|
| |
::FILM NEWS::
LE Newsletter -
September 4, 2008
|
| |
Grandfather Of Paparazzi Reflects On
Storied Career
Source:
www.thestar.com
-
Malene Arpe,
Pop Culture Writer
(August
31,
2008)
Marlon Brando knocked out his teeth. Jackie Onassis
took him to court. You know his photos even if you don't know
his name. He has photographed Elizabeth Taylor, Robert Redford,
Frank Sinatra and Dustin Hoffman and countless other stars in
unguarded moments.
He is
Ron Galella,
the grandfather of paparazzi, a self-described "artist with a
camera" and his work is the subject of an exhibit at the
Roots flagship store.
I asked him to pick one image that, to him, represents his
remarkable career.
"Windblown Jackie is the one image that sums up my career,
because she considered herself private, and did not seek
publicity," Galella, 77, said via email from his home in New
Jersey.
"She generally ignored me and my camera, and rarely went to
public events. This left me no choice but to photograph her on
the run – she made me a paparazzo. On my letterhead it says
`Photography with the Paparazzi Approach,' which refers to the
qualities I look for, ideally: exclusive, off-guard,
spontaneous, unrehearsed ... Windblown Jackie possesses these
qualities with natural, soft light, over-the-shoulder
composition, no make-up or hairdo, and a Mona Lisa smile
reflecting beauty from within."
It comes as no surprise that Galella isn't too enamoured with
today's celebrity crop.
"The new generation of celebrities – I call them
`featherweights' – are celebrity trash. They have been
overexposed by the media and we know too much, leaving little to
our imaginations and thereby losing the mystery that creates
glamour. Jackie whispered and was never obvious. Today, they
rely on sex and vulgarity to gain the attention of the media."
There are other old-school celebs Galella thinks of with
fondness.
"Liz Taylor – she has always been nice to me, even after I sued
her. She had been trained by the studios to be nice to the
press, and most of all, she was beautiful. Lauren Hutton, who
said more than once, `I like your work more than Dick Avedon's.'
I think it's because I shoot fast as stars are being themselves
whereas studio photographers fuss around posing them. Sophia
Loren; again, she's beautiful, and had said that she didn't
believe I was a paparazzo. I believe she is right. Robert
Redford, who allowed me to shoot him and his family in his lobby
and elevator. Warren Beatty, who would talk to me when I called
him at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel."
And was there one who got away?
"Marilyn Monroe is the one celebrity I wish I had photographed.
I had one opportunity in 1957, when she was filming Bus Stop
at 20th Century Fox's lot, but I was preoccupied with
shooting a no-name actor and did not wait for Marilyn at her
trailer. I was not a paparazzo at the time."
The Ron Galella exhibit runs until Sept. 30 at Roots, 100
Bloor St. W. |
|
| |
|
::LANGFIELD
ENTERTAINMENT:: ENTERTAINMENT NEWS WITH A CANADIAN TWIST::
