Weegee vs. BA

May 16, 2018
Uncategorized

Photography is not a competition.
Or, maybe it is…
I don’t know.


Double Take: A Comparative Look at Photographs, by Richard Whelan, 1981, pp. 152-53

BA’s photo was made in 1937, approximately six years before Weegee’s photo… 10 points for BA!
BA’s photo is presumably an 8×10 contact print… 18 points for BA!
Detailed caption: “Gunsmith and Police Department, 6 Centre Market Place and 240 Centre Street, Manhatan; February 4, 1937. Built in 1850 and 1906. Architect for Police Headquarters, Hoppin & Koehn…” (from MCNY blog)… 3,000 points for BA!

Impressively bewildering use of flash; day or night… 45 points for Weegee…
When was that photo made? Is that a positive or negative? Minus 44 points for Weegee…

Amazing depth of field… TKO for BA!

Even with a home field advantage…

Berenice Abbott wins round one!

“Broome St. and the Bowery” – May 16, 1941

May 16, 2018
1941, context, PM


PM, May 16, p. 15, “1001 Afternoons in New York” by Ben Hecht

“Murder in Broome Street
Let’s have a love story for a change.
There’s a dearth of amour in the press these days that gives you a lopsided picture of our town…
We’ll pick up our heroine (as they say in Hollywood) in Room 29 of the Hotel Commercial. This is a stained and giddy inn at the corner of Broome St. and the Bowery…”

(Commercial Hotel, 341 Broome, CAnal 6-9165, across the street from the Spring Arrows Social and Athletic Club, 344 Broome, site of “Off Duty Cop Does Duty, Kills Gunman Who Tries Stickup,” February 3, 1942.)



NY Times, March 31, 1966 (Pioneer Hotel, 341 Broome)

“Major Crimes Decreased Slightly in 1940” – May 15, 1941

May 15, 2018
1941, context, PM


PM, May 15, 1941, p. 15

Murders in NYC according to NYPD:
335 – 2016
649 – 2001
2262 – 1990

Felonious Assault in NYC according to NYPD (obviously this is not accurate since many people are brutally assaulted and are not counted in the statistics of the NYPD):
20,847 – 2016
23,020 – 2001
44,122 – 1990

Burglary in NYC according to NYPD:
12,990 – 2016
32,694 – 2001
122,055 – 1990


PM, May 15, 1941, p. 15

Population of Metropolitan New York:
1940 – 11,690,620
2017 – 20,300,000

Weegee vs. HC-B

May 14, 2018
Naked City

Photography is not a competition.
Or, maybe it is.
I don’t know.


Henri Cartier-Bresson, “The Decisive Moment,” 1952. pp. 42-43

p. 42. “New York, 1947. Easter Sunday in Harlem.” (presumably Leica, 35mm neg.)
p. 43. “New York, 1947. Midnight on West 42nd Street.” (presumably Leica, 35mm neg.)


Weegee, “Naked City,” 1945, pp. 198-199

p. 198 [After death what?, Harlem], 1943-5 (presumably Speed Graphic, flash, about half of a 4×5 neg.)
p. 199 [East Sunday, Harlem, 1943-5] (presumably Speed Graphic, flash, 4×5 neg.)

HC-B scores a point and a half for making Harlem look like New Orleans and Times Square look like Amish country and for making midnight look like mid-afternoon.
Weegee scores many, many more points for making better photos; talking to, interacting with, and having fun with the subjects of his photos (there are so many people looking at the photographer and smiling, that it’s easy to imagine Weegee clowning around); writing captions/text; and championing racial equality.
The photo on page 198 was made on the steps of Mount Olivet Baptist Church: “The history of the struggle for racial justice and social reform in New York City cannot be written or fully understood without knowledge of this church.” 10 more points for Weegee!
Relevant and thought-provoking text in a photo – 2 points for Weegee!
Weegee was there first, two years before HC-B, 3 more points for Weegee!

(Since HC-B was on Weegee’s stomping grounds, this spread might be worthy of a comparison.)
The design/layout of this page spread of “The Decisive Moment” is unimaginative, minus 1 point for HC-B.
The design/layout of this page spread of “Naked City” is cool, plus 2 or 3 points for Weegee.

Round 1 goes to Weegee!

Success, Seuss, Moses, Hazel Scott, Hunger Strike, Strike… May 9, 1941

May 9, 2018
1941, context, PM

In May 1941 $_________ has the same buying power as $_________ in May 2018 (according to bls.gov).

$697,048 – $12,079,938.65 – Louis B. Mayer
$478,144 – $8,286,301.93 – Pres. Bethlehem Steel
$332,267 – $5,758,233.26 – production superintendent, Loew’s Inc.
$278,324 – $4,823,393.58 – Pres of GM
$255,000 – $4,419,185.42 – W.C. Fields
$251,849 – $4,364,578.15 – VP of American Tobacco
$247,965 – $4,297,267.89 – VP of GM
$209,833 – $3,636,435.03 – Deanna Durbin
$150,000 – $2,599,520.83 – Bing Crosby


(Hazel Scott, photo by Steven Derry)


(Artful spat with Moses.)


(Lepke)


(Esposito bros start a hunger strike)


(Manufacturing in New Jersey… On strike… “…They expect a long battle for their little jobs.” Photos by Leo Lieb.)
PM, May 9, 1941, pages: 9, 11, 14