View source for Tom Chantrell

{{Short description|English artist (1916–2001)}}
{{distinguish|Thomas Cantrell Dugdale}}
{{EngvarB|date=November 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2017}}
{{Infobox artist
| honorific_prefix = 
| name             = Tom Chantrell
| honorific_suffix = 
| image            = Tom Chantrell.jpg
| alt              = Tom Chantrell in his studio surrounded by painting canvases
| caption          = Chantrell in his studio, c. 1960
| birth_name       = Thomas William Chantrell
| birth_date       = {{Birth date|df=yes|1916|12|20}}
| birth_place      = [[Ardwick]], Manchester, England
| death_date       =  {{Death date and age|df=yes|2001|07|15|1916|12|20}}
| death_place      = 
| resting_place    = 
| resting_place_coordinates = <!-- {{Coord|LAT|LONG|type:landmark|display=inline}} -->
| residence        = 
| education        = [[Manchester School of Art|Manchester Art College]]
| alma_mater       = 
| known_for        = [[Film poster]]s, [[album cover]]s, [[cover art|book jackets]]
| notable_works    = ''[[Brighton Rock (1947 film)|Brighton Rock]]'' (1947)<br/>''[[The King and I (1956 film)|The King And I]]'' (1956)<br/>''[[Carry On Cleo]]'' (1964)<br/>''[[The Sound of Music (film)|The Sound of Music]]'' (1965)<br/>''[[One Million Years B.C.]]'' (1966)<br/>''[[Far from the Madding Crowd (1967 film)|Far From The Madding Crowd]]'' (1967)<br/>''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]'' (1977)
| style            = 
| movement         = 
| spouse           = Alice Chantrell; Shirley How Har Lui
| partner          = 
| awards           = <!-- {{awd|award|year|title|role|name}} (optional) -->
| elected          = 
| patrons          = 
| memorials        = 
| website          = {{URL|https://www.chantrellposter.com/}}
| module           = 
}}
'''Thomas William Chantrell''' (20 December 1916 – 15 July 2001) was a British illustrator and [[cinema poster]] artist.

Born the son of a circus performer in [[Manchester]], England, he started work in advertising as an illustrator. During [[WWII]] he put his artistic skills to use designing [[British propaganda during World War II|propaganda posters for the war effort]]. After the war, he established a career in cinema advertising, and established his name designing posters for [[epic films]] such as ''[[The King and I (1956 film)|The King and I (1956)]]'', ''[[One Million Years B.C.]]'' (1966) and ''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]'' (1977), as well as [[Hammer Film Productions|Hammer horror films]] and [[Carry On (franchise)|''Carry On'' comedy films]].

==Early life==
Tom Chantrell was born in [[Ardwick]], [[Manchester]], the son of Emily and James Chantrell, 64-year-old [[trapeze|trapeze artist]] and [[jazz|jazz musician]]. James had toured [[music hall]]s around the world performing in a trapeze act called "The Fabulous Chantrells". Chantrell grew up in a family of girls, the youngest of nine children.<ref name="biography">{{cite web|last1=Branaghan|first1=Sim|title=Biography: Tom Chantrell and the World of British Film Posters|url=http://www.chantrellposter.com/biography|website=Tom Chantrell Posters|access-date=28 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728093130/http://www.chantrellposter.com/biography|archive-date=28 July 2017|date=November 2011|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="obituary">{{cite web|last1=Branaghan|first1=Sim|title=Obituary: Tom Chantrell|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/jul/28/guardianobituaries.filmnews|website=The Guardian|access-date=28 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728093348/https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/jul/28/guardianobituaries.filmnews|archive-date=28 July 2017|date=27 July 2001|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Branaghan|Chibnall|2006|p=135}}

Chantrell displayed an aptitude for commercial illustration when, at the age of five, he was asked by his teacher at Armitage Street School to paint a picture of the character Tom from [[Charles Kingsley]]'s book ''[[The Water-Babies, A Fairy Tale for a Land Baby|The Water Babies]]''; the teacher was so impressed by the young Chantrell's artwork that she paid him one penny for the painting.

At [[grammar school]], Chantrell's artistic skills were fostered by his art teacher, and at the age of 13 he won a national competition run by the [[League of Nations]] to design a poster promoting [[disarmament]]. He left school aged 15 and went to [[Manchester School of Art|Manchester Art College]], but quickly became disillusioned and left soon after to enter employment.<ref name="biography"/>{{sfn|Branaghan|Chibnall|2006|p=136}}

==Career==
Within days of leaving college in 1933, Chantrell found a position at a local [[advertising agency]], [[Rydales]], leaving a few months later to join another agency where he worked for about year. Chantrell's position ended after he was wrongly blamed for a substandard piece of work; after a violent disagreement with his manager, Chantrell was fired. Unable to find any more work in Manchester, Chantrell moved to London in 1934 to live with one of his sisters, Phyllis, in [[Hampstead]].{{sfn|Branaghan|Chibnall|2006|p=136}}

He took up work at a printing company, where he developed his skills in [[silkscreen printing]]. After two years, he moved to a small design studio, Bateman Artists, on Carmelite Street, near [[Blackfriars Bridge]].{{sfn|Branaghan|Chibnall|2006|p=136}} Batemans shared a building – and design work – with a larger agency, [[Allardyce Palmer]], who [[sub-contract]]ed Batemans work for industrial clients such as [[British Aluminium]], and [[Percival Provost]].

Allardyce Palmer had just won accounts with two emerging [[film studio]]s, [[Warner Brothers]] and [[20th Century Fox]]; a cinema was not considered an especially glamorous industry at the time, the work was also passed on to Batemans. Through this association, Chantrell had the opportunity to start working on cinema advertising, designing his first [[film poster]] in 1938 for ''[[The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse]]''.<ref name="biography"/><ref name="branaghan">{{cite web|last1=Branaghan|first1=Sim|title=Transcript of audio download of the British Film Posters lecture|url=http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/podcasts/transcripts/british_film_posters.asp|website=National Museums Liverpool|access-date=28 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071018223229/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/podcasts/transcripts/british_film_posters.asp|archive-date=18 October 2007|url-status=dead}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20121014065127/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/podcasts/talks/british_film_posters.mp3 Audio recording of lecture])</ref><ref name="lentz">{{cite book|last1=Lentz III|first1=Harris M.|title=Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2001: Film, television, Radio, Theatre, Dance, Music, Cartoons and Pop Culture|date=2002|publisher=McFarland|isbn=9780786452064|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZHnGCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA61|access-date=28 July 2017|language=en}}</ref>

===Military service===
He continued with posters until [[World War II]], when he was [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|called up]] to [[military service]]. Registered as a [[conscientious objector]], he was assigned to the [[Non-Combatant Corps]] of the [[British Army]], later volunteering for duties with a [[bomb disposal]] unit of the [[Royal Engineers]] in [[Tunbridge Wells]], and spent most of the war digging [[unexploded ordnance]] and [[Naval mine|mine]]s out of beaches on the coast of [[Kent]] and [[Sussex]].

In the army, Chantrell developed a disdain for authority after one notable assignment to defuse a [[flying bomb]] near [[Leysdown-on-Sea]] on the [[Isle of Sheppey]]; the commanding officer was later awarded an [[OBE]], despite being absent from operations on leave. In his last year of military service, Chantrell was transferred to a [[British propaganda during World War II|war propaganda]] unit, where he was able to put his artistic talents to the [[war effort]]. He was [[demobilization|demobbed]] in 1946, and he returned to work at Allardyce Palmer, now located on [[Kingsway, London|Kingsway]] in [[Holborn]].<ref name="biography"/> Here, he took on an increasing amount of work on designing cinema posters, beginning with ''[[Forever Amber (film)|Forever Amber]]'' (1947) and ''[[Brighton Rock (1947 film)|Brighton Rock]]''.

===1950s and 60s===
[[File:One Million Years BC.jpg|thumb|Chantrell's poster for ''[[One Million Years B.C.]]'' (1966) featured a popular image of [[Raquel Welch]]]]
In 1950 Batemans was bought out by Allardyce Palmer, and the merged agency continued to receive a lot of work through Warner Brothers' film distributor, [[British Pathé]]. Poster artist [[Tom Beauvais]] joined the company as Chantrell's assistant. In 1957 Chantrell was made art director of Allardyce Palmer's new Entertainments Publicity Division in Screen House on [[Wardour Street]], [[Soho]]. Film work flooded in, and Chantrell worked on a number of [[epic film]]s such as ''[[East of Eden (film)|East of Eden]]'' (1955), ''[[The King and I (1956 film)|The King and I]]'' (1956), ''[[Anastasia (1956 film)|Anastasia]]'' (1956), ''[[Bus Stop (1956 film)|Bus Stop]]'' (1956), ''[[An Affair To Remember]]'' (1957) and ''[[South Pacific (1958 film)|South Pacific]]'' (1958).

Chantrell worked for two leading [[horror film]] production companies, [[Hammer Films]] and [[Amicus Productions]], and for a few years worked as the "house artist" at Hammer, designing celebrated posters for films such as ''[[The Nanny (1965 film)|The Nanny]]'' (1965) and ''[[Taste the Blood of Dracula]]'' (1969). For Amicus, Chantrell produced publicity for a number of fantasy films based on the books of [[Edgar Rice Burroughs]], including ''[[The Land That Time Forgot (1975 film)|The Land That Time Forgot]]'' (1975). His paintings from this era have been noted for their lurid use of colour to emphasise elements of primordial horror and for their use of bold, red block lettering to convey a sense of shock, as exemplified in his posters for ''[[One Million Years B.C.]]'' (1966) and ''[[At the Earth's Core (film)|At the Earth's Core]]'' (1976).<ref>{{cite web|last1=Wigley|first1=Samuel|title=Amicus and the art of the film poster|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/features/amicus-and-art-film-poster|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=29 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170729160216/http://www.bfi.org.uk/news/amicus-and-art-film-poster|archive-date=29 July 2017|date=23 November 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Chantrell's ''One Million Years B.C.'' poster was based on a very popular publicity photo of actress [[Raquel Welch]] in a [[Fur bikini of Raquel Welch|fur bikini]] that became something of a cultural phenomenon and a best-selling [[pinup]] picture.<ref name="Mansour2005">{{cite book|last=Mansour|first=David|title=From Abba to Zoom: a pop culture encyclopedia of the late 20th century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hK0rPUF85loC&pg=PA345|year=2005|publisher=[[Andrews McMeel Publishing]]|isbn=978-0-7407-5118-9|page=345|access-date=28 August 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Gayomali|first1=Chris|title=Top 10 Bikinis in Pop Culture|url=https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2081310_2080985_2081003,00.html|magazine=Time|access-date=30 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730211245/http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2081310_2080985_2081003,00.html|archive-date=30 July 2017|date=5 July 2011|url-status=live}}</ref>

Chantrell designed many posters for the ''[[Carry On (film series)|Carry On]]'' film comedy series. Some of these films were conceived as [[Parody film|parodies]] of other contemporary movies, and Chantrell correspondingly produced [[pastiche]] artwork of the original film poster. On at least two occasions this led to problems with [[copyright]]; his poster for ''[[Carry On Spying]]'' (1964) had to be changed to avoid looking too much like the [[Renato Fratini]] poster for ''[[From Russia with Love (film)|From Russia with Love]]''; and his initial ''[[Carry On Cleo]]'' poster (1964) was pulled and redesigned after a [[lawsuit]] from 20th Century Fox alleged that his send-up bore too much resemblance to original [[Howard Terpning]] ''[[Cleopatra (1963 film)|Cleopatra]]'' artwork.<ref name=hammerhorrorposters>[http://www.hammerhorrorposters.com/tomchantrell.html tomchantrell<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

In the 1960s Chantrell was often drawing artwork for 5 different films or [[double feature|double bill]]s at one time.<ref name=hammerhorrorposters/>

Among other films he designed the artwork for were ''[[Von Ryan's Express]]'' and ''[[The Anniversary (1968 film)|The Anniversary]]''.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}

===''Star Wars''===
[[File:Tom Chantrell Star Wars quad poster 1977.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Theatrical ''Style {{'}}C{{'}}'' [[Film poster#Sizes|quad poster]] for the UK release of ''Star Wars'' (1977), featuring the iconic logo by [[Dan Perri]]]]
In 1977 Chantrell was commissioned by [[20th Century Fox]] to produce poster art for the British release of a space fantasy film,  ''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]''. Several promotional posters had already been produced to advertise ''Star Wars'' prior to Chantrell's involvement; artist [[Tom Jung]] was initially commissioned by Fox to create a poster, which was used to advertise the USA release. Now known as ''[[:File:StarWarsMoviePoster1977.jpg|Style {{'}}A{{'}}]]'', this artwork was considered by [[Lucasfilm]] to be "too dark" and they commissioned a reworking of the image from the [[Brothers Hildebrandt]], and their [[:File:Bros Hildebrandt Star Wars quad poster.jpg|''Style {{'}}B{{'}}'' poster]] was distributed to UK cinemas. Because these posters had both been produced while ''Star Wars'' was still in production, the artists had worked without reference to photographs of the actual cast. Fox executives considered the posters too abstract and were keen to commission a new version with fully realised likenesses of the lead actors.

Chantrell was invited with his family to the [[film premiere]], and he was given a pack of [[film still]]s and [[publicity photo]]s to use as a reference for his painting. He took one month to complete the poster, the longest he had ever worked on one poster. When completed, Tom Chantrell's ''Style {{'}}C{{'}}'' poster quickly replaced the Hildebrandts' ''Style {{'}}B{{'}}'' on cinema [[billboard]]s, becoming one of Chantrell's most widely recognised works.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Dass|first1=William|title=The History of Star Wars Posters|url=https://filmschoolrejects.com/star-wars-the-posters-14ad09654325/|website=[[Film School Rejects]]|access-date=30 July 2017|date=14 December 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=A short history of the first British Star Wars posters|url=http://www.sci-fimovieposters.co.uk/british-star-wars-posters.htm|publisher=sci-fimovieposters.co.uk|access-date=30 July 2017}}</ref>

Chantrell's poster depicts a trio of [[Mark Hamill]], [[Carrie Fisher]] and [[Harrison Ford]]'s characters brandishing [[Blaster (Star Wars)|blaster guns]], in a style that was inspired by [[Frank McCarthy (artist)|Frank McCarthy]]'s poster for ''[[The Dirty Dozen]]'' (1967).{{sfn|Branaghan|Chibnall|2006|p=143}} Behind them, a large image of [[Darth Vader]] looms holding a [[lightsaber]], surrounded by smaller characters and a montage of [[List of Star Wars starfighters|starfighters]] in combat. The poster is noted because Hamill points his weapon and looks directly towards the viewer.<ref>{{cite book|title=Heritage Vintage Movie Poster Signature Auction 2005 Catalog #624|date=2005|publisher=Ivy Press/Heritage Capital Corporation|isbn=9781599670041|page=284|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YZ7LpEragHYC&q=tom%20chantrell%20star%20wars%20poster&pg=PA284|access-date=28 July 2017|language=en}}</ref> Because of Chantrell's long association with Hammer productions, he included [[Peter Cushing]] on his poster; this was the only Star Wars theatrical poster that ever featured Cushing's likeness.<ref name="hearn">{{cite book|last1=Hearn|first1=Marcus|title=The cinema of George Lucas|date=2005|publisher=Abrams|location=New York|isbn=9780810949683|page=110}}</ref>

Chantrell's posters were often produced prior to the film being made to raise money from investors, and he did not see the films he drew for; he would receive a plot line and a handful of stills and use friends and family for poses.<ref name=obituary /> Examples of this were taking photographs of himself trying to look like a [[vampire]] for ''[[Dracula Has Risen from the Grave]]''. In his work for ''Star Wars'', although he had seen the film and had photographic references of the actors, he asked his wife Shirley to pose as a [[Model (art)|body model]] for [[Princess Leia]] in their back garden, wearing a [[dressing gown]] and holding a toy plastic sword.<ref name=branaghan/><ref name="photosecrets">{{cite web|title=Evolution of the Star Wars Poster|url=https://www.photosecrets.com/evolution-of-the-star-wars-poster.html|publisher=PhotoSecrets.com|access-date=28 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728144712/https://www.photosecrets.com/evolution-of-the-star-wars-poster.html|archive-date=28 July 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="filmonpaper">{{cite web|last1=Shannon|first1=Eddie|title=An interview with Shirley Chantrell|url=https://www.filmonpaper.com/blog/interview-shirley-chantrell/|website=Film on Paper|access-date=28 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728144842/https://www.filmonpaper.com/blog/interview-shirley-chantrell/|archive-date=28 July 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

Chantrell's poster art for international releases of ''Star Wars'' featured in the Carol Titelman's 1979 book ''[[The Art of Star Wars]]'', where he is credited as "Tom Cantrell".<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Titelman|editor-first1=Carol|title=The art of Star Wars|date=1994|publisher=[[Titan Books]]|location=London|isbn=9781852865832|edition=1.|page=143}}</ref>

===Later career===
Chantrell's career dwindled from the early 1980s. His portfolio had mostly been built up working on posters for [[exploitation film]]s, [[horror movie]]s and [[sex comedy|British sex comedies]], and as these [[film genre]]s went out of fashion, so too did his style of illustration. As design trends shifted towards computer-based [[desktop publishing]], demand for original artwork for film posters dropped. Chantrell moved into designing cover art for [[home video]] titles, but eventually was forced to retire.<ref name=obituary />

In his later years his work found new appreciation with the growing interest in collecting [[film memorabilia]].<ref name=obituary />

==Personal life==
Tom Chantrell married his first wife, Alice, shortly before the start of his military service in 1940. Together they had two children, Stephen and Sue. In 1962, while he was attending life drawing classes in [[St Martin's School of Art]] he met an 18-year-old Chinese student, Shirley How Har Lui. They began a love affair and moved in together in 1965. In 1968, Shirley gave birth to twin daughters, Jacqui and Louise. After nine years, Tom and Alice divorced, and Tom married Shirley.{{sfn|Branaghan|Chibnall|2006|pp=142–144}}

Chantrell died in hospital aged 84 on 15 July 2001 after suffering a heart attack.{{sfn|Branaghan|Chibnall|2006|p=9}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography|Visual Arts}}
*[[List of Star Wars artists]]
*[[:Category:Film posters by Tom Chantrell]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

;General sources
*{{cite book|last1=Branaghan|first1=Sim|last2=Chibnall|first2=Steve|title=British film posters : an illustrated history|date=2006|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|location=London|isbn=9781844572212}}

==External links==
* [https://www.chantrellposter.com/ Official website]
* [http://www.britposters.com/chantrell.htm Tom Chantrell] at Brit Posters
* {{wookieepedia|Tom Chantrell}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chantrell, Tom}}
[[Category:1916 births]]
[[Category:2001 deaths]]
[[Category:English conscientious objectors]]
[[Category:British Army personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:English illustrators]]
[[Category:Film poster artists]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Manchester]]
[[Category:People from Ardwick]]
[[Category:Personnel of the Non-Combatant Corps]]
[[Category:Royal Engineers soldiers]]
[[Category:Science fiction artists]]
[[Category:World War II artists]]