LeRoy Neiman was arguably the world's most recognizable contemporary artist until his passing in June 2012. He broke the barrier between fine art and popular art while creating indelible images that helped define the twentieth century. But it is the life he lived and the people he knew that make the memoir of this scrappy Depression-era kid who became a swashbuckling bon vivant with the famous mustache such a marvelous historical canvas. Chronicler and confidant of Muhammad Ali, Neiman also traveled with Sinatra, cavorted with Dali and Warhol, watched afternoon soaps with Dizzy Gillespie, played in Sly Stallone's Rocky movies, exchanged quips with Nixon, smoked cigars with Castro, and experienced the terrorist attacks at the Munich Olympics alongside Peter Jennings, Howard Cosell, and Jim McKay. And then there was his half-century relationship with Hugh Hefner as principle artistic contributor to Playboy, setting up studios in London and Paris to cover his Playboy beat, "Man at His Leisure," and his creation of the Femlin, the iconic Playboy nymphette. With his life's work, and in All Told, LeRoy Neiman captured sports heroes, movie stars, presidents, dishwashers, jet-setters, jockeys, and more than a few Bunnies at the Playboy Mansion-a panoramic record of society like no other.

About the Author
LeRoy Neiman, who passed away in June 2012, married fine art to popular art with his brilliantly colored, energetic depictions of sports, celebrities, America at play, life on safari, and locations from the White House lawn to a nudist colony on the Adriatic. Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, he left high school in 1942 to join the U.S. Army, returning four years later to obtain his high school degree. He then studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (where he taught for ten years), the University of Chicago, and the University of Illinois. Early in the 1950s he did fashion illustration for the department store of Carson, Pirie, Scott & Co., where he met Playboy founder Hugh Hefner in 1953. He lived in New York City, overlooking Central Park.

Reviews
"What intrigued me about LeRoy from the very beginning was that his work was rooted in fine art. He was teaching at the Art Institute when nobody else was blurring the lines between fine art and commercial art like he was. He's always had that distinctive LeRoy style, one that I knew from day one would define the unique nature of Playboy. Trust has been the key to our relationship, and he's the only artist I've worked with for more than fifty years. He's a tremendous talent and a tremendous human being." --Hugh Hefner "It was not unusual for me to look up from a workout or a sparring session to see LeRoy perched on a chair, off to the side, studying my movements while sketching in quick strokes. With his bold colors and distinctive artistic style, LeRoy's art and sketches captured my attention and imagination. He made me look as colorful and pretty on paper as I was in person--now that's talent!" --Muhammad Ali "LeRoy Neiman's love of jazz is real. His series of stunning poster art, depicting Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Gerry Mulligan, Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong, and Billie Holiday contributed immensely to the success that is The Newport Jazz Festival. LeRoy donated this work to us in the years between 1964 and 2004. He would accept no compensation, which we couldn't have afforded any way. His work and his story, All Told, are priceless." --George Wein, jazz impresario, founder of The Newport Jazz Festival "Pop culture's court painter, LeRoy Neiman, turns 91, an occasion he'll celebrate by publishing an often amusing autobiography..." --The New York Times Style magazine



Book Information
ISBN 9780762788378
Author Leroy Neiman
Format Paperback
Page Count 352
Imprint The Lyons Press
Publisher Rowman & Littlefield
Weight(grams) 879g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 13mm