The Dugout

Illustrator Norman Rockwell was one of the most popular artists of the 20th century, beloved in particular for the hundreds of cover images he created for the Saturday Evening Post. The Dugout is the largest of several studies for one such cover, published on September 4, 1948. It was inspired by a springtime doubleheader that he attended during which the hometown Boston Braves swept the visiting Chicago Cubs. The artist created an image contrasting dejected Cubs players and elated Braves fans. Rockwell staged the entire scene, which enabled him to take photographs for later reference. He recruited several family members of Braves players to act as fans. In the dugout, he positioned (from left to right) Cubs pitcher Bob Rush, manager Charlie Grimm, catcher Al “Rube” Walker, and pitcher Johnny Schmitz. The figure of the forlorn batboy, however, was not a member of the Cubs; Rockwell paid Braves batboy Frank McNulty $5 to don the Cubs uniform and pose. By the time the issue was published, the Cubs had fallen to last place in their league. Rockwell’s cover helped bolster their growing reputation as the “loveable losers,” and it became one of the most recognized sports images of the 20th century.