André De Takacs Explained

André C. De Takacs (1879 or 1880 – 1919) was an illustrator.^[1] His artwork features on the covers of sheet music. He produced art for posters, postcards, and film company promotions. He also wrote music and poetry.^[2] The Smithsonian Libraries have some of his song sheet covers in their collection.^[3] The University of South Carolina's Tin Pan Alley Sheet Music Collection also includes his work.^[4]

He used several distinctive signatures and marks. His work includes covers from the era when minstrel performers were still popular and depictions of African Americans are based on stereotypes.

He immigrated to the U.S. from Hungary where his father was a count.^[2] He died at the age of 39, reportedly of a heart attack in a New York City taxi on the way to the hospital. His wife, Elizabeth "Bessie" Schenkel, took her life several years later. They had two daughters, one of them, Edythe Jepsen, also became an artist.^[2]

Work

• "Array Wanna" (1906)
• "If I Only Had the Nerve" (1906)
• Musical Joys for Boys and Girls (1908)
• "Falling Star" (1909)^[5]
• "I'm On My Way to Reno" (1910)
• "Air King" (1911)
• "I'd Be Proud to Be the Mother of a Soldier" (1915)
• "Honolulu Hicki Boola Boo Island" (1916)
• "The Cute Little.Wigglin' Dance" (1917)
• "Everybody's Jazzin It"^[6]
• "Ragtime Cowboy Joe"^[7]
• Nachette by Ned Nye, book^[8]
• The Ashes of My Heart by Edith Blinn, book^[9]
• Ad for The Long Chance (1915), a western film

Notes and References

1. Book: Short, Marion. Covers of gold: collectible sheet music : sports, fashion, illustration, and the dance. December 8, 1998. Schiffer Pub.. 9780764301056. 119–120. Google Books.
2. Web site: Andréa Stephen Chevalier De Takacs. RagPiano.com.
3. Web site: De Takacs, André C.. December 8, 2017. library.si.edu.
4. Web site: CONTENTdm. digital.tcl.sc.edu.
5. Web site: Falling star. NYPL Digital Collections.
6. Web site: Everybody's jazzin' it | Digital Special Collections. dl.mospace.umsystem.edu.
7. Book: Amundson, Michael A.. Talking Machine West: A History and Catalogue of Tin Pan Alley's Western Recordings, 1902–1918. April 13, 2017. University of Oklahoma Press. Google Books. 9780806157771.
8. Web site: Catalog of Copyright Entries. Part 1. [A] Group 1. Books. New Series]. December 8, 1909. Google Books.
9. Web site: The Publishers Weekly. December 8, 1916. F. Leypoldt. Google Books.