A Day with Artists

Yesterday I took a trip to Beverly Hills to visit a friend from my youth to celebrate her birthday. Her name is Sybil Kretzmer and she is married to Herbert Kretzmer, who wrote the lyrics for Les Miserables. Sybil moved to London about twenty years ago when she fell in love with and married Herbert. She comes to L.A. a few times a year to visit her mother and the friends who miss her terribly.To my delight, Sybil decided to invite her friend Blossom to come along with us to lunch. Blossom Folb just happens to be ninty years old. You would never know it talking to her. She is full of life and vitality and gives me hope for my golden years. She is fully engaged in the business of living life. You can google her at http://www.blossomfolb.com/ , only on her web page her hair will be red and in the pictures below she is a blonde. Her late husband was a screenplay writer and wrote for the series Mash. Blossom is a well traveled lady and endlessly fascinating. She spoke of cities and countries that I haven't even heard of, while I pretended to know just what places she spoke of, content to be included in the sharing of her adventures. After we had a lovely lunch at Nieman Marcus, Sybil's friend Stanley Dorfman, a well know director and writer for the BBC and talented artist, invited us to his Hollywood hills artist's haven to see his latest paintings. We sat in his home surrounded by windows and a beautiful deck, where we sipped wine and spoke of art and the way it impacts our lives. I could have sat there forever.

Above is a painting by Stanley Dorfman. You can go to http://www.pharmaka-art.org/pages/past_dorfman_isham.html to see the gallery where Stanley Dorfman exhibits his work.

Left to right: Sybil Kretzmer, Stanley Dorfman, and Blossom Folb

Blossom, Stanley and Sybil pose for a photo next to the large metal rooster that Stanley Dorfman purchased in Santa Barbara.