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Moderne Time: The Story of Lawson Art Deco Clocks

  • The Bellevue Club 525 Bellevue Avenue Oakland, CA, 94610 United States (map)

A lecture by Randy Juster

In 1933, Harold Lawson, an entrepreneur from Pittsburgh, moved to Los Angeles and founded Lawson Clocks Limited. Once believed to have gone out of business during the Depression, in fact Lawson Time remained in operation until 1980, making an astonishing variety of high quality digital clocks, almost all in the Art Deco and Streamline Moderne styles. Prominent Lawson clock owners included Walt Disney and Shirley Temple and the clocks have made appearances in films from 1934’s The Black Cat (with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi) to Star Trek Into Darkness (2013).

Photographer Randy Juster became intrigued with Lawson Time in the 1970s and, unable to find any information on the company, spent years piecing the story together. The result is his new book, Moderne Time, which features clocks from six different collections along with vintage advertising and catalogs.

Books will be available for sale and signing (along with a selection of ADSC gift items!)

Social hour starts at 2pm; lecture at 3pm.

Admission $10 for ADSC and Bellevue Club members; $15 for non-members.

Brunch is served in the Bellevue Club Dining Room from 11:30am - 1:30pm. Phone (510) 451-1000 for reservations.