[ Ref. 201220 MMD, "The Ampico Kid" & "The All of the Piano"

Only a week ago, while perusing my stored images from long ago as
gathered off the Internet, I ran across a hidden bevy of beauteous
magazine covers -- all colorful, typical artistic creations from
the Twenties.

Well -- lo-and-behold!! -- what was I to find but the entire original
of the saved part I'd used as a model for my little "The All of the
Piano" flat-fallen tribute effort. It's file information reveals that
I'd saved it on date 6/13/2007.

Resultantly, getting online and hurrying over to the Conde Nast site
(Ref. 1), I checked those earliest Vanity Fair covers and, sure enough,
there it was third-row-down at the left!

(All are available there as various kinds and sizes of reproductions,
and for hefty amounts I might add, all beginning at one-hundred and up!
Checking around further I found that, as well, these were being sold
by others too but, for way-smaller prices and, with no indications of
any granted licensee permissions for it! Oh the grief! How does one
pronounce "laches," which seemingly applies here?)

When spotted some months ago on YouTube, the image with the top and
bottom parts shorn-off I saved but, I thought familiar so, I checked
first The New Yorker and then Life Magazine covers but, no-dice!


(These Twenties versions had not yet been morphed into the so familiar
uniform cover design we know so well from the Forties-on, but rather
were très chic, and of most trendy artfulness, just as in Vanity Fair.)
The image of interest was not to be found there, nor was any
identification seen on the screen-saved one and so ergo -- anonymous
imagery for fair-use.

Of course the authentic V-F version reveals way more of detail than
the first I'd used so, back to the art room it was to be for a second
go-round.

First of all, before describing any improvements/additions I've made
to it (aiming as always for achievement of perfection, for my estimable
MMD co-Readership) I have to tell first of who it's creator was.

His name was Eduardo Garcia Benito (1881-1981). He was European
Spanish, famous and in high demand. His artist's mark was at the upper
left originally, and has now been restored to there presently.

My newly-modified interpretation (Ref. 2) of the original (as geared
to Ampico reality) shows several of new features -- one being that the
gentleman's chin at his left is now actually defined, which before was
absented because not present with the first model image.

All line weights and color shadings/tonings have been further finessed,
and are more nearly in-conformance with what Signor Benito had
originally intended, so I believe. Too, the Gentleman's top-hat is more
complete as to it's brim and nighttime reflections.

Madame's eyes and brows have been newly re-drawn as precisely according
with the original. I have chosen to make them light-green. (Purple and
fiery-red seemed not to work.) plus, their focus is now clearly set
upon our favorite catch-phrase of commercial genius.

More fiddling with kerning, letter balance and word spacing has
been done. (It is interminable-seeming but, fineness of typography
is mandated absolutely, where Ampico and all the others too are
concerned!) Also, the "of the" has been made more in-keeping with the
uppermost articles' stair-step treatment. Also, the company ID text
below is now as good as I can get it, being now actually legible as
tiny from a distance.

The same permissions for any reproductions apply to this present
revision, just as for the previous.

As contradistinguishment to before, I hope and trust that this
iteration will be met with approval novelly, as expressed actually,
from my fellow Ampican MMD co-Readership? (And, any others too.)

Jim Miller
Las Vegas, Nevada

Ref. 1:
https://condenaststore.com/collections/vanity+fair+covers 
https://condenaststore.com/featured/a-couple-wearing-evening-clothes-eduardo-garcia-benito.html 

Ref. 2:
https://www.mmdigest.com/Attachments/21/01/05/210105_053111_AMPICO%20ALL2printsmall.png