In January we received a letter from artist Don Bachardy. In the documentary "Chris and Don: A Love Story," Lillian makes a "cameo" of sorts in a portrait Bachardy did in 1965.

Here are some excerpts from Bachardy's letter:

"I was commissioned by Linda Kirsten to do portraits of the leading actors for that season's (1965) theater program of the Shakespeare Company of Stratford, Ct. Gish was one of the star performers, along with Morris Carnovsky, Ruby Dee, and others.

I did four drawings of Gish, two in each of our two sittings and each drawing done in an hour or so. Since all of my portraits re done from life, it has long been my habit to ask my sitters to sign and date each of my portraits.

Gish was a most cooperative sitter-still and concentrated-and all four of my drawings were accurate likenesses of her, but she would only sign and date the two which were smiling.

I think she agreed to a second sitting only because she was dissatisfied with the unsmiling portrait which you saw on the Internet.

My main evidence for this interpretation of her motivation was her fixed and unrelenting smile throughout our second sitting. Whatever her motives, however, three out of the four drawings are among my favorites of my work of that period.

She did have one of the most distinctive and recognizable faces ever ..."


Thank you Don Bachardy!!

James Patterson
Member, National Advisory Committee
Dorothy and Lillian Gish Theater
(415) 516-3493
JamesPatterson705@gmail.com