Season's Greetings from the Dé Lardis, 1938

"The Dé Lardis. 1938 Season's Greetings."

Photographer Alfred A. Dé Lardi (1900-1993) created this small but unique greeting card that superimposed photos of himself, his wife Dorothy, and his daughters Janice and Yvonne onto individual playing cards (plus there's an extra card that doesn't have a photo). Since there's a total of three queens and two kings (three of a kind and a pair), I think he was suggesting that there was a "full house" at the Dé Lardi residence in 1938!

Alfred Dé Lardi was a well-known photographer who worked for the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper, Holiday magazine, and various companies, including the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Philadelphia Electric Company.

He taught photography courses at a number of schools and colleges in the Philadelphia area, and he also authored or edited a number of books on photography, such as Let's Make a Portrait (1937), Your Child's Portrait (1937), and Ships and Water (1938).

A collection of Dé Lardi's works was held by the Philadelphia History Museum, and a finding aid, Alfred A. Dé Lardi Negatives and Photographs, circa 1929-1964, was formerly available through the University of Pennsylvania Libraries (unfortunately, the Philadelphia History Museum closed in 2018, but there are plans underway to transfer its collections to Drexel University).

I'd like to acknowledge Gary Discavage, a dealer at Apple Hill Antiques in State College, Pa., who graciously gave me this photographic greeting card. Gary originally received the card from Alfred Dé Lardi, who was his friend and neighbor when he lived in Philadelphia. Thanks, Gary!