Judith R is an American "commuter" yacht built in the streamlined Art Deco style in 1935. Designed for pleasure cruising and entertaining as well as simply going to work. She was originally built for Barney Balaban, the president of Paramount pictures from 1935 to 1974 and named after his daughter Judith Rose Balaban.
Judith R is 57' (17m) on deck and 56' at the waterline, with a 13' (3.9m) beam and a 4' 6" (1.3m) draft. She has a semi-displacement hull which makes her very stable in waves but allows here to achieve a high speed through the water. She is powered by twin Caterpillar C12 ACERT compact engines which develop 715 horsepower each and allow her to reach 30 knots in flat water which is not bad for an 85 year old!
During her restoration, modern conveniences were fitted under the floors and in cupboards so that she benefits from modern equipment for navigation, air conditioning throughout and even a boiling water tap in her galley. However onboard each living space looks like it did in 1935.
Outside she he has a painted iroko hull on oak frames, varnished mahogany topsides all from one log, teak decks and spruce rubbing strips. Maple and burr maple as well as mahogany feature in the interiors. Most of the metal work is original and some of her fittings have been copied and are available commercially from chandlers. Although the state-of-the-art materials at the time she was built were plywood and linoleum, they do not feature too strongly on the boat today.