Pam Allison of Auburn displayed some of her collection of Falter’s work at the museum’s annual meeting. Those included magazine covers, advertisements, book illustrations and portrait paintings. She noted Norman Rockwell referred to the Nebraskan as “America’s most gifted illustrator.” Falter drew 129 Saturday Evening Post covers, more than any other illustrator except Rockwell. Rockwell created more than 300 through more than a half century with the magazine.
Allison related Falter mostly painted from memory, sometimes using photographs. He depicted Americana with an accent of the Middle West.
Born at Plattsmouth, Falter moved to Falls City at an early age where his father established a clothing store. The artist created a comic strip as a high school student which was published in the Falls City Journal. J.N. “Ding” Darling, Pulitzer-Prize winning cartoonist from the Des Moines Register, encouraged Falter to attend art school after seeing the artist’s cartoons. The Nebraskan studied at the Kansas City Art Institute. He started his career illustrating covers of pulp magazines. The artist’s first commission was in 1933 to do three illustrations weekly for Liberty magazine. By the late 1930s, Falter acquired several advertising clients with work appearing in major magazines.
Falter enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1943, serving in the reserves and designing more than 300 recruiting posters. Additionally, he completed a series of recruiting posters for the women’s branch of the U.S. Naval Reserve and a series of 12 Medal of Honor winners for Esquire.
Allison noted from 1943 through 1962, Falter submitted monthly Saturday Evening Post cover illustrations. The first was a portrait of Benjamin Franklin, the magazine’s founder. Most were completed within a week and were primarily his own thoughts, she continued. Falter used his stepchildren as models for a 1957 Post cover and a 1959 Johnson & Johnson advertisement, Allison related.
The Post’s editors changed their cover format to photographs in the 1960s. In 1969, the Post folded for two years before it was revived as a quarterly nostalgic publication. Falter’s last cover was the Winter 1971 issue. The magazine currently is published six times annually by the non-profit Saturday Evening Post Society.
A couple of illustrations Allison highlighted were Christmas in Falls City from Dec. 21, 1946 and President Truman addressing Congress from Jan. 7, 1950. A painting from the latter was presented to Truman at the White House. It is displayed in the Truman Presidential Library and Museum at Independence, Mo.
Falter thought the Saturday Evening Post would provide him lifetime employment, Allison said. The Nebraskan turned to portrait painting and book illustrations with the decline of illustrated magazines. The 3M Company commissioned him to do six paintings, From Sea to Shining Sea, to celebrate the American Revolution Bicentennial. Falter completed more than 200 Western art paintings, emphasizing the migration from the Missouri River to the Rocky Mountains. Allison noted Falter also had a passion for jazz music, played in jazz bands and was friends with jazz musicians.
John Philip Falter Museum
It opened in downtown Falls City May 1, 2015 in the lobby of the former Richardson County Bank at 1622 Stone St. The museum features his Philadelphia studio, a collection of his Saturday Evening Post covers, original World War II paintings, book illustrations, magazine advertisements, a 30-minute documentary produced by Nebraska Educational Television, works on loan from local collectors, and a gift shop with a variety of items including historical prints, jigsaw puzzles, note cards and a coffee table book containing all of his Post covers.
