Once Upon a Time in St. Louis: Bygone Scenes in Watercolor. This item is unavailable.Once Upon a Time in St. Louis: Bygone Scenes in Watercolor

Remember tasty baked goods at the California Do-nut Co.? How about the iconic drive-in screen at Ronnie's in South County? Perhaps the gleaming silver sides of the SS Admiral bring back fond memories? Or the terra cotta details gracing the Cherokee District's Cinderella Building? Artist Marilynne Bradley has spent half a century immortalizing treasures like these in vibrant pigment. Now, she's releasing a collection of 86 of these evocative renderings in Once Upon a Time in St. Louis. This nostalgic sojourn through local history leads readers from the genius of Thomas Jefferson's Louisiana Purchase to the optimistic revelry of the 1904 World's Fair to the raucous mood of Gaslight Square's cultural renaissance to hot dog-scented ambience of Busch Stadium during a Cardinal victory. Bradley's brush, helped by the writing of David Baugher, captures the subtle essence of a corner eatery, an antiquated riverboat or an historic home with equal ease. An artistic celebration of the cuisine, entertainment, architecture and institutions that give the Gateway to the West its unique identity, this book serves as an artistic tribute to St. Louis's storied past and its vigorous present.

Marilynne Bradley is an internationally known watercolorist who, for over 50 years, has created paintings of most of the St. Louis landmarks, famous and infamous. She is the writer-illustrator of St. Louis in Watercolor, Packets on Parade, and City of Century Homes. David Baugher is a freelance writer and researcher whose work has appeared in a variety of St. Louis publications including Missouri Lawyers Weekly, The St. Louis Jewish Light, The Webster-Kirkwood Times, and The St. Louis Beacon. He is also the author of Weirdfactblog.com.