Customer Reviews

Box Top Air Power: The Aviation Art of Model Airplane Boxes

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I just recieved the book this morning and while I love the author's previous books this one was a let down. Most of the illustrations in the book are only third of the size on the page. The rest of the page is filled with the history of the plane. There is a fair amount of detail written about the artist on nearly each of the paintings. It would have been nicer to have the illustrations much larger in size. The artwork is stunning but many of the details of the paintings are lost due the layout of the book.

Thomas Graham is famous for writing books about plastic model kits of yesteryear. His books "Remembering Revell Model Kits", "Monogram Models", and "Greenberg's Guide to Aurora Model Kits" (not to mention the revised and expanded version of this book, entitled simply "Aurora Model Kits") are works of art which concentrate on the model kits themselves. Almost everything that you would want to know, and more, about the kits from these companies, as well as short histories of the companies themselves, are contained in these books. I recommend all four.

This book concentrates on the box art of these old and faithful model kits. Well, not so much on the art, per se, but on the artists who created these box top masterpieces. You will find work by Tom Morgan, Jack Leynnwood, Mike Machat, Don Greer, Richard Kishady, Jo Kotula, Dennis Davison and many more in the 176 pages of this soft cover book. Most of these pieces of art are consigned to their own full page, with a text underneath explaining a little bit about the actual aircraft itself and a little bit about the artist who drew it. Those of you who might have read similar box top art articles in magazines such as "Wings" and "Airpower" over the years know of what I speak. However, every now and then a valuable piece of trivia raises its head from the text, giving us insight about the machine or the artist who painted its picture. One of these interesting little tidbits that Mr. Graham gives us is: "The Boeing B-52 wasn't exactly born in a hobby shop, but a hobby shop played a role in the story of the inception of the Stratofortress...In October 1948, when Boeing's engineers showed up at Wright Field, Ohio, to present its (propeller-driven) bomber plans to the Air Force, they were told that the Air Force now wanted an all-jet aircraft. Astounded...(they) retired to their hotel and drafted plans for the B-52 in three days -- and also constructed a balsa-wood display model of the plane from materials purchased at a local hobby shop."

The concept of this book is great, and I find it interesting reading, but the choice of box art is somewhat limited. Perhaps this is merely a personal view, since I was disappointed that many of my favorite box art paintings were not chosen for inclusion. The information about the artists is, however, first rate. Who knew, for instance, that Richard Kishady was an Fw190 pilot for the Hungarian Air Force during the closing days of WWII and was shot down by a Soviet Yak fighter while escorting Hungarian Ju87s on a bombing raid? And who knew that John Steel served in the Marines in the South Pacific during WWII, went to art school after the war, then re-upped for the Korean War where he was a survivor of the Marines' retreat from the Chosin Reservoir? It's information such as this that make this book not only a visual wonder, but good reading, as well.

While not the work of art (no pun intended) that Mr. Graham's other books are, this book is still very much a valued part of my modeling library. I recommend it for anyone who wants to recall the good old days of plastic modeling when box art pumped up the the adrenaline level of us kids about the contents inside, and it literally sold the kit on its own merit.

Those who grew up in the 50s witnessed the transformation of the model kit industry from wood kits requiring the skills of a craftsman to the plastic models of today that just about any kid could put together. The art that graced the boxes of those kits evolved along with the industry. Plastic kits revolutionized not only the industry but the manner in which they were marketed. Plain boxes and simple line drawings that characterized most wood kits gave way to spectacular, breathtaking works of art that shouted "BUY ME!" And how we did. Tom Graham has captured the golden era of model kit box art and done a great service to those talented artists that set a standard that most modern era box artists don't bother to attempt. This is an extraordinary accomplishment since many of these artists have passed away and their individual works have become lost to time. Beautiful art, effective presentation, historical background, views of the artists, it's all there. Tom Graham has saved a segment of American history and portions of a forgotten youth. An absolute must for any aviation library.

Here is another fine book from Thomas Graham. If you like model boxart or just aviation art in general you will really enjoy this book. Every page has a wonderful full color painting. It is amazing to check out the style of the different artists and to see how they bring life and excitment to each subject. This artwork had to grab us kids and our imagination enough so that we would want to buy the kit and build it. It sure worked its magic on me. Lots of memories were brought back from models I built long ago and there is plenty of information about each plane and artist I never knew about. I will keep this out on the coffee table year-round. I hope Tom does a book on automotive boxart next! Buy it - you'll like it!

This is a nicely done book with high quality reproductions of aircraft model box art. I gave it only three stars because I felt that the one picture per page format required the author to omit many kit illustrations that I would like to have seen. I would have preferred slightly smaller pictures with more than one per page illustrating a wider variety of kits or variations on a given kit's box covers. Also, the information in the text reagrding the actual aircraft has been addressed in many other publications and detracts from the primary subject of the book, which is kit boxes not aircraft.

Having said this, it is still a worthwhile book, and I recommend it to anyone with an interest in old plastic models kits. I hope the author does additional books in the near future covering ships and "army models", but I also hope that he focuses on the artwork and artists, not the prototypes themselves. .

Most excellent book, it brought back memories of deciding which kit I wanted to purchase with my $1.00 weekly 'mowing/washing family car/anything my parents needed' allowance. Kits are so much better than video games (and I like video games); you have so much more than a score when you finish a model. You have also learned a lot more; the history of the model, the role it played, etc. I never knew as a kid that the box (art) cost more to make than the kit itself...I usually threw the box away after the kit was completed. I am building kits now with my son and grandson and teaching them the 'techniques' I know. My father, a WWII veteran on a US Navy PBY always talked with me about each kit I built......I still remember those conversations.....man to man; we both did enjoy them so much!

Since the days of my early youth, when as an awe struck 5 year old, standing in the local hobby shop admiring Scott Edison's art on the 1954 Revell USS New Jersey kit I have loved model box art..... The box art is what sold me the model inside, and I more often as not bought the kits just to get the art.....I knew the 1960 Revell 'Picture Fleet' USS Iowa was the same old (very poor) kit..... but I wanted that John Steel art work ***BAD*** (I still have that box in my studio today and it still serves to inspire me)....I call this book the 'almost book' because it is almost the definitive book I waited for so long on the subject....***BUT** unfortunately it is not ......My primary objection is the limited scope of the book the selection of artworks and in it's formatting........I would have preferred to the artwork presented as a complete 'box top' with all the accompanying logos and text.....I would also preferred to see a the book organized chronologically by manufacturer with ****ALL**** the different box top art presented (I have no problem with smaller images) .....with only the pertinent details about the model and the art, particularly the dates of the kit's production run with the specific artwork......I also feel many significant pieces of art are missing (Aurora's B70, Revell Nike Hercules, Renwal's Nike (Ajax) etc)........ And I am not interested in the thumbnail histories of the aircraft themselves, nor do I feel they are appropriate in this book......I also have no interest in any box top art after 1970, when model kit more of less faded as the American boy's number 1 past time,(the last 25 pages of the book are a waste of paper to me, as I recognized only 1 painting, the Orion spacecraft) ....Some of the artwork is apparently post 1970 kit reissues though out the book and while they very good artwork they hold no interest or significance for me).....I would have liked to have seen a historical section on each artist, complete with a photograph of them at the beginning of the book......Thus to me it is the 'almost book' and while it is very good, it is not what it could have been..... But please note that I have given it 4 stars and recommend it highly to anyone who also loved and built the fantastic model kits of the 1950's and 60's .....

This is a fantastic book. Being a long time plastic airplane modeler, I remember so many of the superb paintings that were used. As a kid, you really didn't appreciate that excellent art; however, now as an adult, I enjoy and respect that art. Most of these paintings were a "Labor of love" by the artists, and one can only marvel at their talent. I'm in the preocess right now of having a Ray Gaedke box top professionally framed. This book is a tribute to all those artists - as well as a wonderful trip down memory lane.

THOMAS GRAHAM HAS HIT A HOMERUN WITH BOX TOP AIR POWER. FOR THOSE OF US WHO REMEMBER BUILDING AND PLAYING WITH THESE CLASSIC KITS. IT WAS A REAL PLEASURE TO VIEW THE PHOTOS AND READ THE HISTORY BEHIND THESE CLASSIC KITS. I WELL REMEMBER THE DOG FIGHTS WE HAD AT SCHOOL AND AT HOME WITH THESE MODEL AIRPLANES, AND, GRAHAMS BOOK BROUGHT THAT PART OF OUR LIFE BACK TO LIFE. THANK YOU THOMAS AND ALL THE FOLKS WHO WORKED TO CREATE THIS BOOK OF MEMORIES.

It is obvious that a lot of work went into this book.
The images are sharp and colorful.
I enjoyed reading about the artists that made many of these models look so much better than the actual kit could possibly look.
My biggest disappointment was the brevity of the book.
Maybe Tom Graham will consider doing a part two to cover some of the great art left out of this one.
This is a must read for all the boomers that grew up building these neat models and wondered about the boxart.