Phil Stern’s
career started in New York City as a photographer for the
Police Gazette. He later joined Friday magazine and moved
to Los Angeles, where he first began photographing Hollywood
stars. During this period, he freelanced for Life, Look,
and Colliers magazines. World War II interrupted, but Stern’s
career flourished as a combat photographer in North Africa,
where he was part of "Darby’s Rangers,"
a much heralded fighting unit. Wounded and awarded a Purple
Heart, Stern was reassigned to cover the invasion of Sicily
for Stars and Stripes.
After the war, Stern returned
to Los Angeles as a freelance photographer and he began
working on the sets of more than 100 feature films, including:
"Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" "Some Like
it Hot," and "Westside Story." At the same
time, Stern photographed album covers for the Verve, Pablo,
and Reprise record labels.
His Hollywood contacts
led to his appointment by Frank Sinatra to be the official
photographer of the John F. Kennedy inaugural gala. His
friendships with and access to legendary figures resulted
in unforgettable portraits of James Dean, Marilyn Monroe,
Judy Garland, Ella Fitzgerald, Alfred Hitchcock, and Humphrey
Bogart.
In his books, "Phil
Stern's Hollywood" and "Phil Stern: A Life's Work,"
he presents portraits of some of the greatest figures of
the 20th Century.
In 2001, Stern donated
his library of Hollywood images to the Academy of Motion
Picture Arts and Sciences. He currently lives in Los Angeles.
