Andy as I Knew Him

by Charles Emil Ruckstuhl


Formats

Softcover
£11.23
£11.00
Softcover
£11.00

Book Details

Language : English
Publication Date : 01/01/0001

Format : Softcover
Dimensions : 8.25x11
Page Count : 212
ISBN : 9781418426705

About the Book

Charles Ruckstuhl is the stepson of the famous horse artist and author, C.W.Anderson.  He has known "Andy" as his family called him, since 1927 when he first met Charles' mother.  Charles therefore knows Andy well enough to portray not only his genius as an artist, but also as a poet, a lover of music, and an expert horseman.  This book is unusual in that it is not only a biography, but also a book not only of Andy's poetry, but also a compendium of his never-published pen-and-ink and pencil drawings, especially of trees that he loved for their natural geometry and design rhythm.  This book also delightfully shows his sense of humor back in the 1926-1934 era when his cartoons were published in the New Yorker whose staff has generously provided Mr. Ruckstuhl with copies of his early work for them.  Additionally, the book contains a series of never-published ditties or doggerels superimposed on typical Anderson cartoonism.  The content is typical of the art deco era and carries with it naughty connotations of a society not yet immersed in problematical  behavior.  In contrast to this lighter side of life, the chapter containing his poetry and sketches of trees and Long Island expanses is indeed emotional.  These 47 short verses were writtem for Mr. Ruckstuhl's mother each morning and were put on her breakfast tray daily during her remainng weeks.  The short poems, in a most heart rending way, combine Andy's intense love for his wife, Madeleine, and simultaneously portray the dying flora of the past summer.  The ebb of nature and failing human life combine profoundly in the melancholy domain of his pen.


About the Author

Charles Ruckstuhl is an M.I.T. graduate engineer with a Phillips Exeter Academy graduate  background.  This combination has led him to publication in The Washington Times magazine World and I.  He has also been published in The Groton Landmark newspaper with a monthly historical column on Groton.  He has also written in The Monadnock Ledger, The Exeter Review, Reminisce, and in the New York Times.  Ruckstuhl has published the book Forgotten Tales of Groton, an earlier version of Andy as I Knew Him and has started a magazine Spare Moments.  Ruckstuhl is trilingual.  At one time he spoke only French.  He plays the piano, guitar and bass and has written some 50 popular jazz pieces.  He is also an amateur radio operator and astronomer.