Remembering Dr. King

Today is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday first observed in 1986. The late Dr. King was a pastor, humanitarian, activist and the leader of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. His words, actions and leadership shaped the world we live in today. Without him this country very well could have stay segregated suffering in it’s own inequality.

Although Dr. King is widely known for his leadership in the south some may not know that many of the grass roots of the Civil Rights Movement started right in Amenia, N.Y. Dr. King frequently visited the Troutbeck Estate in Amenia. Owned at the time by Amy and Joel Spingarn the intellectuals attracted liberals and innovators to their estate including Pan Africanist W.E.B Dubois. A friend of Joel’s DuBois even visited Troutbeck to hammer out the fundaments of the NAACP of which Joel was the second president of the civil rights organization.

Recently I got the opportunity to photograph a historical treasure at Troutbeck a letter written to Amy Spingarn from Dr. King sent in 1957 to the Spingarn’s home in New York City. The letter was written after Joel Spingarn had passed away.  The beautifully written letter was to express appreciation to the Spingarns and all the board of directors of the NAACP for choosing Dr. King as the recipient of the Spingarn Medal of the year. In the letter King is extremely humbled by the Spingarn’s actions in the civil rights movement. A section of the letter reads, “ Let me express my appreciation to you for the great part that you and your late husband have played in the struggle for freedom and human dignity for all people. The names of the Spingarns will go down in history as symbol of the struggle for freedom and justice.” 

It was a honor to photograph and hold the blown up copy of the letter which remains displayed in the library at Troutbeck. I had no idea that Amenia had such deep civil rights activism roots in this small rural town which I have frequently visit and cover for the newspaper. 

Happy MLK Day everyone! 

LIFE

Did you know that you can search millions of photos from the LIFE photo archive on google? With just one search you can look at photos from the 1750s to today many of the photos which were never published at all. They had not been available for viewing until now. All you have to do is add "source:life" to any google search and it will search only the LIFE archive. It's amazing like a huge photography gallery of history right on your computer. Below are some photos that I particularly enjoyed. 

It was hard for me to choose just one of the Marilyn Monroe photos. I found a whole collection of this photo shoot of her in the woods that I had never seen. She looks so young and innocent but already classically beautiful. You can also see how she has influenced some young starlets today with her style cough Lana Del Rey. 

For the newspaper I take a lot of sports photos at the local high school games. I have a new found respect for sports photographers. Not only is it challenging to keep up the pace of the game but it is difficult to have an original sports photo that looks different. Thats why I love this photo above of Wilt Chamberlain in 1956. The lightening on the court and their long skinny legs makes for an interesting photo. 

I was just thinking the other day I wish there were still more drive in movies around. Why did that ever stop being an American pass time? Probably because everything is in 4D :) This photo was taken in 1948. 

This is from the Taj Mahal in 1967. I don't know who the man is but I really loved the colors, the way he is viewing the Taj Mahal and his beard. 

Pablo Picasso painting with light in 1949. 

I loved looking at the photos from Woodstock. So many young, muddy and happy naked people! You really get the sense that this music festival in 1969 was a historical moment of total freedom for that generation.   

Do I even need to say why this is an amazing photo of Langston Hughes? 

Above are four South African children playing in the streets of District 6 in 1946. I learned a lot about District 6 through my travels in Cape Town and in Pan African Studies classes. From what I heard it was an amazing place to live. Its sad that District 6 is no longer a place but an empty plot of land in Cape Town. If you travel to Cape Town visit the District 6 museum. 

Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly waiting back stage at the 28th annual Academy Awards before presenting in 1956. Imagine watching the Academy Awards and they are the presenters! Such classic beauty, they really don't make them like they used to. 

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Stokely Carmichael participating in a voter registration march in 1966. Once again imagine being around during this time period. They were tough tough times for African Americans but just to be around the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement alone would make me want to be around then at least for a day. Also Dr. Kings sunglasses are awesome.  

There are so many more I want to share but this post will get too long. But please take a moment to get lost in this photo archive its a great way to be transported into a different life... pun intended.