You’d think a headline like “Marlon Brando’s Little Black Book” would have caught my eye, but I missed this article on Slate when it was published in 2013. Marlon Brando dropped this battered address book on the stage of New York’s Barrymore Theatre while appearing in A Streetcar Named Desire in 1949. The loss of … Continue reading Marlon Brando’s Notebook
I took screenshots of these wonderful notebook images about a month ago. I think they are from a book about the French film director François Truffaut, but I somehow managed to lose track of the link back to the page where I found the images. If anyone recognizes the pages, please let me know so … Continue reading Truffaut’s Notebooks
Before the holidays, I was talking about my wishlist of a few notebook/sketchbook/art supply items. Santa came through! I expected to receive James McElhinney’s Sketchbook Traveler book, and I wasn’t disappointed. McElhinney’s pocket size sketches are reproduced life-size, each accompanied with text about the location depicted. Additional material in the book gives some lessons about … Continue reading Christmas Books
Imagine buying a vintage Hermès address book on eBay and then realizing it belonged to Dora Maar, the artist and poet who is best known for having been Picasso’s mistress and muse! Brigitte Benkemoun, the author of Finding Dora Maar, describes her process of deducing the address book’s origins: A-B: The first entry is illegible … Continue reading Dora Maar’s Address Book
Here’s another shoebox full of notebooks from my collection. This one has most of my Filofaxes and other refillable looseleaf notebooks. First, here’s the Filofaxes. I used 4 of these on a regular basis during the mid to late 1990s. (See Pocket Filofax, Early 1990s for details on the burgundy one.) These older ones all … Continue reading Shoebox Tour: Filofax and Other Looseleaf Notebooks
Here’s an interesting little element of the generally sleazy and disgusting Jeffrey Epstein case: his “little black book.” From the July 22, 2019 New York Times: What’s Inside Jeffrey Epstein’s Little Black Book? First discovered by the journalist Nick Bryant, Mr. Epstein’s little black book has resurfaced as part of the current investigation into the sex … Continue reading A History of the “Little Black Book”
The article about Grace Coddington’s Smythson was fun, but this is even better: a lovely glimpse of Katharine Hepburn’s Smythson address book! “[W]ith the phone numbers and addresses of people from Rock Hudson and Frank Sinatra to Winston Churchill and Vivien Leigh scrawled in biro (and, occasionally, pink felt tip) on the pages of her bespoke … Continue reading Katharine Hepburn’s Address Book
Grace Coddington is well known in the fashion world as an editor, former model, and author. Now she’s also a spokesperson for Smythson. Most of the linked article is promoting their various leather bags and accessories, but I loved getting a glimpse of this well-worn address book! I bought a Smythson address book a long … Continue reading Grace Coddington’s Smythson Notebooks
Actually it’s an address book… Sad story behind it, though. Walter Benjamin was a German Jewish literary critic and philosopher, who fled from the Nazi regime during World War II. This was his address book from time spent in Paris, where he associated with a lot of other refugees before being arrested and imprisoned for … Continue reading Walter Benjamin’s Notebook
I love the drawing and the address book it’s in! See more at Natalie Krim | Journal 1. 2012.