75 years of photojournalism

• Posted By: Scott Harrison
• Posted On: 12:10 a.m. | March 29, 2011

Twice I’ve visited the 75th anniversary historical photo exhibit by the Press Photographers Assn. of Greater Los Angeles on the Queen Mary, and each time I came away impressed.

More than 175 digital and print images make up the exhibit, covering the last 75 years. While most images are Los Angeles-centric, plenty of national and international photos are also displayed.

Two sections really grabbed my attention. First is the “Moments – Pulitzers and Major Events” section. My favorite images include Boris Yaro’s image of the 1968 RFK assassination, Lee Sinco’s 2004 “Marlboro Man,” Nick Ut’s 1972 “Vietnam Napalm,” and Jack Gaunt’s 1954 “Tragedy by the Sea”.  The links are to previous From the Archives posts on the images.

The second section, “Presidents and Politics,” caught my attention because it includes a 1984 photo of Ronald Reagan, taken by me.

PPAGLA members David Sprague and Gerald Burkhart are the exhibit’s co-curators. They gathered images from previous members, previous contest entries and past copies of the “Just One More” yearbook. Some of the images are displayed on a flat-screen TV. A second flat-screen TV plays interviews with several PPAGLA members and their historical photos.

In addition to the images, there is a display cabinet with a collection of cameras and press passes. Also on exhibit are “Just One More” book covers from 1952 to 1969 featuring artwork by famed cartoonist Karl Hubenthal.

The gallery is open from 10-6 daily. An admission fee is charged to visit the Queen Mary, but once aboard, the exhibit is free.  The PPAGLA exhibit is open through May. Adult general admission to the Queen Mary is $24.95.

On the PPAGLA web site are two new videos. The first, “75th Anniversary,”  includes both a history of the organization and many of the images from the exhibit. The second one features Carlos Schiebeck, a retired UPI photographer who grew up on Los Angeles.

For the above eight-photo gallery, I converted the digital images to grayscale  and burned down the edges – in honor of the old “hand of god” darkroom technique.

Full disclosure: I have been a PPAGLA member since 1978, am a past president and have spent stints editing the “Just One More” yearbook and the Just One More Jr. newsletter.