370:"When the first blues singers began to tour this country , I was deeply concerned that their music should be recorded for posterity before it was lost for ever. So I would stagger down from London to my Sussex farmhouse with a heavy hired tape recorder and microphone, and get a local farmer to load the village hall piano onto a trailer, bring it down by tractor, and install it in my living room where the thick walls and beamed ceiling had good acoustic properties."
260:, and his future wife, Pamela Kilby, whom he wed in 1949. "Kilby" combined with "Smith" led to their collective nickname of "Smilby". He then became an art teacher, and for a time worked as an animator with
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He hyphenated his surname by deed poll in 1983, so as to comply with the inheritance stipulations of a relative's will. He continued to draw until forced to give up through ill health in 1998.
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He was an expert on and major collector of blues and gospel music, writing and broadcasting on the subject. He owned one of the world's most important collections of early
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and others, and was a freelance consultant to advertising agencies. He also worked more widely as a graphic designer and book illustrator. As
Francis Smilby, he wrote
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and assistant to the industrial designer Ian
Bradbury. However, by 1951, his cartoons had begun appearing in
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in his surname, he later added it in 1983, to comply with the inheritance stipulations of a relative's will.
233:, intercepting telephone conversations and collecting and delivering material to US consular staff in the
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Stolen sweets: The cover girls of yesteryear, their elegance, charm, and sex appeal
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and other magazines, and he became a full-time cartoonist, later working for the
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Wilford Smith and
Frances Hunt, who died shortly after his birth. He attended
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Working as "Smilby", he also designed many advertising campaigns for
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396:, at the age of 82. Pamela Wilford-Smith died on 4 September 2010.
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165:; 12 March 1927 – 4 December 2009) was a British
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He and Pamela had one son and one daughter. He died in 2009 in
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Blues for
Francis: The Life and Work of Francis Wilford-Smith
601:"New biography on Francis Wilford Smith. Who he? Read on!"
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Smilby, Francis; Beecroft, Caroline; Rye, Howard (2015).
579:(illustrated, annotated\ ed.). Music Mentor Books.
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16:British cartoonist and record producer (1927–2009)
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507:Little Brother Montgomery 1960: The Piano Blues
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321:Stolen Sweets: The Cover Girls of Yesteryear
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181:. As a cartoonist, he used the pseudonym
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374:Many of his recordings were issued by
323:(1981), a definitive history of early
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685:Alumni of Camberwell College of Arts
551:"Death notice, Pamela Wilford-Smith"
479:Smilby, Francis (1 January 1981).
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675:People educated at Warwick School
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483:(1st ed.). Playboy Press.
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503:"Sleevenotes to Magpie #4451"
205:, England, the second son of
665:Punch (magazine) cartoonists
605:Let The Jukebox Keep Playing
530:"Hand Me My Travelin' Shoes"
244:In 1946, he began attending
630:Smilby at Punchcartoons.com
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454:"Obituary by Mark Bryant"
344:Little Brother Montgomery
690:British record producers
419:He was born without the
246:Camberwell School of Art
695:British blues musicians
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252:. While there, he met
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301:Saturday Evening Post
231:US Naval Intelligence
217:, serving during the
154:Francis Wilford-Smith
35:Francis Wilford Smith
25:Francis Wilford-Smith
356:Champion Jack Dupree
660:English cartoonists
262:Halas and Batchelor
203:Rugby, Warwickshire
49:Rugby, Warwickshire
254:Humphrey Lyttelton
401:Blues for Francis
362:, at his home in
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609:. Retrieved
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366:. He wrote:
360:Memphis Slim
348:Muddy Waters
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258:Wally Fawkes
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134:Pamela Kilby
112:, expert on
65:(2009-12-04)
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655:2009 deaths
650:1927 births
611:26 February
560:26 February
535:26 February
513:26 February
464:26 February
380:Sony Awards
336:piano blues
327:magazines.
187:maiden name
179:blues music
82:Nationality
644:Categories
489:B0006E53CK
431:References
352:Otis Spann
298:, and the
207:pharmacist
167:cartoonist
102:Cartoonist
41:1927-03-12
555:The Times
334:recorded
193:Biography
124:1946–1998
309:Guinness
227:Atlantic
175:producer
390:Ledbury
295:Esquire
283:Playboy
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85:British
71:Ledbury
53:England
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509:. 1960
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421:hyphen
364:Sussex
358:, and
332:78 rpm
325:pin-up
223:Africa
199:hyphen
183:Smilby
173:, and
129:Spouse
93:Smilby
407:Notes
317:Boots
271:Punch
201:) in
140:(
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116:music
114:blues
613:2023
581:ISBN
562:2023
537:2023
515:2023
485:ASIN
466:2023
237:and
60:Died
31:Born
313:ICI
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.