Francis Cugat, also known as Francisco Coradal-Cougat (May 24, 1893 – July 13, 1981), was a painter and graphic designer whose most famous work was the original 1925

dust jacket The dust jacket (sometimes book jacket, dust wrapper or dust cover) of a book is the detachable outer cover, usually made of paper and printed with text and illustrations. This outer cover has folded flaps that hold it to the front and back boo ...

for ''

The Great Gatsby ''The Great Gatsby'' is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby ...

'' by

F. Scott Fitzgerald Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940) was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is best known for his novels depicting the flamboyance and excess of the Jazz Age—a term he popularize ...

. From the mid-1940s he was a

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

consultant on more than 60 Hollywood films.

Biography

Francis Cugat was born in Barcelona in 1893, an older brother of

Xavier Cugat Xavier Cugat (; 1 January 1900 – 27 October 1990) was a Spanish musician and bandleader who spent his formative years in Havana, Cuba. A trained violinist and arranger, he was a leading figure in the spread of Latin music. In New York City ...

.Article on dust jacket for ''The Great Gatsby''.
The Cugat family emigrated to Cuba in 1903. Cugat studied at the academy at Rheims, and then in Paris at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. He became known as a portrait painter in France, South America and Cuba before coming to the United States. Between 1915 and 1918, Cugat created distinctive, stylized theatre cards for several opera personalities including

Lucien Muratore Lucien Muratore (29 August 1876 – 16 July 1954, in Paris) was a French actor and operatic tenor, particularly associated with the French repertory. Life and career Lucien Muratore was born Marseille to Italian parents from Piedmont. He trai ...

, Rosa Raisa and Giacomo Rimini.Walter, Patrick, in an illustrated article about Cugat on postcard.com, December 2012 These visually dramatic posters were the result of Cugat having been discovered by Cleofonte Campannini in Chicago. Cugat came to the general director of the opera asking for the commission to paint poster portraits of the Chicago Opera Association stars. He continued in this endeavor, painting

Nellie Melba Dame Nellie Melba (born Helen Porter Mitchell; 19 May 186123 February 1931) was an Australian operatic dramatic coloratura soprano (three octaves). She became one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian era and the early 20th centur ...

, as well. Cugat's earliest film work includes

Robert Z. Leonard Robert Zigler Leonard (October 7, 1889 – August 27, 1968) was an American film director, actor, producer, and screenwriter. Biography He was born in Chicago, Illinois. At one time, he was married to silent star Mae Murray with the two formin ...

's now-lost 1922 film '' Fascination'', for which he was retained to assure the authenticity of the art direction. "It is one of the rules of theatrical presentation that none of the real-life incongruities of background will be reproduced in a picture", Leonard said. "So we have sought to make each bit of furniture, each painting on the walls, all of the household utensils, all of the café settings, and so on, thoroughly 'Spanish'. And Señor Cugat is authority for the fact that we have succeeded." He designed sets for the

Douglas Fairbanks Douglas Elton Fairbanks Sr. (born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman; May 23, 1883 – December 12, 1939) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. He was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films including '' The Thi ...

motion pictures ''

Don Q, Son of Zorro ''Don Q, Son of Zorro'' is a 1925 American silent swashbuckler romance film and a sequel to the 1920 silent film '' The Mark of Zorro''. It was loosely based upon the 1909 novel ''Don Q.'s Love Story'', written by the mother-and-son duo Kate a ...

'' (1925) and ''

The Gaucho ''The Gaucho'' (the official full title of the film is ''Douglas Fairbanks as The Gaucho'') is a 1927 silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks and Lupe Vélez set in Argentina. The lavish adventure extravaganza, filmed at the height of Fairbanks ...

'' (1927). In the early 1920s Cugat continued his artistic career in New York City. Cugat moved to Hollywood in 1925. For many years, Cugat was a designer in Hollywood for

and had a 1942 show in New York, well after his famous work for ''The Great Gatsby.'' He was credited for technical work on 68 Hollywood films.Walker, Patrick On November 28, 1922, in New York City, Cugat was married to the painter Ruth Wadler Cugat (b. New York), the sister of Lucille Lortel, founder of the

White Barn Theatre The White Barn Theatre was a theater founded in 1947 by actress and producer Lucille Lortel on her property in Norwalk, Connecticut. The theater premiered numerous plays by established playwrights that often continued to successful Broadway and ...

. He died in Westport, Connecticut, on July 13, 1981, aged 88.

Known work

*Murtore, Raisa and Rimini Theatre Cards - 1915–1917 *Untitled illustration of woman with candle and dandy, n.d., circa 1915–1917 *''Celestial Eyes'' - A painting for the cover of the 1925 novel ''

'', by

. *"George Gershwin" (An American in Paris) - c. 1928, Etching. *Technicolor Color Consultant for the

John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...

/ John Wayne 1952 film ''

The Quiet Man ''The Quiet Man'' is a 1952 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by John Ford. It stars John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Barry Fitzgerald, Ward Bond and Victor McLaglen. The screenplay by Frank S. Nugent was based on a 1933 ''Saturday Ev ...

'' *Technicolor Color Consultant for the 1955 film ''

Three for the Show ''Three for the Show'' is a 1955 Technicolor and in CinemaScope musical comedy remake of '' Too Many Husbands''. It stars actress Betty Grable, in her last musical, opposite Jack Lemmon, Gower Champion and Marge Champion. It is based on the 1 ...

'' *''French Quarter, New Orleans'', landscape painting, n.d. *''The Stranger'', Western film 1953 *''Bridgetoan Harbor, Barbados'', landscape painting, n.d. *''Moonlight'' c. 1926, oil painting, current location unknown.

References

External links

Francis Cugat, l'altre Cugat
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cugat, Francis Spanish artists 1893 births 1981 deaths The Great Gatsby People from Barcelona