Sightseeing at the Big Apple!

TWA Photo Booth, 2022

The day I arrived at JFK to visit my son and his family in Hoboken, NJ, and the day I left. (With my son Ricardo by my side, as always!)

Oh, Nurse!

 New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is devising ways to convince people to be vaccinated for COVID  by offering lottery tickets as a bonus but I can think of another way to lure the male population into getting the shots. 

Art by Gil Elvgren 

 

Another one for Murphy's Law

Now the big question is: how did they get up there?

 

AL HIRSCHFELD

One of my most admired cartoonists has always been Al Hirschfeld.

His way of capturing likenesses and translating them into simple, flowing and dynamic lines is absolutely amazing and even poetic.

His caricatures are widely known and renowned, and almost every self-respecting cartoonist has learned part of his craft by studying Hirschfeld's renderings.

                                       

Yesterday, I paid a visit to the famed Algonquin Hotel located at 59, West 44th Street in Midtown Manhattan and was greeted by some framed examples of Al Hirschfeld's artwork.

  

The story of the Algonquin Hotel is part of New York City's folklore and so is Mr. Hirschfeld.
Al Hirschfeld was born in St. Louis, Missouri on June 21, 1903 and died January 20, 2003 at the age of 99.           

In 1943, Hirschfeld married famous European actress Dolly Haas and they had one daughter, Nina, born in 1945. After her birth, Hirschfeld developed the habit of hiding her name, spelled in capital letters, on most every drawing he did thereafter. The number of NINAs concealed in every drawing was shown next to the artist's signature.  It quickly became a favorite pastime to try and find out the hidden NINAs in the cartoons.

KING KONG ALIVE ON BROADWAY!

King Kong is a musical with music by Marius de Vries, lyrics by Michael Mitnick and Craig Lucas, a book by Lucas and additional musical and lyrical contributions by 3D, Sarah McLachlan, Guy Garvey, Justice and The Avalanches. It is based on the 1933 film of the same name. The original production was mounted in Australia in 2013. A Broadway production premiered in October 2018.

 

This was my grandson's first Broadway show ever. Coincidentally enough, KING KONG (1976) was also his dad Ricardo's first big screen movie which he saw when he was only four years old!  

I remember back in 1977, we were at the cinema, sitting somewhat close to the screen before the lights went out and just before the curtain rose, Rick turned to me and apprehensively asked if Kong was really behind the curtains. He didn't yet realize we were about to see just a movie!

And now, more than 40 years later, my almost seven years old grandson, came to see a "real" King Kong on stage! 

NEW YORK, NEW YORK!

The 1964/1965 New York World's Fair!

Ever since I saw this special souvenir issue of THE FLINTSTONES AT THE NEW YORK WORLD'S FAIR, more than 50 years ago, I've always wanted to visit the location.
The 1964/1965 New York World's Fair held over 140 pavilions, 110 restaurants, for 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations to build exhibits or attractions at Flushing Meadows Park in Queens, NY. The immense fair covered 646 acres on half the park, with numerous pools or fountains, and an amusement park with rides near the lake.
Finally, this past Summer, my dream came true and I walked around the big signature Earth Globe.
The site is no longer anything like it was back when the Fair opened. No dinosaurs or amusement park rides nor any pavilions and no sign of the Flintstones anywhere!
 Today the grounds are occupied by the Arthur Ashe Stadium, site of the U.S. Open. 
But the iconic globe is still there and it was just as exciting to be there simply trying to imagine what the fair had been like.

ONE FINE DAY AT NEW YORK'S MUSEUM OF MODERN ART

Press conference at the White House!

This morning, I addressed the nation on very important and urgent matters. Among the issues covered, was the impending need for cartoonists to earn wages equal to Donald Trump's fee for public speaking engagements!