Hirschfeld's Icons - by David Leopold (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A collection of 25 removable, ready-to-frame prints by Al Hirschfeld featuring some of the most recognizable icons of the 20th century

"To be a star on Broadway is to have one's name in lights, yes, but it is also, and more significantly, to be drawn by Hirschfeld." --Brendan Gill

According to Merriam-Webster, an icon is "a person or thing widely admired especially for having great influence or significance in a particular sphere."

When it comes to icons, Al Hirschfeld captured them all--Marilyn Monroe, Charlie Chaplin, Elvis Presley, Liza Minnelli, Julie Andrews, Sammy Davis Jr., Chita Rivera, Richard Pryor, Laurel and Hardy, and the Marx Brothers. Hirschfeld's drawings over an unprecedented 80-year career have often become the definitive representations of these performers.

On the heels of Hirschfeld's Sondheim comes the next book in our poster book series--Hirschfeld's Icons--a look at the greatest actors, actresses, musicians, movie, and TV stars of the past century. No other artist has had a front-row seat to pop culture the way Hirschfeld did.

Accompanied by expert commentary and biographies by David Leopold, the foremost expert on Hirschfeld and the Creative Director of the Al Hirschfeld Foundation, we showcase the best of the best--including rare images from the archives and an all-new introduction by Dick Cavett.

Hirschfeld's Icons captures not just the most memorable roles of these icons from theater, film, music, dance, and television--a tour de force of some of the greatest entertainers of the last 100 years--but it reaffirms Hirschfeld's legacy as one of our most iconic artists as well.

About the Author

Al Hirschfeld (1903-2003) was one of the most innovative artists in establishing the visual language of modern art through caricature in the 20th century. A self-described "characterist," his signature work, defined by a linear calligraphic style, appeared in virtually every major publication of the last nine decades (including a 75-year relationship with the New York Times) as well as numerous book and record covers and 15 postage stamps. Just before his death in January 2003, he learned he was to be awarded the Medal of Arts from the National Endowment of the Arts and inducted into the Academy of Arts and Letters. The winner of two Tony Awards, Hirschfeld was given the ultimate Broadway accolade on what would have been his 100th birthday when the Martin Beck Theater was renamed the Al Hirschfeld Theater. David Leopold is an author and curator based in New York City who has organized exhibitions for institutions worldwide, including the Library of Congress, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, among others. As creative director of the nonprofit Al Hirschfeld Foundation, his books on Hirschfeld include The Hirschfeld Century: A Portrait of the Artist and His Age (2015) and The American Theatre as Seen by Hirschfeld 1962-2002. Online Hirschfeld exhibitions that Leopold organized during the pandemic won rave reviews from The New Yorker, the Wall Street Journal, and Forbes. Leopold also cohosts the Hirschfeld Century Podcast, nominated as "Best New York City Podcast" by the 2020 Apple Awards. His select other books include David Levine's American Presidents (2008); Irving Berlin's Show Business: Broadway-Hollywood-America (Abrams, 2005, which was listed as a "Top Gift Pick" by the Boston Globe and the New York Times); Hirschfeld's Hollywood (Abrams, 2001); and Hirschfeld's Sondheim (Abrams ComicArts, 2025). He has also authored a number of monographs on underappreciated artists for various museums throughout the country.