Recent from talks
David Douglas Duncan
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
David Douglas Duncan
David Douglas Duncan (January 23, 1916 – June 7, 2018) was an American photojournalist, known for his dramatic combat photographs, as well as for his extensive domestic photography of Pablo Picasso and his wife Jacqueline.
Duncan was born in Kansas City, Missouri, where his childhood was marked by interest in the outdoors, helping him earn the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts at a relatively young age. A lantern-slide presentation by big-game hunter and physician Richard Lightburn Sutton, at Duncan's elementary school in Kansas City inspired an early interest in photography and world travel. Duncan briefly attended the University of Arizona, where he studied archaeology. While in Tucson, he inadvertently photographed John Dillinger trying to get into a hotel. Duncan eventually continued his education at the University of Miami, where he graduated in 1938, having studied zoology and Spanish. It was in Miami that his interest in photojournalism began in earnest. He worked as picture editor and photographer of the university paper.[citation needed]
His career as a photojournalist began when he took photographs of a hotel fire in Tucson, Arizona, while he was then studying archaeology at nearby University of Arizona. His photos included one of a hotel guest who made repeated attempts to go back into the burning building for his suitcase. That photo proved to be newsworthy when the guest turned out to have been notorious bank robber John Dillinger and the suitcase to have contained the proceeds of a bank robbery in which he had shot a police officer. Unfortunately, after the film was turned over to the Tucson Citizen, it was lost forever, and the photos were never printed.
After college, Duncan began to freelance, selling his work to journals such as The Kansas City Star, Life and National Geographic.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Duncan joined the Marine Corps, earned an officer's commission, and became a combat photographer. After brief postings in California and Hawaii, he was sent to the South Pacific on assignment when the United States entered World War II. As a second lieutenant, he initially served with Marine Aircraft Group 23 and was later assigned to photograph operations of the South Pacific Combat Air Transport Command. Though combat photographers are often close to the action, they rarely fight. However, in a brief engagement at Bougainville Island, Duncan found himself fighting against the Japanese. Duncan also covered the Battle of Okinawa, and was on board the USS Missouri for the Japanese surrender.
Duncan's wartime photographs were so impressive that after the war he was hired by Life to join its staff at the urging of J. R. Eyerman, Life chief photographer. During his time with Life, Duncan covered many events, including the end of the British Raj in India and conflicts in Turkey, Eastern Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
Perhaps his most famous photographs were taken during the Korean War. He compiled many of these into a book, This Is War!, (1951), with the proceeds going to widows and children of marines who had been killed in the conflict. Duncan is considered the most prominent combat photographer of the Korean War.
His photo and talk with marines in the Battle of Chosin Reservoir are notable:
Hub AI
David Douglas Duncan AI simulator
(@David Douglas Duncan_simulator)
David Douglas Duncan
David Douglas Duncan (January 23, 1916 – June 7, 2018) was an American photojournalist, known for his dramatic combat photographs, as well as for his extensive domestic photography of Pablo Picasso and his wife Jacqueline.
Duncan was born in Kansas City, Missouri, where his childhood was marked by interest in the outdoors, helping him earn the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts at a relatively young age. A lantern-slide presentation by big-game hunter and physician Richard Lightburn Sutton, at Duncan's elementary school in Kansas City inspired an early interest in photography and world travel. Duncan briefly attended the University of Arizona, where he studied archaeology. While in Tucson, he inadvertently photographed John Dillinger trying to get into a hotel. Duncan eventually continued his education at the University of Miami, where he graduated in 1938, having studied zoology and Spanish. It was in Miami that his interest in photojournalism began in earnest. He worked as picture editor and photographer of the university paper.[citation needed]
His career as a photojournalist began when he took photographs of a hotel fire in Tucson, Arizona, while he was then studying archaeology at nearby University of Arizona. His photos included one of a hotel guest who made repeated attempts to go back into the burning building for his suitcase. That photo proved to be newsworthy when the guest turned out to have been notorious bank robber John Dillinger and the suitcase to have contained the proceeds of a bank robbery in which he had shot a police officer. Unfortunately, after the film was turned over to the Tucson Citizen, it was lost forever, and the photos were never printed.
After college, Duncan began to freelance, selling his work to journals such as The Kansas City Star, Life and National Geographic.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Duncan joined the Marine Corps, earned an officer's commission, and became a combat photographer. After brief postings in California and Hawaii, he was sent to the South Pacific on assignment when the United States entered World War II. As a second lieutenant, he initially served with Marine Aircraft Group 23 and was later assigned to photograph operations of the South Pacific Combat Air Transport Command. Though combat photographers are often close to the action, they rarely fight. However, in a brief engagement at Bougainville Island, Duncan found himself fighting against the Japanese. Duncan also covered the Battle of Okinawa, and was on board the USS Missouri for the Japanese surrender.
Duncan's wartime photographs were so impressive that after the war he was hired by Life to join its staff at the urging of J. R. Eyerman, Life chief photographer. During his time with Life, Duncan covered many events, including the end of the British Raj in India and conflicts in Turkey, Eastern Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
Perhaps his most famous photographs were taken during the Korean War. He compiled many of these into a book, This Is War!, (1951), with the proceeds going to widows and children of marines who had been killed in the conflict. Duncan is considered the most prominent combat photographer of the Korean War.
His photo and talk with marines in the Battle of Chosin Reservoir are notable:
Recent media