Jackie After O by Tina Cassidy Read Free Book Online

more fragile looking than her iconic image allowed. Her humor was sharp and she warmed up immediately when anyone mentioned her kids. But perhaps what stood out more than anything was that Jackie was an apprentice, listening closely to the discussion and asking a lot of questions, even about basic things, like typography.
    Hunt was also moved by the sight of seeing Jackie work, a powerful image for the women’s movement and a sign of change. And she was moved to be part of Jackie’s first book. This was a woman, Hunt thought, who was no expert—not yet anyway—but she had some of the greatest contacts in the world, and had used her influence to get this book to Viking, which meant that most of the authors’ expenses were paid, more copies would be published, and there was advertising behind the project. Hunt couldn’t help but think that 1975 was a period when a lot of women were undergoing big transformations in their lives and Jackie was no exception. Sure, she was alone, had a ton of money and nearly grown children, all things that would allow her to design a life that would bring her happiness. But this is what she chose: a seat on the floor of a tiny publisher, discussing history, photography, and design.
    Hunt pulled herself out of her private monologue to focus again on the captions.
    â€œI would like a classic curatorial caption, which says, ‘This is the object and this is what it is made of, these are the measurements, this is where it was made, when it was made, who owns it.’ And below that you put your content so they tell their own story. I don’t want to have to use a lot of reference numbers, like ‘See Figure I.’”
    â€œFine,” Jackie said.
    As the meeting wrapped up, Jackie said she was excited about the project.
    â€œThis is going to be something!” she said.
    Brandon said she was working on the logistics for the Plymouth opening and was hoping then First Lady Betty Ford would do the honors.
    â€œI’d love to be a fly on the wall,” Jackie said, triggering laughter in the room.
    â€œOf course we’d love to have you,” Brandon said. But Jackie demurred, saying she did not want to disrupt things in such a small town.
    Then she left, just before the two-hour meeting ended. 14
    Jackie would have other meetings with Brandon, including one where they both laughed hard trying to figure out how to illustrate an eighteenth-century sex manual that was supposed to be part of the book. Jackie also insisted on including information about a root women chewed to induce abortion. She did not have much to say when they came to the section on first ladies from the period, except she did respond to a couple of lines from Martha Washington. One read: “I lead a dull life—a state prisoner.” Jackie laughed at that one. The other: Georgetown “is a dirty hole.”
    â€œIt still is,” Jackie said. 15
    Jackie slowly made friends at work, ingratiating herself by asking questions. It is no surprise that she gravitated toward Bryan Holme, head of Studio Books. Holme, an Englishman who was older than Jackie, was considered a visual genius. Jackie found his work appealing and he quickly realized how good her eye was. Often, he would stick his head in Singleton’s cubicle, ask for Jackie, and say, There’s something I want to show her!
    They would eventually find projects to work on together—including a photo book on the Civil War photographer and Abraham Lincoln portrait taker Mathew Brady, and an illustrated book called In the Russian Style , published the following year with Jackie’s name—the only one—on the cover as editor, about imperial clothing and other possessions.
    Jackie also established a strong relationship with Corlies Smith, known as “Cork.” He was tall, wrapped in tweed, and smoke unfiltered Pall Malls. He was also witty, dry, and deeply respected for spotting talent, including