Hello!,

Painted with acrylic, this is the original airbrush painting of Lucille Ball and not a print or copy.

When I met Lucille Ball, I had one question to ask her. In all of my concentrated reading about her for the 10 years prior, I had never found who was her favorite artist. She was on her way in to a benefit for the partially sighted and after I asked her, she came back to answer my question. Her Husband Gary Morton had interjected "Carol Burnett", and she said, "No,.....artist.". With her head bowed, she said, "I can't think, I can't think.". "Well do you like Norman Rockwell". She said, "Oh, LOVE Norman Rockwell!", then suddenly she had it. "Hirschfeld! Love Hirschfeld" , she said. I didn't see that coming, even though he's by far my favorite as well.

Lucy had bought drawings from me that I did in high school. At the time, I did not realize that it was unlike her to by artwork. I don't know of another time when she bought artwork from an artist, something that I feel gratefully reverent about.

Mr. Al Hirschfeld was a tremendous help to me. Help by example as well as personal attention. Among the guests at his 90th birthday party at the Algonquin, I must have been the youngest guy there. All because I loved him enough to make a special birthday card and have my Disney co-workers sign it for him. After that, he was linked to the studio.

You've seen some of my work before. Most likely the Disney animated features. In the late 1980's and early 1990's I was fortunate to help create THE LITTLE MERMAID (Ursula), BEAUTY & THE BEAST and ALADDIN. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0972661/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1 Sincere and deep gratitude for having had the opportunity to help bring these inspiring and soothing as well as exciting stories to life by the magic of traditional animation.

Artwork is approximately 10" X 13"