Artist, caricaturist and illustrator Sam Norkin has passed away at the age of 94. Sam’s seven decade career centered around theater caricature and his work was published in major newspapers across the U.S.
For more than seven decades, Mr. Norkin depicted and described the performing arts in America through his sketches and artworks. During his long career, he created more than 4,000 published drawings of theater, dance, opera, jazz, pop, circus and classical music. He was also a writer, lecturer and noted raconteur. His first sale was a 1940 drawing of Alfred Hitchcock directing “Mr. and Mrs. North” that ran in the New York Herald Tribune – it netted him the princely sum of $15.00.
Sam was a real New York guy. One of the group of cartoonists that were at all the NCS functions in NYC when the NCS was headquartered there. I joined in 1977, and met Sam that year. He was gifted, easy to talk to, shared experiences and how to’s easily, a very easy person to look up to when I was getting started. His hippo drawing as well as his Streisand among the most reprinted. Sam always had time to share his art for a benefit or any charity. I am reminded how lucky and blessed I’ve been to have been around long enough to have known the ” old guard” in the NCS . Sam, like so many real pros and heroes of mine has now have passed on… But they also passed on a great legacy of professionalism and friendliness as well as the lifetime portfolio of
terrific work. As you can tell by reading this, it was a pleasure to have known Sam Norkin.