Artist: Cassius Marcellus Coolidge (1844-1934)

Last Friday I displayed an icon of art, Edward Hopper's Nighthawks. This week, in honor of the release of ALL IN, a story in which the hero is a professional gambler, I'm sharing with you another beloved American image, dogs playing poker.

C.M. Coolidge painted a series of pictures of dogs playing poker to advertise cigars. He is also credited with inventing those photo ops in which you paint a figure on the front of a piece of plywood and cut out a hole where the face is supposed to be. I have many a photograph in my album with family members posing as mermaids, drunken men/women in Shakespearean garb, train conductors, hula dancers, etc.
However, this is probably his most famous painting: A Friend in Need. There are, I believe eight other pieces of the dogs playing poker. But...



...those dogs didn't just play poker! They also went to baseball games. This is called One to Tie, Two to Win.


Lastly, this is New Year's Eve in Dogsville, which I love! Dig those flapper bitches!





Have a great weekend. As usual, I'll have more art next Friday. (Yes, I know, today is Saturday.) Come back tomorrow to find out who won the contest. If you haven't entered, there's still time! Click here for details!