The Speakeasies of 1932 [Hardcover]

Gordon Kahn (Author), Al Hirschfeld (Author), Pete Hamill (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2003

Introduction by Pete Hamill. When Manhattan joints were hung out to dry, the Booze-oizie sniveled, then pirouetted on their stools to find reasonably palatable Speakeasy facsimiles. These Prohibition hangouts each had their own flavor, decorum, decor and formula for ducking the law. Each found its own alcoholic substratum: its own inimitable characters behind, at and under the bar. Fear not - all has not been lost to the repeal of the 18th Amendment, Starbucks corporate latte, and the wrecking ball. One intoxicating artifact remains, a book of lustrous vintage - Al Hirschfeld's The Speakeasies of 1932, wherein Hirschfeld nails these dipsomaniacal outposts with his pen and brush in the manner of a dour Irish bartender sizing up a troublesome souse. Provided as well is the recipe for each of the speakeasy's cocktail claim to fame. The resulting concoction is the perfect antidote to the Cappuccino Grande Malaise, a book that will make everyone yearn for a Manhattan, old fashioned, and straight up. "His comments are as swooping and witty as his lines." - The New Yorker

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Brought back into print, this redesigned volume of Hirschfeld's pen-and-ink drawings from 1932 offers a window onto the Jazz Age. His trademark illustrations capture the feeling of bartenders, both straight-faced and dour, as well as of the patrons, some dressed for dance, others longing to bend an ear. Set on the facing page of each drawing is a short essay on the drinking establishment (written by Gordon Kahn and Al Hirschfeld), followed by the recipe for that place's signature drink. For example, in Mike's bar in Harlem, the author's write, "Caucasian patronage is tolerated but not solicited," and the Pink Lady Cocktail is made with grenadine, brandy, gin and egg white. Hirschfeld depicts the bartender Ralph, serving a sophisticated, blasé black couple, sitting at the same table as a derelict-looking white man. The publication of this book marks the launch of Applause's new imprint, Glenn Young Books.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From The New Yorker

Originally published in 1932 under the rather coy title "Manhattan Oases," Hirschfeld and Kahn's book memorializes three dozen of some thirty-two thousand illegal drinking holes that sprang up in New York during Prohibition, ranging from the Mansion, where "admission is by a unique, wooden card only," to the Bowery dive O'Leary's. In Hirschfeld's caricatures of the barmen behind their bars, his dynamic line is less exuberant than in later years and has a muted quality appropriate to the Depression. The text, co-written by Kahn, a journalist and screenwriter whose career was later destroyed by the blacklist, includes a specialty of each house—gin daisy, horse's neck, brandy flip, prairie-oyster cocktail, and so on. A preface, written by Hirschfeld shortly before his death, in January, insists that he and Kahn tried every single one: "This may be the best damned researched book ever."
Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker

Product Details

• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: Glenn Young Books/Applause; 1 edition (August 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557835187
• ISBN-13: 978-1557835185
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 9.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #419,019 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AL HRSCHFELD STILL DRAWS RAVES!, January 31, 2006

By 

Alan W. Petrucelli (THE ENTERTAINMENT REPORT (ALAN W. PETRUCELLI)) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Speakeasies of 1932 (Hardcover)

All hail Hirschfeld, and, more importantly, all hail this trio of tomes featuring works by the premier theater and entertainment illustrator of the 20th century. For decades, Big Al's works adorned the cover of Sunday's New York Times Arts and Leisure sections, sketches celebrating plays, musicals, movies and celebrities gracing Gotham that particular week. The bearded, rotund artist (sort of a secular Santa for show-biz folk) was ubiquitous at opening nights in and out of town. And, of course, each week, there were the "Ninas," his daughter's name, hidden, sometimes once, sometimes up to eight times, in each sketch. (The number next to his signature would clue us in on the number of times Nina's name was hidden.) Cross-country phone calls wailing, "Where's the last Nina?" ensued on many a Sunday afternoon.
Nina-searchers can now glut themselves on Hirschfeld's British Aisles, a collection culled from the New York Times; as a special treat, there are welcome commentaries from such big name Brits as Julie Andrews, Dame Edna, Sir Cameron Mackintosh and Lynn Redgrave.
A veddy nice job, but the real treats are Hirschfeld's Harlem and The Speakeasies of 1932. In Harlem, we can see the artist's style develop; before the detailed line drawings we have come to expect came almost impressionistic pencil shadings, at once more personal and mysterious, more abstract, and evocative and startling in their originality. Harlem has, as well as several historical essays, text by a band of authorities, including Bobby Short, Lena Horne, Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee and Savion Glover.
The Speakeasies of 1932 is a fascinating look at the dives and divine watering holes of that noble experiment, prohibition. Sketches of bars, bartenders and patrons, along with a written description of the joints, are included. Added to this fizzy mix are drink recipes from each bar; we should, perhaps, avoid the cocktail simply called "Smoke," from an establishment called O'Leary's on the Bowery. The principle ingredient? Two cans of Sterno.
Art should teach us something about the past, about ourselves, about our society. But it should also be fun. Al Hirschfeld accomplished all of this with pencil, pen and ink. If you aren't familiar with his work, meet this terrific triumvirate. And if you are familiar with dear Al (and Nina), then enjoy a reunion with old and treasured friends.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book and Resource, March 4, 2010

By 

John L. Apodaca "Daddy-O" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Speakeasies of 1932: Paperback (Paperback)

I love this book and the detailed descriptions of the speakeasies and the drinks that were prominent in each bar. The drawings are also wonderful and fun for everyone to enjoy. I highly recommend the book to anyone who's interested in the prohibition era, vintage cocktails an essential for cocktail enthusiasts. I run Daddy-O's Martinis [...] and will highly endorse this book.

Sincerely,

John Apodaca