This is the second face of one of the best-known Navy recruiting posters of 1942. The picture is the same: McClelland Barclay’s gun crew in the smoke of a deck gun, one sailor stripped to the waist swinging a brass shell toward the breech. But here the painting hangs inside a crisp white border on a field of deep Navy blue, with “Dish it out with the Navy!” shouted across the top in red script and capitals, and the fouled-anchor emblem of the Navy set into a red, white and blue band at the foot.
One painting, two posters
Recruiting posters were printed in large runs and often reissued, and it was common for a strong picture to be set in more than one layout. The two versions of Dish It Out With the Navy share every word: the title, “Choose now while you can”, and “Go to your nearest Navy recruiting station today”. What changes is the voice. The blue-band version is calm and orderly, white capitals on blue. This one is louder: red lettering that slants and leaps like a cheer, the painting presented almost like a framed picture on a wall.
We have not found a reliable record of which layout came first, and both appear in collections and on the market dated 1942 at about 28 by 42 inches, the size made for recruiting stations, post offices and store windows.
“Choose now while you can”
The slogan carried a real deadline. In 1942 a young man could still volunteer and pick his service, but the draft was taking more men each month, and in December 1942 voluntary enlistment was closed to men of draft age. The poster’s promise, to be the one who dishes it out, came with a warning: choose the Navy before someone chooses for you.
McClelland Barclay
Barclay was one of the country’s best-known illustrators, famous for the “Fisher Body Girl” he painted for General Motors, and an officer in the Naval Reserve who produced a run of recruiting posters from the Navy’s New York office. He then went to sea as a combat artist and was killed in action on 18 July 1943, when the landing ship LST-342 was torpedoed in the Solomon Islands. The full story of the painting and the artist is in our history of the blue-band version.
The restored edition
Our edition was restored from an original 1942 print: the paint and paper cleaned, the colour brought back, and creases, stains and wear removed, with the lettering and Barclay’s signature kept. We don’t have a usable scan of this print before restoration, so there is no before and after comparison for this version.
The restored poster is available as a paper print in three sizes or framed in black, white or natural wood, printed to order in the USA.
Frequently asked questions
Why are there two Dish It Out With the Navy posters?
The Navy issued McClelland Barclay’s gun crew painting in more than one layout in 1942. One version puts white lettering on deep blue bands above and below the picture; this one frames the painting in white on a blue field, with red lettering at the top and the Navy anchor at the foot.
Is the painting the same in both?
Yes. Both use Barclay’s painting of a gun crew loading a deck gun, signed “McClelland Barclay USNR”. Only the lettering, colours and framing around it change.
Which version came first?
We have not found a firm record of the order. Both carry the same slogans and were in circulation in 1942. Collections and dealers list copies at about 28 by 42 inches, the large size used in recruiting stations.
Who was McClelland Barclay?
One of America’s best-known illustrators, famous for the Fisher Body Girl advertisements, and a U.S. Naval Reserve officer. He was killed in action in the Solomon Islands on 18 July 1943 when LST-342 was torpedoed.
How big is the restored print?
Our restored edition is available as a paper print up to 23.4 x 33.1 inches, or framed up to 23 x 33 inches, printed to order in the USA.