Slim Aarons’ A Wonderful Time: An Intimate Portrait of the Good Life was one of William Dailey Rare Books’ best-selling books from the summer of 2001 to 2004. (1974). Early in the decade, it was a fairly simple book to locate in fine condition with a fine dust jacket. By 2004, finding it in that condition had grown increasingly challenging.
What Is The Book About?
The elite lifestyle of America brilliantly captured in A Wonderful Time from coast to coast, in Bermuda, the Caribbean, and Acapulco. Slim Aarons has compiled the best photos, many of which have never been published, with a narrative of his experiences and impressions while photographing American aristocrats on their estates. And at play at their favorite resorts since World War II on assignments for Holiday, Town & Country, Harper’s Bazaar, Life, Vogue, Travel & Leisure, and other publications.
The Myopia Hunt Club, Sugarbush, Snowmass, La Jolla, Nassau, The Exumas, The Bath and Tennis Club, Aspen, Hobe Sound, Montego Bay and The Waldorf-Astoria all part of A Wonderful Time’s lost world. The typical hangouts for old money, who act as though they are the best among us, the best people at their best, living well, and getting the best retaliation. Before television capitalized on our fascination with it ten years later, in 1984, its Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, and the wealthy cooperated — unheard of in the world of A Wonderful Time. The show’s creator may have had a copy of the book lying around his workspace. It serves as a crucial reference.
The Reason Behind The Increasing Demand And Price:
Due to the high demand and limited supply of fine copies, prices for A Wonderful Time started to rise. It was challenging to get good copies quickly enough to satisfy walk-ins and phone calls. Fine copies in fine dust jackets cost $1250 by 2003. Due to the overwhelming demand, some buyers forced to purchase copies that had previous owners’ hilariously irreverent, impertinent, and impudent rejoinders to the captions. It quickly sold out. The desire to own the book was strong. It would be even better if they could mock the wealthy in parallel. Although A Wonderful Time remains incredibly collectible, the initial raw hunger for the book that caused by Paul Smith’s clothing line has subsided. Copies of A Wonderful Time are currently selling for $1500-$2000 each in high-end DJs. A rare, inscribed copy is being offered for $5,000.
Overall, One of the most acclaimed photography books of the last forty years, the book now regarded as a cult classic. Because the photograph taken from the inside by a photographer who saw more than he realized. It served as a cultural documentation of a bygone, closed world of American social-set affluence unwinding with the nonchalance of the nobility and innocence only they perceive.
