George CRUIKSHANKIllustrator and Political Caricaturist
Illustrated Oliver Twist for Charles Dickens
Born September 27, 1792, London, England
Died February 1, 1878
George Cruikshank was an English caricaturist and book illustrator, a member of the Cruikshank family of caricaturists and artists, the son of Scottish painter and caricaturist Isaac Cruikshank. He was renowned for his social caricatures of English life for popular publications such as The Comic Almanack (1835-1853) and Omnibus (1842) but later in his career, his book illustrations for Charles Dickens and many other authors reached an international audience.
Cruikshank’s 60-year career began with political prints that attacked the royal family and leading politicians (in 1820 he received a royal bribe of £100 for a pledge "not to caricature His Majesty" (George III of the United Kingdom) "in any immoral situation")
Cruikshank illustrated Sketches by Boz (1836) and Oliver Twist (1838) for Charles Dickens. On December 30, 1871 Cruikshank published a letter in The Times which claimed credit for much of the plot of Oliver Twist, which launched a fierce controversy around who created the work. While Dickens was the author, Cruikshank developed many ideas like those that appeared in the book and it is difficult -- if not impossible -- to distinguish his concepts from those of Dickens, which were developed at the same time.
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