Interesting sports obituary

[bayonetbrant]

Never heard of the guy, but you all know his work.  Not a guy I would have thought would have merited much of an obituary, but I'm glad he did, because he did some impressive work.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/19/business/patrick-mcdarby-sport-logo-designer-is-dead-at-57.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0

Some of the most prominent sports logos in America began with a pencil and a railroad.

The pencil was wielded by Patrick McDarby, a graphic designer who died on Saturday at 57.

The railroad was Metro-North, which for years carried Mr. McDarby from his home in Connecticut to meetings with clients in New York. En route, he made preliminary sketches for what would become the ubiquitous emblems of major teams, among them the Rangers, Islanders and Nets in the New York area, as well as the Indianapolis 500, various Major League Soccer events, and what is now World Wrestling Entertainment.

The resulting logos — some still in use, others supplanted — include the red, blue and silver image of Lady Liberty that graced some Rangers jerseys for more than a decade from the late 1990s onward, and the Nets logo, in use from 1997 to 2012, featuring a shield-shaped backboard and a ball that, as it passed through the hoop, resembled the ringed Saturn.

Over the years, Mr. McDarby designed more than 200 logos. For each, he received a flat fee, no royalties and, by the nature of his craft, little public recognition. His work also included the logos of many college teams, among them the Villanova Wildcats, the Iowa State Cyclones and the Pittsburgh Panthers.

he design of sports logos entails singular challenges. In a small space, and only two dimensions, the artist must convey a sense of movement, excitement and power. The design must be simple enough to be immediately interpretable but evocative enough to be enduringly memorable. Ideally, it should distill the very essence of the thing it represents.

For Mr. McDarby, perhaps no challenge was as singular as the set of championship wrestling belts he created. Around a wrestler's waist, a belt is a hefty metallic emblem of victory. In a wrestler's hand, however, it can become a weapon with which to give a thwarted opponent a few valedictory licks.

Mindful of this collateral use, Mr. McDarby designed his belts so that they had no sharp edges and would draw no blood.

The son of Thomas Patrick McDarby and the former Ursula Halbritter, Patrick Martin McDarby was born in the Bronx on Aug. 10, 1957, and reared in the Kingsbridge neighborhood there. His father was a driver for the New York City Department of Sanitation; his mother supervised the housekeeping staff at the Hebrew Home for the Aged in the Riverdale section of the Bronx.

Patrick McDarby began his graphics career on graduating from the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan. After working for advertising agencies, he established his own company, Pyramyd Designs, in Monroe, Conn., in 1985.

Starting in the mid-1990s, Mr. McDarby was a regular freelance designer for what is now SME Branding, a New York concern, for which he created or supervised the design of many of the sports logos in his portfolio.

Mr. McDarby, who lived in Monroe, was divorced. His survivors include a brother, Jim, who confirmed his death, from cancer, in Branford, Conn.; another brother, Thomas; a sister, Maisy Stanovich; his mother; and a son, Sean.

His other logos include those for the Washington Capitals, Washington Wizards, Atlanta Thrashers and Jacksonville Jaguars. He also did package designs for products including Hot Tamales candy and Colgate children's toothpaste.

Mr. McDarby's Lady Liberty turned up again recently in a 150th-anniversary commemorative patch for the New York Fire Department. Issued in December, it was designed by a firefighter, Richard Miranda, who is also a Rangers fan; the Rangers approved the use of the image.

Like so many of Mr. McDarby's designs, Lady Liberty was born on the train. For a good 15 years, day in and day out, Mr. McDarby boarded at Fairfield, sketchbook in hand. Shouldering by in the aisle, fellow passengers would stop and stand, transfixed, as the miles slipped away, suddenly unmindful of the rigors of the commute.

[Martok]

Yeah, that is indeed a cool obituary (not something I say very often :P ).  RIP Mr. McDarby. 

[MetalDog]

RIP, Mr. McDarby.  I can't draw a stick figure and openly admire those who can draw well, for their creativity and imagination.

[GDS_Starfury]

RIP, Mr. McDarby.  I can't draw a stick figure and openly admire those who can draw well, for their creativity animagination and puns.

:)