The Federal Theater Div. of W.P.A. presents It cant happen here [by] Sinclair Lewis – Historic Poster Reproduction
![The Federal Theater Div. of W.P.A. presents It cant happen here [by] Sinclair Lewis, 1936 — vintage poster](https://images.jameslantos.com/img/c2/c2f5b252b169-L.webp)
(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)
Description
This rare vintage poster captures The Federal Theater Div. of W.P.A. presents It cant happen here [by] Sinclair Lewis in remarkable detail. It comes from the collections of the Library of Congress, scanned from the original and carefully restored.
Choose the framed print, ready to hang the day it arrives, or the unframed print for a frame of your own. It makes a striking addition to a living room, study or office, and a thoughtful gift. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Snapshots of the Past, founded in 2001, has served tens of thousands of customers worldwide.
The Federal Theater Div. of W.P.A. presents It cant happen here [by] Sinclair Lewis
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This poster advertises a Federal theater Project staging of *It Can't Happen Here*, Sinclair Lewis's 1935 novel about a demagogue who rises to power in the United States and turns it toward dictatorship. Its imagery of saluting soldiers and raised fists signals that political threat, which made the story a pointed choice for a government-funded theater program in the mid-1930s. The Federal theater Project ran under the Works Progress Administration from 1935 to 1939, and its productions often reached audiences in smaller towns, a reach the poster's Iowa subject tag hints at. The silkscreen process was a practical, low-cost method that suited the WPA's mass-produced publicity.
| Created / published | 1936 |
|---|---|
| Medium | 1 print on board (poster) : silkscreen color. |
| Notes | Date stamped on verso: Jul 8 1937. Work Projects Administration Poster Collection (Library of Congress). · Lewis Sinclair 1885-1951. Federal Theatre Project (U.S.) sponsor. |
| Subjects | Theatrical productions--Iowa--1930-1940. Soldiers--1930-1940. Saluting--1930-1940. Fists--1930-1940. |
| Source | Library of Congress, Work Projects Administration Poster Collection |
| Original scan | 983 × 1,536 px · prints to 3 × 5 in at 300 dpi |
| Reference | 605_The_Federal_Theater_Div_1936 |
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