Reading in the Bathroom | Saul Bass | A Life in Film and Design

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We try for the idea that is so simple that it will make you think -- and rethink. What we do is reach for some way to make people sit up and pay attention to what we want to say. It's a risky business: we're improvising and never know if it will work out.

During my senior year at Howard University, just as the lightbulb of design’s possibilities lit above my head, my Dad called and asked,

Have you ever heard of Saul Bass?
No…

This was a little embarrassing because I had never heard of him. Admittedly, I was somewhat hermetically sealed during my time in the design program at Howard. In the Fall of 2004, so much time was dedicated to production techniques, typography, and artistic development, very little time was spent reflecting upon great designers of our industry.

The Poster Boys Ep. 1 & 2 discuss Saul Bass

Saul Bass was most famous for designing movie titles and posters for classic films such as North by Northwest, Anatomy of a Murder, and The Man with the Golden Arm. In the early 1990s, he creating the opening title sequence for Martin Scorsese’s The Age of Innocence.

But that all I knew about him. He was the movie title guy. When I say movie title guy, I don’t mean it in a reductive, dismissive sense. It’s clear that Saul Bass’ impact on movie making shifted the way stories were told on film. But what I’d come to discover was that Saul Bass did so much more than movie title. Corporate logos for The Girl Scouts and The United Way. He developed title cards for Hanna-Barbera, AT&T, Minolta, General Foods, and National Film Registry.

Some of my favorite sections are when we see stills from animated sequences. This is an excellent example of capturing moving, interactive work for historical purposes.

In addition to Saul’s work, the book also takes time to reflect upon the contributions of Elaine Bass, Saul’s wife. Similarly to Lella Vignelli  (in favor of her late husband Massimo), Elaine Bass’ contributions to design has been overlooked. Elaine, a young singer-turned-fashion illustrator of Hungarian descent, joined his company as his assistant. Yet within a few years, she produced and directed the opening title sequence to Spartacus.

This book was written by Pat Kirkham and Jennifer Bass, Saul’s daughter. It was Saul’s desire to write a book about his life as a designer. But with age, his health began to decline, and he was unable to complete. Jennifer promised to complete his work, but with a broader scope in mind. She wanted to illustrate who he was as a person, not just a designer. Now when I visit this book, it feels like I’m visiting a kindred spirit, or a cool uncle.

If I have to offer a criticism, it would simply be an observation of the makeup of his Saul Bass & Associates (SB+A) staff: Mostly white men with a sprinkle of white women and Asian men.  A reminder that even people I admire had blindspots.

This book was not made because Saul Bass is famous. It was written because his family and friends cared enough about him to see it to completion. What we’re left with is not just the story of a designer, but a uniquely American story.

Reading in the Bathroom is a book review series by IDSL. Reading is obviously not done in the bathroom exclusively. Sometimes it’s at a park bench, outdoor cafe, or on the train. But the best reading is done in the bathroom.