Xavier Cugat – La Subasta

Bandleader Xavier Cugat was also something of an artist. In the 1920s when his band was at the Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles, he was also drawing caricatures for the LA Times. I’ve seen another painting of his titled “La Subasta” (the auction) with a very similar composition to this one. But not identical. This one seems to incorporate some caricatures of showbiz stars, and the occasional green person, with maybe Sammy Davis Junior in the corner near Cugat’s signature.

Photo by Heritage.