Debut of Willie Gillis

Date: October 4, 1941 • Location: Rome, Italy

Willie Gillis, one of Norman Rockwell's trademark characters, debuted on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post.

Willie Gillis, Jr. is a fictional character created by Norman Rockwell for a series of World War II paintings that appeared on the covers of 11 issues of The Saturday Evening Post between 1941 and 1946. Gillis was an everyman with the rank of private whose career was tracked on the cover of the Post from induction through discharge without being depicted in battle. He and his girlfriend were modeled by two of Rockwell's acquaintances.