Monday, December 25, 2023

Merry Christmas (and a little about J. C. Leyendecker)

 

Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it!



 Our Christmas image come to us from J. C. Leyendecker (1874-1951).  He was a prolific illustrator—for magazine covers, books and advertisements.  I first came to his work in trying to explain the meaning of a Cole Porter song to a friend.  The lyric in question was “I can’t imagine being bad, with any Arrow Collar ad….”  I pulled up illustrated ad after illustrated ad.  (see below)

 


Almost certainly gay, he lived with another man and was one of the most successful commercial artists of his day.  His drawings are incredibly homoerotic…

His work has appeared one other time here, on Thanksgiving, 2021.


4 comments:

  1. Classic images from a bygone era but still able to evoke a certain sensuality for those of us who can relate. Merry Christmas FP.

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    1. I find a hot man is a hot man no matter what era he was drawn, sculpted or photographed. Have a great Christmas, GaryM!

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  2. Happy holidays, my dear. Hope you're enjoying them. Wishing you the very best... still more to come. Kizzes.

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