The Fleet's In
by Paul Cadmus, 1934
The Navy Museum
Washington DC
aul Cadmus painted this while working for the Public Works of Art Project. As soon as this painting was displayed at the prestigious Corcoran Art Gallery in Washington, DC, the Department of the Navy (located across the street at the time) raised hell with president Roosevelt (located next door in the White House to the Department of the Navy), and the painting
was given to the Navy! They hid it or displayed it in bathrooms for years, but finally it was restored in 1981. Instead of giving it to the Smithsonian Museums where many of Cadmus' paintings are displayed, the Navy kept it and put it on display in the Navy Museum in Washington, D.C.
Most likely the Navy took offense at the drunken behavior of the sailors and the lewd women who surrounded them. Apparently, in the Navy's views, sailors on leave never get drunk, get laid, or pass out. Whether or not the Navy noticed the obviously gay man (third person from the left) is not known. More important, I wonder if the sailor with a sleeping buddy in his lap is reaching for the standing woman or the sitting gay man.