DLA019-0190 Transcription

8th January, 1931.

Dear Dr. Fodor,

I have received your letter of January 6th^[1] and wish to let you know that, when Lord Rothermere asked me last year to arrange for a copy to be made of my portrait of him [4759], it just happened that the the Ex-Minister Ivan de Rakovszky^[2] was here with the Inter-Parliamentary Committee. As an old acquaintance of the latter I took the opportunity to ask him to [make?] enquiries regarding a first-class copyist. Since that time, however, I have heard nothing from him, and meanwhile I have enquired myself, and Mr. Paur, of the “Orszagos [illegible]csarnok”,^[3] informed me that Manyait [sic],^[4] [illegible deletion] has made copies for Professor Benczur,^[5] undertook the work and that the copy is a perfect one. I take it, therefore, that the picture [4761] will be probably on its way here.

You would oblige me very much if you would kindly communicate direct with Mr. Paur Gaza, General Secretary of the “Orszagos Mücsarnok”, Varosliget, Budapest, in regard to whether the picture has been dispatched. I must say that I should have preferred if Ballo had done it,^[6] but I did not date to approach him in the matter, he being an old friend of mine and thinking he would not undertake such work in his present circumstances. However, I trust the copy will be satisfactory, as it is in my own interest that Lord Rothermere should have a perfect one.

I reciprocate most heartily your good wishes for the New Year and hope to have the pleasure of greeting you on the day of our son’s wedding.^[7]

Yours very truly,

SMDL

17/06/2018

[1] DLA019-0191, letter from Nandor Fodor to de László, 6 January 1931

[2] Iván Rakovszky de Nagyrákó et Kelemenfalva (1885–1960), Hungarian politician. Served as Interior Minister between 1922 and 1926.

[3] Géza Paur (1870–1945), Hungarian artist and art critic; Secretary General of the Hungarian National Fine Arts Society

[4] József Mányai (b. 1875), Hungarian artist

[5] Gyula Benczúr (1844–1920), Hungarian artist

[6] Ede Balló (1859-1936), Hungarian artist. Trained at the Mintarajziskola under Bertalan Székely, at the Vienna Academy in 1881 and at the Munich Academy from 1882 to 1885. Worked in Madrid and Rome. Best known as a copyist of Velázquez and the Dutch masters. He was a professor at the Budapest Academy of Fine Arts from 1894 to 1923.

[7] Stephen Philip de Laszlo (1904–1939) [4375], second son of Philip and Lucy de László, married (Edith Alexandra) Diana von Versen (1906–1938) [11084] on 14 January 1931. Owing to a “bad flu”, the symptoms of which first presented themselves a few days prior to the wedding, de László remained confined to his bed (see DLA125-0001, Philip de László, 1931 diary, 14 January entry).