by Shauna Foley
Former Sydney Morning Herald cartoonist Alan McClure celebrates his 100th birthday.()
Cartoonist Alan McClure continues to create art decades after finding humour in news stories for Sydney Morning Herald readers.
McClure who turned 100 on August 23 celebrated the milestone with a week-long party filled with homemade sausage rolls and good company.
"I married my wife because of these sausage rolls," McClure said.
"It took me a while to get here [turning 100 years old] but I can thank my wonderful wife for that."
Born in Stanthorpe in southern Queensland, McClure served as a gun layer in World War II, before heading to Europe and meeting his future wife, Alicia.
While in London McClure began a career in cartooning for a children's book illustrator in 1949.
McClure who continues to dote on his wife, married now 91-year-old Alicia in 1953 and had three children.
His daughter Karel Bell said it was not until he moved back to Australia and started at the Sydney Morning Herald in 1964 that his career skyrocketed.
"Dad's career became prominent when he got to Sydney, that was probably the busiest time of his life," Mrs Bell said.
"He was at the [Sydney Morning] Herald and the Courier Mail whilst creating book covers, it was all happening."
McClure never formally studied art but he said he took inspiration from everyday situations.
"I might've never learnt it but I always knew how to do it," McClure said.
"I think I just have the mind for it [creativity], I was drawing a cartoon every week from things I saw or did."
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| McClure's And Our Next Australia Day Sports Event Will Be A Cross Country Race cartoon from the Sydney Morning Herald in 1964.(Supplied: McClure family) |
Creativity prompts a long life
Mrs Bell said her father's life was still full of art.
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| Alan McClure with his daughter Karel Bell at his 100th birthday celebration. (ABC Riverina: Shauna Foley) |
"Often when I get home from work there he is still painting away in the garage," she said.
"The other day, he asked for a pen and paper and drew a man we saw playing the piano, it's just what he does," she said.
McClure continues to make art in his now home of Wagga Wagga in southern New South Wales.
His most recent illustrations were for a book called Barking Mad — An Abled Dog's Musings About Disabled Humans.
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| McClure's cartoon for the book Barking Mad — An Abled Dog's Musings About Disabled Humans.(Supplied: Alan McClure) |
"I don't do as much [painting] as I'd like to but I want to keep doing it for as long as I can," he said.
First published at ABC Riverina, September 6, 2023
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