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Dimensions: measurements 18 3/4 by 31 5/8 in. alternate measurements 47.5 by 80.5 cm.
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Provenance: Acquired as a gift directly from the artist
Ed and Pegeen Fitzgerald, New York ("the Fitzgeralds")
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Literature: Ludwig Bemelmans, Madeline and the Bad Hat, New York, 1956, pp. 14 and 15, illustrated
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Notes: The present work is reproduced across two pages of Bemelmans' 1956 book, "Madeline and the Bad Hat". The image shows Pepito, or the "Bad Hat" as Madeline has named him (for obvious reasons!), flying his kite on the roof of The Spanish Embassy next door to where Madeline and her friends live in Paris. He is the Ambassador's mischievous son and his naughty shenanigans and interactions with Madeline form the delightful story of the book. The title of the work is the caption. Popular radio hosts, Ed and Pegeen Fitzgerald, were close friends of Bemelmans for many years. Their much-beloved radio show, "the Fitzgeralds", aired on station WOR from 1931-1975 and made them the highest paid radio talk show team in the business at the time with an audience numbered in the millions. "Bemmy", as they referred to the artist, was an occasional guest. The artist presented them with this work in the late 1950s.