Pictorial Map Drawn by Arthur Justin Wright for the Fountain Room of the Ambassador Hotel
Fine pictorial map of Los Angeles, drawn by Arthur Justin "Jud" Wright. The map provides a lively care-free image of Los Angeles in 1941, shortly before Pearl Harbor.
The map includes some lovely caricatures of the local real estate market, including 3 characters, bottom center, under a sign entitled "Lots, Lots", with the salesman commenting "Buy Now They'll Go Up Tomorrow!," with the buyer's wife commenting "Lands Sakes!"
Other interesting early LA observations include:
- Sepulveda Boulevard (maybe)
- Gay's Lion Farm
- Ostrich Farm
- Alligator Farm
- Gold Prospector above Beverly Drive
- Oil Derricks south of Santa Monica Beach
- Hal Roach Studio
Beyond the Los Angeles River to the East (and well out of scale) are Mt. Lowe, Mt. Wilson, Lake Arrowhead and Gray Back.
Arthur Justin Wright was born in Newton, Iowa in 1890. "Jud" Wright studied at the Art Institute of Chicago. He worked a reporter for the Milwaukee Free Press before moving to Los Angeles in 1918. He was a staff artist for the Los Angeles Times and taught at Otis Art Institute before his death in Los Angeles on June 24, 1954.
Rarity
The map is apparently very rare. We found only a single internet reference.