Leonard Patrick “Len” Leone was born on March 11, 1924 in Brooklyn, New York according to his World War II draft which had his full name. His parents were Patrick J. Leone and Domenica Lemoyne Purpura who married on May 21, 1923 in Brooklyn. Leone was three years old when his father passed away on August 27, 1927. An obituary appeared in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 29, 1927. He was laid to rest on August 30, 1927.
The 1930 United States Census counted Leone (line 16), his mother and brother in the household of his maternal grandparents, Joseph and Vincencia Purpura. The family lived in Brooklyn at 312 8th Street.
The 1930 United States Census counted Leone (line 16), his mother and brother in the household of his maternal grandparents, Joseph and Vincencia Purpura. The family lived in Brooklyn at 312 8th Street.
In the 1940 census, Leone’s maternal grandmother was the head of the household. His mother was a stenographer. Leone (line 77) had completed two years of high school. They were Brooklyn residents at 316 80th Street.
On June 30, 1942, Leone signed his draft card. His address was the same but later changed to 7825 4th Avenue. He was employed at Shipman Studio. After the war, Leone worked at Fawcett Publications. Leone’s description was five feet ten inches, 143 pounds, with blue eyes and blonde hair. (Co-incidentally, there was another Leonard Patrick Leone, of Cleveland, Ohio, who served in the Marine Corps during World War II.)
The Steranko History of Comics 2 (1972) said
Fawcett still maintained its own staff for several years, which included letterers like Al Jetter, his wife Charlotte, Martin De Muth, Angelo Grasso, Ben Oda, and Leonard Leone (who began correcting lettering at Fawcett and eventually became vice president and art director at Bantam Books).The Fawcett Companion: The Best of FCA, Fawcett Collectors of America (2001) said Robert Laughlin and Leone, in 1946, worked on Fawcett’s comic books. Laughlin said
Leonard and I were just doing menial jobs, such as making changes in word balloons. We did content pages and advertisements—like those for the Captain Marvel Club—but it was all layout and paste-up work, with no original artwork created. Those ads were all done on a freelance basis. Lettering stories was our main task. The editors were always making changes in the copy.On September 23, 1947, commercial artist Leone and receptionist Loretta E. Quinn obtained, in Brooklyn, marriage license number 20997. They married on October 5, 1947. At the time, Leone was a Brooklyn resident at 141 93rd Street.
The same address was recorded in the 1950 census. Leone (line 1) and his wife had a son, Leonard Jr. Also living with them was Leone’s mother and brother. Leone was a commercial artist.
In 1953, Leone was a member of the Salmagundi Club.
At some point Leone moved from Fawcett’s comic books to its magazine division. By 1953 he was assistant art editor at True the Man’s Magazine. Al Allard was its art director. Allard’s profile is here in the sidebar.
Advertising Age, August 2, 1954, reported Leone’s move to Argosy magazine where he was art director. Less than a year later, Advertising Age, April 11, 1955 and Variety, April 13, 1955 reported Leone’s resignation from Argosy.
In a few months, Leone became art director at Bantam Books. A stylistic change in paperback covers was noted in Quote Magazine, October 16, 1955, which said
In a few months, Leone became art director at Bantam Books. A stylistic change in paperback covers was noted in Quote Magazine, October 16, 1955, which said
... Publishers are bringing out better books in greater variety, and garbing them with more concern for the content. Leonard Leone, art director of Bantam Books, reflects the current thought in his discussion of a new cover design for Somerset Maughham’s Stranger in Paris. ‘None of this bosomy, tight-dress stuff,” he said. “This is a good novel and the new cover should demonstrate that fact.” ...The change was also reported in Art Direction, December 1955. The July 1957 issue of Art Direction featured Leone’s article about paperback covers.
In the 1970 paperback book, The Bantam Story, Leone said
“About 15 years ago, when Saul David hired me as art director,” says Leone, “everybody was buying emotional, highly realistic, low-key cover art. We decided to move the other way. We decided to buy airy, light things—not yet the white cover. Often when an illustrator would come by with sketches, we liked the lightness and airiness of the sketches and decided to shoot directly from them. Of course, we would pay the full price of a finished painting. This was a constant source of amazement to some of the illustrators. They couldn’t quite believe it. ...
One of Leone’s best known works was his logo for the Doc Savage series which began in 1964 and ended in 1990.
Courtney Rogers corresponded with Leone for an article in The Bronze Gazette #53, June 2008 which was posted at ThePulp.net. Rogers explained how Doc Savage came to Bantam Books. In Illustration, October 2001, illustrator James Avanti spoke highly of Leone.
On August 23, 1989, Leone’s mother passed away.
Leonard Leone actually knew what he was doing. He was the first really articulate art director I ever worked for. He actually came up with concepts; most art directors didn’t. He always had an idea and would act it out for you. He was very design-oriented, so it reduced the work load on my poor brains. It was no longer really me anymore—it was me trying to be something to suit Leone.Another memorable cover was Jaws. The New York Times Magazine, April 21, 1974, wrote about the making of the book and cover. The Print article, “The Making of Jaws’ Iconic Book Covers”, showed the various covers. Both articles did not mention Leone. Leone got his due credit in Robin Adams Sloan’s syndicated column which appeared in numerous newspapers including the Evening Independent (St. Petersburg, Florida), September 27, 1975.
On August 23, 1989, Leone’s mother passed away.
Leone passed away on July 1, 2013 in Northport, New York. An obituary was posted at Nolan Funeral Home.
Leonard P. Leone(Leone should not to be confused with Leonard Leone, of Niagara Falls, New York, who studied advertising design at Pratt Institute and graduated in 1953.)
March 11, 1924 – July 1, 2013
Leone, Leonard P. on July 1, 2013, 89 years of age, of Northport. Beloved husband of the late Loretta. Loving father of Leonard & Carmella, Robert & Laura, David & Theresa, and Jeffrey & Maureen. Fond grandfather of Five. Reposing Nolan & Taylor-Howe Funeral Home, 5 Laurel Avenue, Northport, Wednesday 10 AM–12 Noon. Service at the Funeral Home at Noon. Interment, with Military Honors, Calverton National Cemetery.
Further Reading
The Paperbound Book in America
The Paperbound Book in America
Two-Bit Culture: The Paperbacking of America
Who Is Who in Publishing
The Business of Publishing: A PW Anthology
The Time of Their Lives: The Golden Age of Great American Book Publishers, Their Editors, and Authors
Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Dictionary
Leone and family members mentioned in the Northport Journal and The Long-Islander
Who Is Who in Publishing
The Business of Publishing: A PW Anthology
The Time of Their Lives: The Golden Age of Great American Book Publishers, Their Editors, and Authors
Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Dictionary
Leone and family members mentioned in the Northport Journal and The Long-Islander
Related Posts
A. Machine and Royal Cartoon, Mario Acquaviva, Gerald Altman, Gene Barnett, Vivian Berg, Daniel Bhang, Ray Burley, Ray Burzon,
Gerda Gattel, Louis L. Goldklang, Angelo Grasso, Anita Greene, Al Grenet, Ed Hamilton, Ray Holloway, IBM Directory, Alex Jay, Albert and Charlotte Jetter,
Abe Kanegson, George Kapitan, Anna Kaufman, Gary Keller, Rick Keller, Nadine French King, Ralph Komisarow, Grace Kremer, Morrie Kuramoto, Al Kurzrok,
Robert N. MacLeod/Leroy Lettering, Lee Maroshek, Larry Mayer, Jack Meltzer, Jim Novak, Bill Oakley, Ben Oda,
Georgette Sauterel, Ira Schnapp, Irving Settel, Rome Siemon, Artie Simek, Lora Sprang aka Pat Gordon, Herman Stackel, Stan Starkman, Daisy Swayze, Zoltan and Terry Szenics,
Richard Deane Taylor, Alberta Tews, Frank Vina, Irv Watanabe, Leo Wurtzel, John Yakata, Bill Yoshida, Bernie Zuber
