Franklyn Hamilton- Gloucester Artist 1918-2008

Gloucester Classic- The Cupboard, originally uploaded by captjoe06.

When I took a picture of the mural of Mother Hubbard at the Cupboard I made sure to snap one of the name of the artist.- “Franklyn Hamilton” spelled with a y

Last night I googled Franklyn Hamilton and found his obituary on the Gloucester Daily  Times website-

Franklyn E. Hamilton

Gloucester Daily Times
GLOUCESTER – The family of Franklyn E. Hamilton are saddened by the passing of their father after a courageous battle with cancer on Monday, Jan. 28, 2008.

Franklyn was born in Gloucester on June 10, 1918, the son of Frank and Esther (Wilkie) Hamilton.

It was a simple 316 word obituary with no mention of any of his artistic achievements. I wonder just how many people have enjoyed his work or have that same image  of Mother Hubbard etched into their memories like I did.  So then after a little more digging I discovered that Franklyn was revered as an acclaimed Pulp Fiction artist who drew many covers including this one-

click picture for a list of Franklyn's Other Pulp Fiction Work

This came up in a deeper search about the man–

Pulp fandom lost its greatest artist Monday, the incomparable Frank Hamilton. I talked to Frank just before Christmas, after he had just moved into a nursing home and though his situation was critical at that point he was still very positive, though resigned. His talent was truly a thing of wonder and I am lucky enough to own one of his originals. I know Golden Perils personally owes a great debt to him. Some of the early covers he did for the magazine, most notably The Green Hornet, Dark Shadows, Doc Savage and The Phantom, were masterpieces of fan art and GP was so much richer for his contributions. I am saddened and heart heavy, and my sympathies go out to his family and legion of fans. The pulp community owes him a great deal and he will be missed.
— Howard

Self Portrait Of Frank Hamilton-Done in 1982

There is also an extensive tribute to Franklyn Hamilton here with a lot of backround story of how Franklyn became a Pulp Fiction artist