Printed and Manuscript Americana

"Science Joins Hands with Nature to Provide a New Setting for the Brave and Fair of Fashion"

Pasadena, California, ca. 1933. Watercolor and ink on paper, mounted to a larger sheet and mounted to board; signed by Bodrero ("Jacobus Bodrero, fecit.") bottom right. 38 1/2 x 54 1/4 in. (978 x 1,378 mm). In frame, 41 x 56 3/4 in. (1,041 x 1,441 mm).

A large original and unique watercolor by artist and Disney animator James Bodrero, created for Philadelphia airline mogul Nicholas S. Ludington. The painting features numerous references to Ludington's and Bodrero's elite California and New York social circle, and is likely related to one of the numerous Santa Barbara area social clubs (possibly the Montecito Supper Club) of which both men, and many of the figures depicted (including members of New York's legendary literary group, the Algonquin Round Table) were members.

Taking the compositional format of an early 19th century engraving, this painting celebrates the waning days of Prohibition (1920-33) by depicting a fictional festive scene aboard Robert Fulton's famous steamship Clermont. Thirty-four party-goers are shown in various states of drunken revelry, with many dancing, toasting, embracing, or playing music. Approaching the ship in the foreground is the rowboat "Pryde of Nyack" (steered by a burly caricature of industrialist and steamboat entrepreneur Cornelius Vanderbilt) occupied by Jack Kriendler and Charlie Berns, proprietors of the famous New York City speakeasy, "Jack and Charlies '21'". To the left of the ship is a canoe (with the registration number "21W52", in reference to the speakeasy's address at 21 West 52nd Street) with three figures in Native American dress, identified below as "The Three Sagamores of the Manhattans": "No-Ni-Griggs" (actor John Griggs), "Lits-Cott" (writer Alexander Woollcott, member of the Algonquin Round Table), and "Mo-Slee" (William Mosle, of New York). To the right of the ship is a small basket, attached by string to the ship's railing, carrying four dogs labeled "The Boys". The waters around the ship are strewn with boxes of smuggled liquor, bottles of alcohol, and an errant top hat, while in the background the Hudson Highlands loom overhead with a large mansion standing sentinel (presumably the Livingston manor Clermont, from which Fulton's steamship got its name).

A calligraphic key along the lower portion of the painting identifies each figure, including members of the Algonquin Round Table (from left to right, and omitting the aforementioned "Sagamores"): Mr. Elliott Rogers; Mrs. Macy (likely Lydia Bodrero Macy, James Bodrero's sister); Mrs. Thos. Loughlin; Peter Cooper Bryce, Esq. (investor and estate manager, and grandson of Peter Cooper--designer of the first steam locomotive); Mrs. Mildred Kelleher (master of ceremonies for numerous parties during this period in Pasadena and Santa Barbara); Mrs. Wm. Mosle (Anne Brackenridge); The Hon. Theo. Ryan; Mr. Thomas Loughlin; Sir Trader Horn, Bart. (possibly a reference to Alfred Aloysius "Trader" Horn, the late ivory trader in Central Africa); Lawrence Fox, Esq.; Mr. Robert Benchley (author, actor, and member of the Algonquin Round Table); Nicholas Ludington, Esq.; Mrs. Nicholas Ludington (Mary Lloyd Macy Ludington); Miss Talullah Bankhead (actress and member of the Algonquin Round Table); The Hon. Gilbert Outhwaite (proprietor and secretary of the Montecito Supper Club); Mr. Jack and Mr. Charley The City's popular Caterers (Jack Kriendler and Charlie Berns); Commodore Vanderbilt (well known ferryman) (reference to industrialist Cornelius Vanderbilt); Mr. Wright Ludington (brother of Nicholas); Lady Slater (Frances Worthington Ames Wolseley); Mrs. Clyde Brown (Louise Gill Macy, sister of Mary Lloyd Macy Ludington, magazine editor, and later wife to Harry Hopkins, advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt); Mr. Joseph Hixon; Clyde Brown, Esq. (New York lawyer); Mrs. Lawrence Fox; James Bodrero, Esq.; Mr. Charles Dabney; Miss Gertrude Macy (American writer and Broadway producer, and aunt of Nicholas); The Hon. Donald Ogden Stewart (writer and screenwriter, member of the Algonquin Round Table); Mrs. James Bodrero (Eleanor Cornelia Cole, interior designer); Mr. Thomas Wanamaker (of Philadelphia); Mrs. Chas. Dabney (Geraldine Graham); Mrs. Donald Ogden Stewart (Beatrice Ames); Mr. Thos. Robb; Barber; The Hon. Mrs. Peter Cooper Bryce (Angelica Schuyler Brown); and Sir Wm. Slater, Bart (William A. Slater).

Established by English-born and Troy, New York-raised Gilbert "Icky" Outhwaite, the Montecito Supper Club opened in June 1933. Decorated by Bodrero, the club quickly became an exclusive and elite bastion for California, New York, and Chicago socialites, and whose lavishly-themed parties courted the wealthy, famous, and powerful. The club's escapades were frequently detailed in the society section of local newspapers, as well as in magazines like Town & County. It is presumed to have closed by 1935.

James Bodrero (1900-80) was a Belgian-born American artist and illustrator, remembered for his work for Walt Disney Studios, where he worked as a story director and character designer. His creations include the beloved elephant Dumbo, as well as characters in Fantasia. In 1925, he settled in Pasadena with his wife, Eleanor, and were fixtures of the numerous high society private clubs, which he and his wife often helped furnish.

Nicholas S. Ludington (1905-66) was born in Philadelphia and graduated from Yale in 1927. In 1930, he and his brother, Charles Townsend Ludington, started the New York-Philadelphia-Washington Airways, which became Ludington Airlines. During World War II he served as a Commander in the United States Navy, and following the war served as a special assistant to Defense Secretary James Forrestal on military air transport service. He and his wife, Mary Lloyd Macy, split their time between their Santa Barbara home, Casa Magnolia, and Philadelphia. Alongside the Montecito Supper Club, on whose board he served, he was also a member of other local social clubs, such as the Racquet Club, Gulph Mills Golf, The Rabbit, and the State in Schuylkill.