The series consists of clippings of cartoons by Richard Taylor and clippings of advertisements illustrated by him; ad agency proofs; and samples of advertising brochures and other commercial work.
The material largely consists of clippings of cartoons from periodicals, including The New Yorker, Playboy, Esquire, Saturday Evening Post and others, as well as from newspapers. Some of these clippings were compiled for cartoon collections, for instance for the collection The Better Taylors. Also included are a copy of the Canadian Affairs pamphlet Art - Canadians, For the Use of (Canadian Ed. Vol. 1. No. 22, Dec. 1944) by Barker Fairley and a copy of the exhibition catalogue In Freedom's Search 1950, both containing Taylor's work as illustrations. Also included are Taylor's hand-lettered mock-up of two pages for Mademoiselle, "Know all men by these presents", and two of The New Yorker's proofs of Taylor cartoons.
Taylor's commercial work for advertising agencies and the merchandising of his artwork is documented in files of clippings of the advertisements from various periodicals as well as in files on specific accounts. The latter include E. Errett Smith (including a cocktail napkin featuring an illustration from By Dawn's Ugly Light and 3 proofs of the packaging design); Fortnum and Mason (including 2 copies of an 11-page brochure, Entertaining Made Easy, 1 copy each of two 19-page order catalogues, Invalid Dainties Worth Going to Bed For and Hurrah! Summer is A-Comin In, two order forms and a flyer); Hart Schaffner & Marx (including 2 copies each of two different 2-page pamphlets and 1 copy of a third); Mennen (including a copy of a 34-page booklet, Quixie-Doodle Fun Quiz Book); Mr. Smith's Cards (including samples of sixteen different greetings cards bearing Taylor's work); and Southern Comfort (including a copy of an 8-page booklet, Barmate: Home Bartenders' Guide to Expert Drink Mixing).
The series also includes Richard Taylor's self-promotional literature, including 2 copies of a 2-page flyer advertising his work, a mock-up of the flyer consisting of pasted clippings and Taylor's hand-lettering, and 2 copies of an advertising card. There is a poster advertising the children's book, Miss Carlotta, published by Oxford University Press and illustrated by Richard Taylor (as Richard Denison).
