Norman Rockwell (1894-1978) Oil on canvas
The first use of a Norman Rockwell portrait on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post came in 1952 when Rockwell painted General Dwight D. Eisenhower as the Republican candidate for the presidency. In addition to the cover portrait, the Post published Rockwell's account of his session with Eisenhower, complete with five additional portraits of the General (including the one seen here) and a portrait of his wife, Mamie. The Post revealed its Republican bias by running an Eisenhower cover but not one of Adlai Stevenson, the Democratic candidate. The Rockwell-authored essay would also garner support for the Republican Party's candidate.
When Rockwell arrived in Denver for the modeling session, he said Eisenhower's "eyes were far away." In an attempt to get a smiling Eisenhower, Rockwell threw out a few remarks. The one that most changed Eisenhower's expression was "How are those grandchildren, General —pretty nice, eh?" It was the smile after this remark that Rockwell captured for the cover. The conversation turned to the presidential campaign. According to Rockwell, Eisenhower remarked that even though a leader might need advisors, there was no need to give up his freedom of speech, commenting that, "I'd rather be defeated than not say in my campaign exactly what I believe." The Post published the portrait seen here with the caption: "The campaign? Instantly, he was deeply serious. No punch-pulling for him! He'd rather lose the election than not tell the people just what he thinks." Later, Rockwell received a letter from Post reader John Maass of Philadelphia pointing out that the quotation was virtually the same as one from Stevenson's July 26 nomination acceptance speech: "Better we lose the election than mislead the people, and better we lose than misgovern the people." Maass continued, "You are famous for your warmth and sincere liking for people, but this election is a terribly serious matter and you should not let yourself be taken in by a nice smile. Even as an Eisenhower worshiper (Rockwell had ended his essay by saying "I'm an Eisenhower worshiper"), you ought to know that the General campaigns entirely by reading off ghostwritten speeches." The Post published four letters from readers about the Eisenhower cover, but not the one from Maass. Painting for The Saturday Evening Post story illustration October 11, 1952 Collection of the Norman Rockwell Museum, NRM.1986.2 © 1952 SEPS: Licensed by Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN.