Richard Hoffmann
Richard Hoffmann’s MODELING CAREER
Saturday Evening Post Cover #1 (December 22,1923) artist: J. C. Leyendecker. Richard Wyndham Hoffmann was the child-model seated on “Santa’s Lap” for this cover painting. The model-sitting for the magazine’s 1923 Christmas cover was conducted at Leyendecker’s Bryant Park (Beaux-Arts) Studio @ 80 W. 40th Street, Room 63 - NYC. (See Leyendecker’s Personal Inscription on the photo of actual painting) The painting was NOT gifted at the time of the “Santa’s Lap” sitting since Richard was only 2 years, 3 months old.
A preliminary oil study exists of ‘only’ Richard sitting alone (with feet dangling) on the edge/arm of a living room (type) chair. This suggests that Leyendecker fine-tuned his overall composition after Richard departed the studio.
Leyendecker was probably thinking he did not want Richard subjected (LIVE) to a gruff, whisker-faced old man for an extended modeling session. Remember…..Leyendecker shunned the use of reference photographs.
Saturday Evening Post Cover #2 (September 18, 1937) artist: J. C. Leyendecker. Richard Wyndham Hoffmann was featured as the adolescent child-model getting fitted for a new suit. It should be assumed this painting’s sitting was at the Leyendecker residence on Mt. Tom Road in New Rochelle, NY. By 1937, J.C. Leyendecker had vacated his New York studios and was working exclusively at his home studio. This was Richard’s second Leyendecker modeling opportunity and it was, at that time J.C. inscribed & gifted the “Santa’s Lap” painting (from 1923) to Richard. The Santa painting remained with the Hoffmann family until Richard’s father died in 1967.
Richard Hoffman’s MILITARY CAREER
Enlisted February 16th, 1942, U. S. Army Air Corps.
Richard married Joan Julia “Cookie” Warren on October 24th, 1942, Los Angeles, CA.
“COOKIE” was the daughter of American composer and lyricist, Harry Warren, who wrote many well-loved hits some of which are: “I Only Have Eyes for You,” “42nd Street,” “Chattanooga Choo-Choo,” “Serenade in Blue,” “Jeepers Creepers,” and “You’re Getting to be a Habit with Me.” Three of his songs, “Lullaby of Broadway,” “You’ll Never Know,” and “On the Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe,” won Academy Awards for Warren.
After cadet training, Richard married and was assigned to a B-17 (Flying Fortress) bombing squadron.
A standard B-17 crew would have 10 total members with each wearing gear that enabled them to survive inside the unpressurized cabin. The crew would be susceptible to frostbite if their outfit was compromised. There were even reports of gunners getting their fingers cut off because they touched the guns with their bare hands!
Painting of Bombardier by noted WWII artist Gil Cohen
As bombardier, Richard would be positioned in the most-forward position of the B-17. The navigator is in the foreground.
The bomb groups lost planes on nearly every mission. The requirement that each crew member complete 25 missions before returning to the states meant that “risking their lives” was a daily routine. Due to the high loss rate, many of the men flying wouldn’t buddy up to other crews. It was better, when a plane went down, not to have friends who wouldn’t be returning.
Staff Sergeant Richard W. Hoffmann (sometimes referred to as “Dick”) was a decorated bombardier who flew in a B-17 (Flying Fortress) squadron. On occasion, Richard functioned as a “lead bombardier” due to his accumulated expertise with the “Norden Bombsight”. Hoffmann, in his trained capacity, essentially took over flight control of the aircraft during the bomb-run, maintaining a level altitude during the final moments before bomb release. He participated in daylight & night-time strategic bombing campaigns – including the Dresden (Germany) campaigns of February, 1945. The four Dresden bombings targeted major rail transport and communication centers. He also rode as lead bombardier (in a 25-aircraft cluster) on the Schweinfurt mission of October 14, 1943. 291 B-17s were originally dispatched to Schweinfurt….. 60 of which were downed by the Germans--- with 5 crashing on their return approach to Britain. 122 U.S. B-17s were damaged and needed repairs before their next flights. He survived numerous “hot trips” when their aircraft was not accompanied with U.S. fighter protection and their aircraft was severely damaged on many occasions.
(26) SUCCESSFUL MISSIONS COMPLETED
DECORATED WITH MEDALS (Pictured Below)
HONORABLY DISCHARGED
Richard’s marriage to “Cookie” ended shortly after WWII. On July 13, 1950 - Richard remarried Christine Cromwell Williams (heiress to the Dodge Motor Company fortune) and they resided at 870 Park Avenue, New York. They were divorced within a year.
Tragically Richard died of an illness on January 4th, 1959 (AGE: 37)
Richard’s PARENT’s BIOS
Janet Beecher – (1884-1955)
Janet Beecher, daughter of the German vice-consul in Chicago, studied acting at the Art Students League in New York. For almost three decades she made a name for herself as a leading actress in plays on the Broadway stage, beginning with a bit part in 'The Two Orphans' in 1903.
She made her Hollywood debut in 1933. Despite consistently good critical reviews, her theatrical stardom never translated to the screen. She was destined to be typecast as forthright wives and was particularly droll as Mrs.Barnum in The Mighty Barnum (1934). She appeared in more than 100 films between 1915 and 1945.
Richard H. Hoffmann – (1887-1967)
Richard was a New York psychiatrist with a reputation for specializing in the treatment of patients with alcoholism. He was known for treating high-profile patients and was often referred to in the media as the “Park Avenue Psychiatrist”. He was an original panelist on the television show “What’s My Line?” in 1950. He served as a consultant in many high-profile trials and was an author.
Richard and Janet only had one child, Richard Wyndham Hoffmann.
Richard W. Hoffmann, Sophomore Cumnock School, Los Angeles, 1938
After six years of marriage, both Beecher and Hoffmann filed suit for separation, based on both the contentious messages and a disagreement about religion's influence in raising their son. Beecher, her sister, and their mother were members of the Unity Scientific Christianity Association. During the separation, Richard Jr’s photographs were featured in numerous articles that appeared in the New York Times.
They were finally divorced in 1935. Janet Beecher resided in Los Angeles and Richard’s father remained in New York City. Their son’s residency and education was split between homes on both coasts.