includes collages and paintings.
.
After graduation, he married his high school sweetheart, Doris Schulz, and worked as a fireman in Orinda, CA as he tried to launch his art career.
In 1955, he packed his wife, his 4-year old daughter Carole, and all their belongings into a 1950 Plymouth and drove cross country to New York. Doris got a job in advertising with Doyle, Dane, Bernbach, while Bruce stayed home with his daughter and created samples. Eventually, he hooked up with Eddie Balcourt, a well-known artist's representative, and began his career as a professional illustrator.
Minney did many credited and uncredited illustrations for Stag, For Men Only, Male, True Action, Man’s World and many others published by Magazine Management.
He also did all the interior illustrations for the short-lived Space Science Fiction Magazine
magazine.
As the 60s wore on and US involvement in Vietnam increased and magazines like Penthouse became more explicit, circulations for the men’s adventure magazines dropped and jobs were harder to come by. One of the last men’s adventure magazine illustration Bruce did was for National Lampoon
in November 1970. This illustration is a brutal, acerbic parody in the men’s adventure style set in Vietnam.
Grosset & Dunlap, Avon, Fawcett, Harlequin, Ace, Pinnacle, Manor Books, and Pyramid
. Among the titles he illustrated were: The Lone Ranger series Horatio Hornblower
series, and Windhaven series.
Men's adventure
Men's adventure is a genre of magazines that had its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s. Catering to a male audience, these magazines featured glamour photography and lurid tales of adventure that typically featured wartime feats of daring, exotic travel or conflict with wild animals.These magazines are...
magazines, paperbacks, and storyboards. Later he moved to ceramics and won numerous awards for his efforts. His most recent work includes collages and paintings.
Early Life and Career
As a child, Minney loved to draw and after graduating from Oakland High in 1946, he was accepted by the California School of Arts and CraftsCalifornia College of the Arts
California College of the Arts , founded in 1907, is known for its broad, interdisciplinary programs in art, design, architecture, and writing. It has two campuses, one in Oakland and one in San Francisco, California, USA...
.
After graduation, he married his high school sweetheart, Doris Schulz, and worked as a fireman in Orinda, CA as he tried to launch his art career.
In 1955, he packed his wife, his 4-year old daughter Carole, and all their belongings into a 1950 Plymouth and drove cross country to New York. Doris got a job in advertising with Doyle, Dane, Bernbach, while Bruce stayed home with his daughter and created samples. Eventually, he hooked up with Eddie Balcourt, a well-known artist's representative, and began his career as a professional illustrator.
Minney did many credited and uncredited illustrations for Stag, For Men Only, Male, True Action, Man’s World and many others published by Magazine Management.
He also did all the interior illustrations for the short-lived Space Science Fiction Magazine
Space Science Fiction Magazine
Space Science Fiction Magazine was a US science fiction magazine published by Republic Features Syndicate, Inc. as part of a package of radio shows and related genre magazines. Two issues appeared, both in 1957. It published stories by well-known writers, including Arthur C...
magazine.
As the 60s wore on and US involvement in Vietnam increased and magazines like Penthouse became more explicit, circulations for the men’s adventure magazines dropped and jobs were harder to come by. One of the last men’s adventure magazine illustration Bruce did was for National Lampoon
National Lampoon
National Lampoon was both a ground-breaking American humor magazine and also a wide range of productions directly associated with that magazine. The magazine ran from 1970 to 1998, and was originally a spinoff of the Harvard Lampoon....
in November 1970. This illustration is a brutal, acerbic parody in the men’s adventure style set in Vietnam.
Paperbacks
From 1969 - 1986, Minney created over 400 paperback illustrations in oils and acrylic forGrosset & Dunlap, Avon, Fawcett, Harlequin, Ace, Pinnacle, Manor Books, and Pyramid
Pyramid
A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge at a single point. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, meaning that a pyramid has at least three triangular surfaces...
. Among the titles he illustrated were: The Lone Ranger series Horatio Hornblower
Horatio Hornblower
Horatio Hornblower is a fictional Royal Navy officer who is the protagonist of a series of novels by C. S. Forester. He was later the subject of films and television programs.The original Hornblower tales began with the 1937 novel The Happy Return Horatio Hornblower is a fictional Royal Navy...
series, and Windhaven series.
Ceramics
In the 90s and into the 2000s, Minney worked in ceramics and exhibited his works at many arts and crafts shows in California and Florida. He won the following awards:- Spring Arts Festival – Gainesville, FL – Award of Excellence
- Johns Pass Seafood Festival – Madeira Beach, FL – Best of Show
- Images Festival of the Arts - New Smyrna Beach, FL
- Lake Mary Heathrow Festival of the Arts – FL
- Central Broward Art Association – FL
- Tarpon Springs Arts & Crafts Show – FL
- Deland Fall Festival of The Arts – FL
- Florida Manatee Fine Arts Show - FL
External links
- "Oh, Those Pulpy Days of 'Weasels Ripped My Flesh'" from The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
- "Charles Copeland" reprinted from Illustration MagazineIllustration MagazineIllustration Magazine is a full-color quarterly periodical first published in October 2001 by The Illustrated Press, Inc. Edited, published, and designed by founder Daniel Zimmer, each issue features biographical articles on notable American illustrators from the Golden Age of illustration 22...
#33 - Bruce Minney Interview