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Catalog Data

Creator:
Leonard, Herman, 1923-2010  Search this
Former owner:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Musical History  Search this
Names:
Armstrong, Louis, 1901-1971  Search this
Baker, Chet  Search this
Bennett, Tony, 1926-  Search this
Blakey, Art, 1919-1990  Search this
Brown, Clifford  Search this
Camero, Candido, 1921-  Search this
Cole, Nat King, 1917-1965  Search this
Cole, Nat King, 1917-1965  Search this
Davis, Miles  Search this
Davis, Miles  Search this
Eckstine, Billy  Search this
Ellington, Duke, 1899-1974  Search this
Fitzgerald, Ella, 1917-1996  Search this
Garner, Erroll  Search this
Getz, Stan, 1927-1991  Search this
Gillespie, Dizzy, 1917-  Search this
Gordon, Dexter, 1923-1990  Search this
Haig, Al, 1924-1982  Search this
Heath, Percy, 1923-2005  Search this
Holiday, Billie, 1915-1959  Search this
Horne, Lena  Search this
Marsalis, Wynton, 1961-  Search this
Monk, Thelonious  Search this
Mulligan, Gerry  Search this
Parker, Charlie, 1920-1955  Search this
Pettiford, Oscar, 1922-1960  Search this
Roach, Max, 1924-2007  Search this
Russell, Curly  Search this
Sims, Zoot  Search this
Sinatra, Frank, 1915-1998  Search this
Stitt, Sonny  Search this
Strayhorn, Billy (William Thomas), 1915-1967  Search this
Terry, Clark  Search this
Washington, Dinah, 1924-1963  Search this
Webster, Ben  Search this
Young, Lester, 1909-1959  Search this
Extent:
5.6 Cubic feet (10 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Date:
1948-1993
Summary:
Jazz club photographs by noted Jazz photographer Herman Leonard.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of 110 black-and-white photographic prints depicting musicians performing at various American and European jazz clubs between 1948 and 1991. The collection contains mounted and unmounted 11" x 14" and 16" x 20" prints made by Leonard. Artists represented among these photographs are Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra, Lester Young, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, and Thelonious Monk. The photographs are organized into three series: Series 1: 11"x 14" prints, Series 2: 16" x 20" prints, and Series 3: Addenda. The series are arranged alphabetically by performer's last name. Unmatted 16" x 20" prints can be found in box 2 but are listed alphabetically by performer.
Biographical / Historical:
Herman Leonard (1923‑2010) was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and served as a military photographer in Burma during World War II. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in photography from Ohio University and began working with Yousuf Karsh, a Canadian portraitist. Settling in New York in 1949, Leonard began photographing jazz musicians at various jazz clubs on Broadway and Fifty‑Second Streets, and in Harlem for such publications as Cosmopolitan, Esquire, Life, Look, Playboy, and Time. He later to Paris to begin a fashion and advertising business. He also continued photographing jazz musicians. In 1988 Leonard presented his first exhibition, "Images of Jazz," in London. This show established his reputation as a leading photographer of jazz and sparked further shows and publications.
Provenance:
The Herman Leonard Photographs were donated to the National Museum of American History by Mr. Leonard on December 17, 1991 and in 2006.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
The Archives Center does not own the rights to the Leonard photographs. All requests for permission to use these photographs for non‑museum purposes must be addressed to: Herman Leonard Photography, LLC, 530 South Lake Avenue #503, Pasadena, CA 91101 (818) 509-8987.
Topic:
Jazz musicians -- United States  Search this
Jazz  Search this
Music -- 20th century  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin -- 19th-20th century
Citation:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection, 1948-1993, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0445
See more items in:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8e44f9017-2701-439c-ac51-9916f1092b09
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0445