biography of Cassius Marcellus COOLIDGE (1844-1934)

Birth place: Philadelphia

Death place: Staten Island, NY

Addresses: Rochester, NY, c.1875-81; NYC, 1881-1934

Profession: Painter, cartoonist

Comments: Coolidge (who at times signed his work Kash" or Kash Koolidge, c.1864-94) became well known as the creator of the dogs-playing-poker genre of painting, a subject which grew out of the 19th-century tradition of visual humor. Coolidge also portrayed dogs doing other human things such as going to the ball park or arguing a court case. His work was purchased by cigar companies, who made copies of his paintings as promotional give-aways, and by the printing firm of Brown & Bigelow who made his work widely known by using it in advertising posters, calenders, and prints. In the 1960s and 1970s the subject of dogs playing poker and/or pool was reintroduced by contemporary artists and reached new heights of popularity with a mass audience.

Sources: American Paintings from the Masco Corporation (Sotheby's, NYC, auction cat., Dec. 3, 1998); Carla Davidson, "A Man's Life," American Heritage (Feb. 1973): 56."