Winsor mccay vaudeville performers

Spoken lecture with real-time illustration

A chalk talk is an illustrated performance in which the speaker draws pictures to emphasize lecture points and create a memorable and entertaining experience for listeners.

Winsor mccay art

Chalk talks differ from other types of illustrated talks in their use of real-time illustration rather than static images. They achieved great popularity during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, appearing in vaudeville shows, Chautauqua assemblies, religious rallies, and smaller venues. Since their inception, chalk talks have been both a popular form of entertainment and a pedagogical tool.

Early history

One of the earliest chalk talk artists was a prohibition illustrator named Frank Beard (1842–1905).^[1][2] Beard was a professional illustrator and editorial cartoonist who published in The Ram's Horn, an interdenominational social gospel magazine.^[3] Beard's wife was a Methodist, and when the wome