- Creator
- Gard, Alex
- Call number
- *T-Vim 2010-029
- Physical description
- 8 boxes ( ca. 925 drawings)
- Preferred Citation
- Alex Gard caricatures, Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library
- Repository
- Billy Rose Theatre Division
- Access to materials
- Some collections held by the Dance, Music, Recorded Sound, and Theatre Divisions at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts are held off-site and must be requested in advance. Please check the collection records in the NYPL's online catalog for detailed location information. For general guidance about requesting offsite materials, please consult: https://www.nypl.org/about/locations/lpa/requesting-archival-materials
Born in Kazan, Russia in 1900, Gard emigrated to the United States in 1924. Perhaps Gard's most famous works are his caricatures of Broadway celebrities for the walls of Sardi's restaurant, for which he was paid in meals. His drawings also appeared in The New York Herald Tribune's drama section. Gard died in New York City en route to the hospital in 1948. Mostly black and white original caricatures of theatrical productions, actors, actresses, and notables, but also includes a few motion picture celebrities and other subjects, by Alex Gard. The caricatures consist of both finished ink drawings, as well as a large number of preliminary sketches in pencil. Some drawings depict several personalities or productions in one. A few of the dozens of celebrities portrayed include Eddie Cantor, Katharine Hepburn, Bert Lahr, Ethel Merman, and Victor Moore. There are also several sketchbooks and cartoons, a number of which depict casinos, bars, and various scenes in the state of Nevada. Of note are 3 caricatures of New York theater critics, portayed as Eskimos, a marching band, and in judicial robes and wigs.
Using the collection
Location
Billy Rose Theatre DivisionNew York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor