Pat Denner in front of Denner and Associates on Broadway with his Cadillac, photo by Tom Thompson
On September 25th, 2011 Utah artist and illustrator Pat Denner passed away at the age of 87. Denner was a fixture along Salt Lake’s Broadway district, where he was immediately recognizable in his fedora hat and yellow cadillac.
Denner’s is not a household name, but you’ve seen his work, whether south in Vegas, west in Wendover, or at your local KFC. He created Vegas Vic for the Young Electric Sign Company in 1951 and followed that with Wendover Will for the Stateline Casino in in 1952. That same year he designed the sit-down menus for Harman Restaurants, home of the KFC franchise, and also created the caricature of Col. Harland Sanders that has traveled around the world. For decades after he handled prestigious accounts from the offices of Denner & Associates at 171 East Broadway.
When he retired Denner turned the storefront property into a studio that became filled from floor to ceiling with his paintings, collected memoriabilia and the “sayings” he liked to post on the wall. “He was a great technical artist,” says Tom Thompson, who used to own Saans Gallery on Broadway. “He could do anything. He was also a fine fellow and one hell of a good neighbor back when we were on Broadway.”
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- Photograph of Pat Denner in his studio of himself and his pin ups
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- Photograph of the original KFC design by Pat Denner
Photograph of the Vegas Vic sign designed by Pat Denner framed in his studio
Pat Denner’s office with paintings he made of his wife and her sister
Denner was born in 1924 and only learned late in life that he had been adopted — he was left at Park City’s St. Anne’s Orphanage when only a week old. In the thirties he worked on the railroad, and like many youth today couldn’t resist the temptation to decorate box cars (read Richard Menzies’ two blog posts here and here). He graduated from Judge Memorial High School and in 1943 joined the Navy, then attended Pratt Institute before embarking on his successful career as an illustrator.
In 2007 Denner was the subject of Howdy Pardner!, a documentary by George Leon exploring Americana, graphic design and outdoor advertising and its influence on popular culture. When Gloria, his wife of 62 years, passed away in 2008 friends say he was heartbroken. He was still working in his studio when Shalee Cooper shot a photo essay of his studio in 2009 (see here), but by 2010 his ill health kept him home bound and he had to close the studio.
His neighbors on Broadway all remarked on what a generous and charming person he was, always ready with a smile and a helping hand.
Pat Denner’s studio
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Categories: In Memoriam | Visual Arts
My name is Kristen Cowburn Ruth. I will remember my g uncle Pat as a very sweet and loving man. He grew up in a wonderful family & from a very young age I am sure he was introduced to the art world by his mother, Margaret Buller Denner, and his aunt who is my g grandmother, Theresa Buller Cowburn. My grandfather, Donald Patrick Cowburn, was his first cousin and they were the very best of friends. Their grandfather, Peter M. Buller, was the owner of The Utah Brewery, and also P. Buller & Grove, which closed during the Prohibition. They were very privileged children and were able to travel all over the USA and other countries as well. They both had their own cameras as little children and took hundreds of pictures which I am so lucky to have since I am the family genealogist. When my father, Martin Henry Cowburn was a little boy, my grandfather and grandmother were going through many financial burdens due to my grandma’s illnesses. My Uncle Pat got my dad & his brother Barry modeling jobs with Auerback’s Dept.Store, and so even though they lived in a family potato chip factory and were very poor, they were always the very best dressed little boys and nobody would have imagined that they were in a desperate situation. I remember as a child being fascinated by his art shop on Broadway, there were paintings of Jesus,tons of movie stars,Utah Scenery, Cowboys & all sorts of naked ladies (he appreciated the female form and captured it so beautifully). He will be so greatly missed, but he will live on as a Great American Icon. He made Colonel Sanders, as well as those wonderful mechanical cowboys, Vegas Vic and Wendover Will. I love you uncle Pat!!!!!
Dear Ms. Ruth,
I am deeply saddened by the death of your uncle, Pat Denner, and have been a fan of his work for many years, always going to have him paint a portrait for me. Sadly, my pocket book was never where I wanted it to be, and I have waited too long!
I also offered him $400 for a portrait of (Princess) Diana Spencer wearing a blue denim shirt about two years ago, which he accepted, but I did not try to contact him because I did not have the money until recently.
Do you know what has become of that painting, and/ or his other works, or if I could still buy it?
Many thanks for the courtesy of a reply.
Very sorry for your/our loss.
Your friend,
Richard D M Barnes
1520 West 800 North
Salt Lake City, UT 84116
(801)521-4400