Herb & Dorothy: 50 x 50

Filmmaker Megumi Sasaki follows up her 2008 documentary Herb & Dorothy (VL-3/10) with this conclusion to the remarkable saga of long-married, childless couple Herb and Dorothy Vogel. Herb, a modern-art painter turned postal worker, and Dorothy, a librarian, pooled their resources and used their intimate connections to the gallery scene to amass an amazing quantity of modern art—literally thousands of pieces (often abstract) that they managed to fit (along with their cats) into their modest New York City apartment. Here, with Herb's health in decline, the duo decide to liquidate 2,500 treasures from their collection (worth millions) in a cross-country exercise in philanthropy, giving away 50 pieces at a time to one selected public museum in each of the 50 states. The result is not merely a continuing tale of an unforgettably compatible couple, but also a love letter to art itself—plus a snapshot of some sad contemporary financial realities, as the Vogels discover that some art museums (notably in Nevada) have shuttered in the recession-era economy and are unable to enjoy their generosity. Featuring both the full-length version and a 54-minute abridged edition, this is fine documentary touching on the subjects of art and aging is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (C. Cassady)