Saturday, April 20, 2013

Raymond E. Lanterman (1916-1994)

Raymond E. Lanterman was born on May 20, 1916, in Howard County, Indiana, presumably in Kokomo. His parents were Harry W. Lanterman, a chemist and draftsman, and Minnie A. (Brown) Lanterman. Ray Lanterman graduated from the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and worked in Chicago as a commercial artist before enlisting in the U.S. Army in October 1940. His place of enlistment was Fort Benjamin Harrison, northeast of Indianapolis. According to the newsletter of the Polynesian Voyaging Society (Feb.-Mar. 1994), Lanterman was present at the attack on Pearl Harbor and took part in the invasion at Normandy. Lanterman achieved the rank of first lieutenant and settled in Hawaii in the 1940s. It is for his books on Hawaii that he is known today.

In addition to being a commercial artist and illustrator, Ray E. Lanterman was president of the Hawaiian Astronomical Society and the head of the membership committee of the Polynesian Voyaging Society. He was also the co-author of books, either as a writer or illustrator or both. His credits include:
  • Aunty Pinau's Banyan Tree (1967) by Helen Lamar Berkey
  • What's My Name in Hawaiian? (1967) by Louise Bonner
  • The Secret Cave of Kamanawa (1968) by Helen Lamar Berkey
  • Incredible Hawaii (1974) with Terence Barrow
  • Twelve Sky Maps (1974) with Will Kyselka
  • Maui--How It Came To Be (1980) with Will Kyselka
  • More Incredible Hawaii (1986) with Terence Barrow
Raymond E. Lanterman died on January 23, 1994, in Honolulu. A recipient of the Purple Heart and the Distinguished Service Cross (for actions on D-Day), he was buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in the city of his death. You can read more about him on my blog, Book Jacket Bios.

A selection of Raymond Lanterman's books, mostly about Hawaii.

Text copyright 2013 Terence E. Hanley

3 comments:

  1. Anyone who knew Ray here in Honolulu, would like to contact you. Anyone who knew his good friend Artie would also like to chat with you. Thanks!

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    1. Gigi Ewing (Dennis)June 6, 2022 at 7:54 PM

      Ray shared office space with my father in Honolulu and was a dear friend, my calabash uncle. I posed for many of his illustrations and I have some of his watercolors. I knew Artie as well.

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  2. i have one of his original watercolor paintings

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