OF A LONG-LOVED BUENOS AIRES

Album of memories. Chez Tatave. Buenos Aires, 1950-1965.

Leather binding, in 4th (24.8 x 17.8 cm), 118 pages. Exceptional and unique notebook of signatures of the Parisian-style restaurant and café concert that marked an era in Buenos Aires.

Contains countless signatures, dedications, drawings, poems, songs and even a calligram by Manuel Mujica Laínez, on the first page. From a dedication by Juan Manuel Fangio to the most famous Parisian transvestite Cochinelle with her drawn self-portrait. Also, the French designer Marie Helene Dasté; Annemarie Heinrich with a portrait of Tatave and a drawing of a camera with her dedication and, among many others, a double-page drawing by the plastic artist Romilio Ribero – the “cursed artist” – with the title “Sorceresses”.

In this guestbook, a host of notable artists and actors are present: Roberto Yanés, Esteban Serrador, the tenor George Shirley, the Italian Franca Tomantini, Ernesto Bianco, Juana María Hidalgo, "Les Apaches" a group of French writers and musicians – and even diplomats from the mid-20th century, thus constituting a fresco of culture and entertainment of the moment.

Managed with mastery by its owner, Gustavo Luciano Moulin, who adopted the artistic name of “Tatave”, a diminutive of Gustavo used in the south of France, “Chez Tatave'' was located at number 369 Tres Sargentos street with all its French air becoming a point of reference in Buenos Aires between 1956 and 1968, when the eviction order came. It was one of the first bars open at night where one could go with the family to enjoy a typical meal, listening to its owner, Tatave, play the piano or the accordion. Diners breathed in a Parisian atmosphere, recreated by its setting, the work of master Saulo Benavente, one of the greatest Argentine set designers. The most appreciated of the national and international entertainment world paraded through this venue. No night was the same as another.

"Tatave" was a true showman, charming, he ran his place with special charm while playing the accordion in a redoubt with the Parisian magic that attracted very diverse audiences and especially, the characters of Buenos Aires, such as Manucho Mujica Laínez who, In addition to the calligram, he dedicated a few verses to him averaging the notebook a couple of years later and also, Eduardo "fat" Bergara Leumann, who left a drawing just like the illustrator Lino Palacio. Of great interest is a page with a dedication and a drawing by the ineffable French mime Marcel Marceau. The notebook contains a significant number of drawings that portray Paris and the owner of the premises. Many of the signatures are from international artists, difficult for us to identify, a true box of surprises for a good autograph searcher. In short, it is a unique piece of great value both for the dedications and signatures, as well as for the numerous illustrations, verses and songs that accompany them. This fabulous notebook deserves close study.