caption death_date death_place birth_place parents birth_date spouse image article_title name occupation
self-portrait of franklin mcmahon , circa 1960 3 march 2012 highland park , illinois , u.s. chicago , illinois , u.s. william mcmahon 9 september 1921 irene leahy -lrb- d. 1997 -rrb- fmlinedrawing5a.jpg franklin mcmahon
 franklin mcmahon artist-reporter
franklin mcmahon

-lrb- william -rrb- franklin mcmahon -lrb- september 9 , 1921 -- march 3 , 2012 -rrb- was an artist-reporter whose work took him around the world for more than half a century .
his seminal work at the birth of the civil rights movement , his coverage of u.s. presidential campaigns between 1960 and 2008 , america 's role in the space race , the formation of the european council , vatican ii , and scores of other political , cultural , religious and sporting events ; all were part of a franklin mcmahon `` day at the office '' for the last 55 + years ... except that for him , his office was his studio , which is the world .
in the words of peter lyle of `` the sunday telegraph '' of london : '' ... his pencil and his pad have been witness to many of the most significant events in postwar american and world history . ''
his artistic output also included films and books .
his widespread recognition , as evidenced by his exhibitions , his awards , and the broad array of national and international institutions who hold his work , demonstrates that lyle 's title `` the man who drew history '' is well-earned .
other than in his very early years when he did illustrations `` on spec '' , he was not an `` after-the-fact '' illustrator .
in his own words , drawing from life made him an `` artist-reporter '' or a `` reportorial artist . ''
`` that way , '' he said , `` you can see around the corner . ''
