Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

American, 1903-1994

Virgil Apger (1903-1994) Virgil Apger was born in Indiana on June 25, 1903. Apger interest in photography began when he was a child in Goodland, Idaho. His father, the local sheriff, took photographs of the town's criminals. In 1929 his brother-in-law, Eugene Robert Richee, who was head of the portrait gallery at Paramount, hired Apger as his assistant. Apger developed Richee's negatives, worked with the dryers, and made prints. He assisted Richee for a time and then went to work for MGM in 1931 doing the same thing Richee had done for years. He was an assistant to Clarence Sinclair Bull for awhile. Soon Jean Harlow gave Apger his start as a production still photographer by requested him to shoot photos on "China Seas" (1935). He had already worked for the publicity department. From then on he shot the stills on all her films. "Doing stills was invaluable training for gallery work," Apger explained. Apger's enthusiasm on the set made him extremely popular with the stars, and Greer Garson, whose films he worked on, requested him for her portait photographer. He is noteworthy in Oscar history as well for being the only photographer to receive an Academy Award for "Mrs. Miniver" in 1942 for Best Production Still. Later, he was put in charge of the portrait gallery in 1947 for MGM, superseding C. S. Bull in that department and for the next 20 years he shot all of their stars: Esther Williams, Clark Gable, Lana Turner, Greer Garson, Judy Garland, Robert Taylor, Joan Crawford, Barbara Stanwyck, Kay Kendall, Stewart Granger, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly and Elizabeth Taylor. Between 1948 and 1952, Apger had the distiction of having more magazine covers--among them, Life, Look and Photoplay--than all of the other photographers at all of the other studios combined. He had a long career photographing stars on the set of great classics and as a portrait photographer, photographing many sexy shots of Ava Gardner in fishnet stockings and leotards. Gardner was one of his favorite subjects. Their work together is comparable to that of Hurrell's work with Crawford or that of Bull's work with Garbo but with more sexuality, glamour and a friendly sort of approachability. Some of the many films he did still photography for are: "Spinout", "Bells Are Ringing", "That Forsyte Woman," "Julia Misbehaves", "A Date with Judy", "Homecoming", "Eyes in the Night," and the all time classic favorite, "The Wizard of Oz." He also took photos of Debbie Reynolds, Bette Davis, Marlon Brando, Arlene Dahl, Ann Blyth, Ginger Rogers, Judy Garland, Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant, and the Marx Brothers among others. When Apger retired from his job as MGM's gallery portrait photographer in 1969, he had been there for 40 years. For twenty of those years he was the only gallery photographer on the lot. He died at the ripe old age of 90 in San Diego, California on May 19, 1994.

Artist: Virgil Apger

Virgil ApgerMarilyn Monroe Monkey Business, Vintage 1953 Photographic Film, Framed, 1952

$652Sale Price|49% Off

Marilyn Monroe Monkey Business, Vintage 1953 Photographic Film, Framed

By Virgil Apger

Located in CANNES, FR

EKtachrome Vintage 1953 .20x15cm

Category

1950s Modern Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film

Leonard FreedMuscle Boy Photograph, Limited Edition 11/15, Harlem, New York City 1963, Signed, 1963

$2,599

H 19 in W 13 in

Muscle Boy Photograph, Limited Edition 11/15, Harlem, New York City 1963, Signed

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Muscle Boy is an iconic image by Leonard Freed who was a pioneer in documentary photography. In this photo a boy flexes his muscles for the camera perhaps making a statement about...

Category

1960s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital, Archival Pigme...

Leonard FreedFashion Show, Brooklyn New York 1963, Signed Archival Pigment Print, Ed 3/10, 1963

$2,400

H 19 in W 13 in

Fashion Show, Brooklyn New York 1963, Signed Archival Pigment Print, Ed 3/10

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Fashion Show, Brooklyn, New York, USA 1963 by Leonard Freed is a 19" x 13" signed archival pigment print in an edition of 10. Signed on back of the photograph by the Freed estate Brigitte Freed. Available: 3/10. Provenance: Freed Estate *** Artist’s Bio: Leonard Freed (1929-2006) was an American photographer from Brooklyn, New York. His "Black in White America" series made him known as a documentarian, a social documentary photographer. Freed worked as a freelance photographer from 1961 onwards and as a Magnum photographer Freed traveled widely abroad and, in the US, photographing African Americans (1964-65), events in Israel (1967-68, 1973), and the New York City police department...

Category

1960s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Archival Pigment, Photographic Film, Black and White

Leonard FreedFire Hydrant, Harlem, New York 1960s, Gelatin Silver Photograph, Signed, 24x20, 1963

$4,444

H 24 in W 20 in

Fire Hydrant, Harlem, New York 1960s, Gelatin Silver Photograph, Signed, 24x20

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Punctuated by documentary photo essays such as Black in White America, Fire Hydrant is one of Leonard Freed's most iconic in the Harlem, New York series. Two children enjoy a blissf...

Category

1960s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Leonard Freed1960s Limited Edition Black and White Photograph, Martin Luther King, MLK, 13x19, 1964

$2,800

H 13 in W 19 in

1960s Limited Edition Black and White Photograph, Martin Luther King, MLK, 13x19

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Martin Luther King (MLK), 1964 by Leonard Freed is an iconic black and white documentary photograph, a portrait of one of the most influential African American personalities and civi...

Category

1960s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Archival Ink, Digital, Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment

Leonard FreedKate #10, Yoga, Black and White Photograph, Signed Vintage, 8x10 Inches, 2002

$2,222

H 8 in W 10 in

Kate #10, Yoga, Black and White Photograph, Signed Vintage, 8x10 Inches

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Kate #10, 2002 by Leonard Freed is an 8" x 10" hand printed black and white photograph from his nude series. Signed by the photographer the gelatin silver print is stamped "vintage" ...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin, Photographic Film, Photographic Paper

NasaBuzz Aldrin, Apollo 11 NASA Space Photography, Vintage Color Print, 11x14, 1960s, 1969

$8,000

H 11 in W 14 in

Buzz Aldrin, Apollo 11 NASA Space Photography, Vintage Color Print, 11x14, 1960s

By Nasa

Located in New york, NY

A color photograph of Buzz Aldrin standing next to a seismograph with the "Eagle" and American flag in the background remains an historical and artistic document from 8 days in space...

Category

1960s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, C Print

Leonard FreedKate #11, Female Nude, Black and White Photograph, Signed Vintage, 8x10, 2002, 2002

$2,222

H 8 in W 10 in

Kate #11, Female Nude, Black and White Photograph, Signed Vintage, 8x10, 2002

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Kate #11, 2002 by Leonard Freed is a signed verso (back of photo) 8" x 10" black and white photograph, hand printed, signed by the photographer and stamped "vintage" by the Freed es...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin, Photographic Film, Photographic Paper

Leonard FreedBride, Italy, Black and White Photograph, Gelatin Silver, Signed, 24x20, 1958, 1958

$4,444

H 24 in W 20 in

Bride, Italy, Black and White Photograph, Gelatin Silver, Signed, 24x20, 1958

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Bride, Naples, Italy, 1958 by Leonard Freed is a black and white contemporary photograph, cinematic in nature. A gelatin silver photograph, signed by the photographer, 24" x 20" from the Freed archive. LITERATURE: W. A. Ewing, N. Herschdorfer, and W. van Sinderen, Worldview, Leonard Freed, Steidl, 2007, p. 73 and back cover. Leonard Freed discovered Little Italy in New York...

Category

1950s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Silver Gelatin, Photographic Film, Photographic Paper

Willy RonisLe Café de France, Gelatin Silver Print, Signed, 12x16 Inches, 1979 by Ronis, 1979

$5,800

H 12 in W 16 in

Le Café de France, Gelatin Silver Print, Signed, 12x16 Inches, 1979 by Ronis

By Willy Ronis

Located in New york, NY

Interested in “ordinary people with ordinary lives,” photographer Willy Ronis among the postwar French photographers spent his career roaming the streets of Paris, photographing people in love, at work, and at play. Le Café de France...

Category

1970s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Leonard FreedYeshiva Students, New York City, Black-and-White Photograph, Signed, 16x20, 1954, 1954

$3,600

H 16 in W 20 in

Yeshiva Students, New York City, Black-and-White Photograph, Signed, 16x20, 1954

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Yeshiva Students, New York City, 1954 by Leonard Freed is a black-and-white photograph of three young Jewish Youth, studying at a yeshiva. A gelatin silver print, 16” x 20”, signed ...

Category

1960s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Burt GlinnBeat Couple, 1950s, Gelatin Silver Print of Jack Kerouac, Estate Signed, 1959

$1,444

H 10 in W 8 in

Beat Couple, 1950s, Gelatin Silver Print of Jack Kerouac, Estate Signed

By Burt Glinn

Located in New york, NY

A black and white photograph from the 1950s capturing beatnik hipster writer Jack Kerouac in dark glasses, wearing a beret and friend Barbara Ferrara. Beat Couple, 1959 by Burt Gl...

Category

1950s Contemporary Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Ted AllanTed Allan, "Jean Harlow and Robert Taylor", original photograph, 1936, printed 1981

$1,975

H 14 in W 11 in

Ted Allan, "Jean Harlow and Robert Taylor", original photograph

By Ted Allan

Located in Chatsworth, CA

An original photograph shot by Ted Allan in 1936, and printed from the original negative at a later date. It depicts "Old Hollywood" actors, Jean Harlow and Robert Taylor...

Category

1930s Modern Virgil Apger Portrait Photography

Materials

Photographic Film

Virgil Apger portrait photography for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Virgil Apger portrait photography available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Virgil Apger in film, photographic film and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1950s and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large Virgil Apger portrait photography, so small editions measuring 8 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Ed Feingersh, Ron Galella, and Ted Allan. Virgil Apger portrait photography prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1,215 and tops out at $1,215, while the average work can sell for $1,215.