Caricatures, Covers & Cha-cha-cha

Game & Gossip, May 1932
Illustration by Xavier Cugat
Originally uploaded by Paula Wirth

You may be familiar with the name Xavier Cugat as the “Rhumba King,” the Cuban-Catalan bandleader who was largely responsible for popularizing Latin American music in the United States. You may not be aware that Cugat was also a talented cartoonist (and even worked for the Los Angeles Times)!

Recently I came across some of his 1932 covers for Game & Gossip, and a fold-out with 74 caricatures of the most popular Hollywood celebrities of the time. These included such diverse characters as (see list and key) Will Rogers, Rudy Vallee, Mary Pickford, The Marx Brothers and Charlie Chaplin.

See more Game & Gossip illustrations, covers and advertisements…

Read more about Xavier Cugat…