In the late-1940s and 1950s Reilly was a prolific and successful comic-book artist, known for his fictional creations such as 'Silver Flash' and the 'Rocket Squadron', as well as his depictions of actual naval battles.

[10] Reilly contributed images to a short story entitled 'Good Doctor Haman', written by J. H. Monk, published on 1 July 1913 in the Sydney-based literary magazine, The Lone Hand.

The image featured a cowering woman and a small child covered by the menacing shadow of an armed German officer wearing a spiked helmet.

The cartoon depicted a kangaroo striking a Turkish soldier with its tail, on a background of a map of the Gallipoli peninsula, with text reading "This bit of the world belongs to us!".

[24] From about January 1924 Reilly began to contribute drawings to Smith's Weekly, the independent Sydney tabloid newspaper which gave prominence to cartoons and illustrations in its pages.

[26] From the beginning of 1925 Reilly's contributions to Smith's Weekly began to increase in both the number and variety of his drawings, an indication he had been employed as a staff artist by that stage.

[8] During 1925 Virgil Reilly's drawings published in Smith's Weekly included illustrations for articles, as well as portraits and cartoons on a number of subjects.

[31] By the late 1920s Reilly's series of erotically-charged cartoons of confident and sensual young women in Smith's Weekly began to be known as 'Virgil's girls'.

[32] Reilly's work in this mode has been described as "brisk, detailed pen drawings that included one or two of his seductive 'flappers' cheerfully flirting or discussing divorce".

[43] An article in March 1933 reporting on the persecution of Jews in the early months of Nazi Germany incorporated an illustration by Reilly, depicting a German soldier seated on a large helmet, with crushed Jewish corpses beneath.

[45] In January 1931 Virgil Reilly, of 66 Boronia Road, Bellevue Hill, initiated bankruptcy proceedings and all persons having claims against him were required to provide proof of the debt.

Justice Boyce accepted the evidence that adultery had occurred and dismissed Dorothy's cross-petition alleging her husband's "cruelty and habitual drunkenness".

[57] From February 1938 until September 1941 Virgil Reilly was amongst a select number of artists whose paintings were regularly used to illustrate the cover of the Australian Women's Weekly.

[58][59] Reilly's covers included a numbered series of seven paintings of 'Typical Australian Girls',[60] as well as patriotic subjects and portraits of members of the British Royal family.

[61][B] Reilly commented on the meaning of the image: "My idea was to show the Australian woman representing the home and family with her protectors, the three armed forces of the Commonwealth".

After disturbances during the Christmas period between Virgil and Petah (involving banging on doors, "bad language" and "crockery being broken"), the agent filed applications to evict both from their flats.

At that time Reilly was still living at Cambrian Place and was described as an artist "well known throughout Australia for his renditions of slinky cuties in diaphanous garb".

In about October 1943 the artist received a letter from Fred Oughton, who had served with Gavan, describing "the true facts of his son's gallant sacrifice".

In the letter to Gavan's father, Oughton described the action of his comrade and friend as one "that marked him for ever as a gallant, courageous man, and a hero in the true sense of the word".

[77] Reilly's contributions to the special Naval edition of the Women's Weekly in September 1944 were paintings of an operation being carried out in the sick bay of the H.M.A.S.

The purpose of the ban was to conserve the dollar currency exchange and was a part of wider import restrictions of goods from non-sterling countries to assist the war effort.

Local writers and illustrators were given new opportunities for staff and freelance work to meet the demand for reading material to replace the foreign publications.

[89][90][91] The reception was held at Hampton Court in King's Cross and was attended by "former war correspondent colleagues, newspaper columnists and brother artists".

[93][C] In the years 1950 to 1954, Reilly produced the illustrations for a succession of serialised novels, a short story and articles published in Truth newspaper (in both the Sydney and Brisbane editions).

They were: In 1950 Reilly began to illustrate the comic-book Silver Flash and his Frog-men for Invincible Press (a magazine and book publishing company established by Ezra Norton, the proprietor of the Truth and Daily Mirror newspapers).

[118][114] In 1950, as he was starting to create Silver Flash for Invincible Press, Reilly also illustrated the first six issues of The Invisible Avenger for another comic book publisher, Ayers & James, before work pressures forced him to pass the title to Peter Chapman.

[118] From 1952 Ayers & James published a series called Comics Library, though material drawn by Reilly only appeared in every third issue under the title of Navy Combat.

[124] In 1955 and 1956, Reilly illustrated two bushranger biographies written by the author and popular historian, Frank Clune, Martin Cash and Captain Melville (both published by Angus & Robertson).

[116][126] In 1958 Reilly won the inaugural Walkley Award for the 'Best Piece of Creative Artwork or Cartoon' for an illustration published in Sydney's Daily Mirror newspaper.

[127] His award-winning artwork was a sentimental drawing commemorating Legacy Week, showing the ghost of a soldier embracing his schoolgirl daughter who is laying a wreath to his memory.