Lion and Zookeeper

Norman Rockwell 1954

Lion and Zookeeper, a Norman Rockwell painting, appeared on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post published January 9, 1954. This is another timeless favorite of Rockwell collectors, a classic for all the ages.

This painting was Rockwell's 279th overall out of 322 total paintings that were published on the cover of the Saturday Evening Post. Rockwell's career with the Post spanned 47 years, from his first cover illustration, "Boy With Baby Carriage" in 1916 to his last, "Portrait of John F. Kennedy", in 1963.

This was also the first cover for The Post in 1954. In 1954, there were six Norman Rockwell Saturday Evening Post covers published.

This is one of those classic Norman Rockwell images that just makes you smile. That poor lion! He can only watch as the zookeeper eats his lunch. That sandwich is abslutely dripping with meat. Part of it looks like it might actually fall out of the sandwich. The zookeeper, for his part, is unaware of the lion's desires to taste his lunch. He is intent on reading his newspaper and drinking his coffee.

The story is told that Rockwell wanted the lion to be more desireous of the zookeeper's lunch. However the lion had just been fed a short while before Rockwell and his photographer's arrival. The funny thing is that Rockwell tried to arouse the lion more by roaring at him. He left that day with a sore throat. He couldn't affect the lion's demeanor