Someone Talked - Drowning Man - Medium

Frederick “Fritz” Siebel designed this dramatized image of a drowning sailor entitled, “Some One Talked-Drowning Man,” in 1942 as a World War II public service announcement against “Careless Talk”. Here the sailor is pointing both to the viewer as well as to the typography above emphasizing, “Someone”, as he gazes hauntingly out at the viewer. The theme of careless conversation was a major concern of the U.S. government on the home-front. Prior to the war, there had been numerous massive pro-Nazi rallies in the United States and so the threat of espionage was considerable. Many posters were created, some graphic and others humorous to help bring awareness to this concern. “Someone Talked” is the most well-known of Siebel's WWII posters. The poster won multiple awards and was displayed at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Frederick “Fritz” Siebel *(1913-1991), originally of Czech descent, attended the Kunstgewerbeschule (School of Applied Arts) as a youth before serving time in the Czech military. He arranged for safe passage for his family to New York before the onset of World War II, where he served in the U.S Armed forces from 1941 to 1943. His early work in illustration included movie poster designs for Paramount Pictures. He created illustrations for the popular magazines of the time as well as involvement in many varied advertising campaigns. In 1957, Siebel developed the Mr. Clean character for Proctor and Gamble. Siebel also found success in children book illustrations working first for Random House and later for Harper Collins, where he is best known for illustrating the “Amelia Bedelia” series by Peggy Parish. This is an Original Vintage Poster; it is not a reproduction. This poster is conservation mounted, linen backed, and in excellent condition. We guarantee the authenticity of all of our posters.