Weegee's New York: Photographs, 1935-1960 (Paperback)

~ Weegee (Photographer), John Coplans (Introduction), Arthur 'Weegee' Fellig (Principal)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Weegee’s New York: Photographs 1935–1960

Weegee’s legendary camera recorded an unmatched pictorial chronicle of a legendary time. Weegee’s New York is the New York of the thirties and forties, a city marked by the Great Depression, by unemployment and poverty, by mob violence and prostitution. He was the first news photographer allowed a police radio in his car. Racing through Manhattan’s streets after midnight, he often beat the cops to the scene of the crime to shoot the pictures which would scream from the pages of the Daily News and the Daily Mirror next morning. They still jump from the page with a restless immediacy and intense nervousness that has never been surpassed. The 335 photographs collected in this new softcover reprint tell the astonishing story of New York during one of its most violent and exciting periods. The introductory essay is by the former editor of Art Forum, John Coplans.

Essay by Weegee

Weegee (1899-1968),was born Arthur Fellig in what is now a part of Poland and arrived in New York at the age of ten. During his ten years at Manhattan’s police headquarters he published 5,000 photos that made him the most famous of a new breed of hardboiled news photographers. His book Naked City (later made into a film) was published in 1945, followed in 1953 by Naked Hollywood.

John Coplans, born in 1920 in England, immigrated to the US in 1960. In 1962 he founded the periodical Artforum serving as its editor until 1980. He was director of the Art Gallery of University of California at Irvine; senior curator at the Pasadena Art Museum; and director of the Akron Art Museum, Ohio. At age sixty he took up photography full-time.

335 duotone plates.

From the Publisher

Legendary photojournalist Weegee’s unflinching eye led him to territory few other photographers of his time dared to go. His New York was not the glamorous world of nightclubs and bustling sidewalks, but of the back alleys and forgotten tenements that bore witness to the city’s tragedy and violence. Weegee’s New York is a city wounded by the Great Depression, in the throes of unemployment and poverty, of crime, corruption, and prostitution. Taken mostly at night, and marked by the characteristically harsh, artificial light that cast telltale shadows on their subjects, these photographs of crime victims, homeless vagrants, petty thieves, and resolute policemen document the gritty reality of Weegee’s world. The first news photographer permitted a police radio in his car, Weegee would race through Manhattan’s streets after midnight, often beating the cops to the scene of the crime. The next morning his pictures would scream from the pages of the Daily News and the Daily Mirror. They still jump from the page today, with a restless an immediacy and intense edginess that has yet to be surpassed. The 335 photographs collected in this volume tell a story of New York during one of its most violent and exciting periods. They also tells the story of the man behind the camera, whose passion, curiosity, and humanity belie his role as uninvolved bystander. More than a record of superb photojournalism, Weegee’s New York is a te! stament to a man who refused to look away. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 335 pages
• Publisher: Schirmer Art Books (March 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 388814874X
• ISBN-13: 978-3888148743
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #94,694 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best of Mister Speed Graphic, June 8, 2004

By	Robin Benson - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Weegee's New York Photographs, 1935-1960 (Paperback)

With 335 photos, this large size paperback is one of the better books you'll find of Weegee's work. Divided into eighteen photographic chapters (with one image per page) it really is an impressive selection, especially as it covers his output from 1935 to 1960.

The chapter on crime has the largest selection (thirty-one) with the predictable dead and bloodied bodies surrounded by police and public. Weegee claimed he (and several Speed Graphic cameras) covered hundreds of murders for the New York tabloids, he knew that that the only thing that mattered to the 'tabs' were the headlines and photos, the story could fill any space that was left. The other chapters cover ordinary New Yorkers in mostly nighttime settings.

The perfect complement to this book is Miles Barth's 'Weegee's World' (ISBN 0821226495) which admittedly does have many of the same photos but also has three long essays about this unique photographer. I have another book about Weegee, a very poor reproduction of his 1945 title 'Naked City' (ISBN 0306812045) and again most of the photos are in the New York book.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vintage NYC!!, July 8, 2008

By	J. Chaney - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am a sucker for/fan of those old vintage '30s, '40s, and '50s NYC photos and movies where the men wore hats, ties, and suits and the women dressed up. This book has all of that: a definite must have for the aficionados of the way we used to look, act, and dress, as well as those who love photographic crime story images. This is NYC from Weegee's camera and it is a NYC that, although I am too young to have lived in that era, projects a thousand words with each riveting image. This book sits on my coffee table. I will purchase similar books to lay around my apt. and provide guests with items that guests will have a hard time resisting.

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars tempus fugit, March 10, 2001

By	tomas (Slovenia, Europe) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Weegee's New York Photographs, 1935-1960 (Paperback)

This book is amazing piece of amercian history. New York history. Frozen moments of ordinary people and their enviroment. Really must have one...