Reading his obituary in the New Times today, September 10, I remembered when I photographed Lloyd Ziff at Los Angeles parties from 1973 to 1978.
Here is Lloyd at an April 13, 1975 party.
Lloyd Ziff (c) Elisa Leonelli 1975
He was part of my circle of friends, with Eve Babitz, Paul Ruscha, Stuart Birnbaum, Susan Doukas, Lowell Darling, Ave Pildas and many others.
Ave Pildas (c) Elisa Leonelli 1976
He continued to stay in touch after moving to New York to work as an art director, and he sent me emails promoting his photography.
Lloyd Ziff, Paul Ruscha, ? © Elisa Leonelli 1975.
Lloyd with Paul Ruscha in 1975 at the May 13 Artists and Lawyers Ball.
I mentioned Paul in a recent article I wrote about the Ed Ruscha exhibit at LACMA.
In 2019 I sent him my article “Eve Babitz and Me” and Lloyd emailed me back, reminding me that he was my neighbor when I lived on Beachwood from May 1973, that his apartment was in the dome on top of 2130 Vista Del Mar, and confirmed that he “went out” with Evie for “a bit” back then. He included 3 photos.
Lloyd Ziff, Stuart Birnbaum (c) Elisa Leonelli 1978
Lloyd with Stuart at an April 1978 party, held in the Chapman Building.
You may read my article about John Van Hamersveld who also lived there.
Sleeping Beauty (c) Elisa Leonelli 1975
I did not mention in that article, because it was about John, that Tom Ingalls posed for me as the prince who turns into a frog when kissed by Sleeping Beauty, my friend Anselma dall’Olio, for my 1975 photo sequence shot in Tom’s studio at Chapman.
Stuart Birnbaum, Elisa Leonelli, Lowell Darling, Susan+Les Carter. Depression 1974
On Friday September 13, 1974, Lowell and Stuart staged a new Depression on Hollywood Blvd, as performance art. I photographed it. Susan Doukas was there.
Susan Doukas at Bullocks Wilshire (c) Elisa Leonelli 1974
Susan, like many of my friends, posed for the “Ladies in Ladies Rooms” series that I photograohed in December 1974 in public restrooms at historic movie theaters, hotels and department stores.
Susan also posed for my 1975 photos sequence “Suicide,” that was in color, as a woman slicing her wrists in the bathtub.
Nina Sobell at Wiltern theater (c) Elisa Leonelli 1974
Another artist friend from the 70s who posed for the Ladies series was Nina Sobell. She is still working and we are friends, even though she also moved to New York long ago. She stayed at my house during a 2011 visit to LA.
Elisa Leonelli, Mick Jagger 2002
I would meet Susan again 40 years later in 2014 when I invited her to dinner at the Mandarin Oriental in New York, after I interviewed Mick Jagger (for the second time) as producer of the movie Get On Up with Chadwick Boseman playing James Brown.
P.S. I searched for Susan Doukas Brady on Facebook and found her page. Sadly she passed away in 2020.