What a great piece. This will be a conversation piece any place it is seen. This is a gouache original, hand painted and mixed media artwork on artboard by John Lomasney for the Debbie Reynolds film "Tammy and the Bachelor" (Universal, 1957). This is especially interesting because it includes original studio publicity film stills incorporated into the image at the bottom.

Size: 22 by 44 inches

Condition: Good.

Circa: 1957.

About John J. Lomasney, the Artist...

John Lomasney was born In Ireland around the turn of the Century. He came to the United States and spent some time in California where he worked briefly as a set painter at Warner Brothers and Paramount. He moved to Hawaii in 1936 and went to work for the Royal Hawaiian Theater chain as a staff artist.

At that time theater chains competed for customers and relied on the - "one sheets" - that were placed in the glass display cases in the front of the theater to attract customers. Royal Hawaiian hired Lomasney to create their own "One Sheets" as opposed to the "One Sheets" supplied by the Studios. Eliminating the myriad of credits on the studio posters, Lomasney was able to create more colorful, graphic posters that accented highlights of the action or the character portrayal of the stars.

Using the studio supplied stills as inspiration; Lomasney painstakingly fashioned his original posters, painting in gouache on 28 by 44 inch art board. He seldom did more than four posters for a movie and each one is unique, a one of a kind creation.

For forty years Lomasney spent everyday of his working life creating this treasure of movie nostalgia.

In those days, studio-trained painters were schooled to be anonymous and there are only two of his original signatures known to exist.

One of the most astonishing aspects of Lomasney's versatility and inventiveness is the skill with which he dramatically integrates billing requirements with huge luminescent portraits of such idols as Errol Flynn, Sophia Loren, Natalie Wood, Fred Astaire, Gregory Peck, John Wayne, etc.

From Rudolph Valentino to Elvis Presley, Lomasney's exciting art form will be treasured forever.