44 Amazing Black and White Photographs From the Set of “Dr. Strangelove” (1964)

Directed by Stanley Kubrick, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) is widely considered one of the greatest political satires and black comedies in cinematic history.

Originally intended to be a serious thriller based on the novel Red Alert by Peter George, Kubrick realized during the writing process that the concept of “Mutually Assured Destruction” (MAD) was so inherently absurd that it could only be told as a comedy.

Peter Sellers famously played three distinct characters: the polite Group Captain Mandrake, the ineffectual President Muffley, and the titular Dr. Strangelove, a wheelchair-bound scientist with “alien hand syndrome” who struggles to keep his arm from performing Nazi salutes.

The War Room set became instantly iconic. Designed by Ken Adam, the massive, triangular underground bunker became so iconic that Ronald Reagan reportedly asked where the “real” War Room was when he took office (only to be told it didn’t exist).

The film concludes with the hauntingly ironic use of Vera Lynn’s “We’ll Meet Again” playing over a montage of nuclear explosions.

See more»

Powerful Portraits of Andy Warhol Showing His Shooting Scars From 1969

In 1969, Richard Avedon photographed Andy Warhol’s shooting scars in one of the most stark and unsettling celebrity portraits of the 20th century. The photos were taken in New York City on August 20, 1969. Warhol is depicted wearing a black leather jacket, with one hand placed across his abdomen, highlighting the “almost tangible wounds.” These powerful images have been described as a tragic and powerful documentation of the violence he endured, leaving him with permanent injuries and requiring him to wear a surgical corset for the rest of his life.

The scars were the result of life-saving surgeries after Warhol was shot and critically injured by radical feminist writer Valerie Solanas on June 3, 1968, at his studio, The Factory. Warhol was briefly declared dead at the hospital but was revived after a six-hour operation to repair damage to his stomach, liver, spleen, esophagus, and both lungs.

Not only did the attack affect Warhol’s physical health, but it also had an impact on his mental stability. After the incident, Warhol wrote in his 1968 biography: “When you hurt another person, you never know how much it pains. Since I was shot, everything is such a dream to me. I don’t know what anything is about. Like, I don’t know whether I’m alive or whether I died. I wasn’t afraid before. And having been dead once, I shouldn’t feel fear. But I am afraid. I don’t understand why.”

After being shot by Solanas, Warhol’s fear of dying was amplified. This incident caused him to revisit the themes of death and violence, but now by observing the possibility of his own mortality. Warhol created a series of Gun prints, which was created in reaction to his feelings around gun violence and his own personal experience with it. His Gun from 1981, shows a weapon similar to the .22 snub-nosed pistol that Solanas used to shoot him. He created these prints to reflect on his feelings towards his own mortality at the mercy of the weapon.

The shooting also intensified his fears of hospitals and illness, leading him to seek alternative medicine and treatments. This hesitance caused him to delay appointments and procedures, which may have eventually led to his demise. His doctor even said, “He was convinced if he was hospitalized he would die.” On February 21, 1987, Warhol suffered a heart attack after gallbladder surgery. He died the following day, while resting in the hospital. The bullet which hit Warhol’s gallbladder killed him 19 years after the attack.

This life changing event altered the course of Warhol’s career. The artist’s work shifted from colorful pop art images of soup cans and flowers, to skulls and freak accidents. Although this change in his career was brought forth by an extremely unfortunate event, the works he created after this incident have become some of the most famous and iconic modern works of art. As Warhol once said: “The idea is not to live forever, but to create something that will.”

Rosanna Schiaffino: Italy’s Sophisticated Icon of the 1960s

Rosanna Schiaffino (1939–2009) was a prominent Italian actress who emerged as a major figure in post-neorealist cinema during the late 1950s and 1960s. Initially a beauty queen and a successful model featured on the covers of magazines like Life, she achieved critical acclaim for her powerful performance in Francesco Rosi’s La Sfida (1958).

Often compared to icons like Sophia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida, Schiaffino’s career spanned over 45 films, including international productions such as The Long Ships (1964) and the award-winning La Mandragola (1965). Her blend of striking elegance and versatile acting talent established her as one of the most captivating stars of mid-20th century European cinema before she retired from the screen in the mid-1970s.

Take a look at these beautiful photos to see portraits of a young Rosanna Schiaffino in the 1960s.

See more»

On December 24, 1994, Air France Flight 8969 Was Hijacked by Four Members of the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) of Algeria

On December 24, 1994, Air France Flight 8969 became the stage for a deadly hijacking that would test the resolve of a nation. As the Airbus A300 sat at Algiers’ Houari Boumediene Airport, four armed members of the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) stormed aboard, taking passengers and crew hostage. Their goal, as later revealed, was chilling: to crash the aircraft into a major Paris landmark, either the Eiffel Tower or Tour Montparnasse.

The Algerian government refused to allow the plane to take off. The hijackers executed three passengers, two Algerians and a Vietnamese diplomat, to force negotiations. Their behavior made it clear that their goal wasn’t money or asylum, but to use the plane as a weapon.

After 39 hours of tense standoff and killings on board, the Algerian authorities allowed the plane to depart for Marseille, France, under pressure from Paris. The aircraft landed at Marseille-Provence Airport on December 26, 1994. French authorities immediately surrounded it with elite counterterrorism units.

After the hijackers started firing on the control tower, the French National Gendarmerie Intervention Group (GIGN), an elite counter-terrorism unit, launched a 20-minute assault on the aircraft. The operation, which involved 30 GIGN commandos, resulted in the death of all four hijackers.

The raid is widely regarded as one of the most successful counter-terrorism operations in history. All 173 remaining hostages (passengers and crew) survived the final rescue operation, though 13 passengers, 3 crew members (including the captain), and 9 GIGN operators were wounded. The incident had lasting effects on aviation security and was the subject of various documentaries and films, including the 2010 French film L’assaut (The Assault).

See more»

The 1953 Hudson Hornet Sedan: A Racing Legend

The 1953 Hudson Hornet Sedan stands as a legendary icon of mid-20th-century American motoring, celebrated primarily for its unparalleled dominance on the NASCAR racing circuit.

While visually similar to its predecessors, the 1953 model represented the final year of the famed “step-down” body design , a revolutionary low-slung structure where the floorpan was placed lower than the perimeter of the frame. This design offered a significantly lower center of gravity, translating into superior handling, a major advantage over competitors whose cars often swayed through turns.

Under the hood, the Hornet was powered by the formidable “Twin H-Power” system, a 308-cubic-inch flathead six-cylinder engine equipped with two carburetors and a high-compression aluminum head. This robust engine, combined with the step-down chassis, allowed the Hornet, nicknamed the “Fabulous Hudson Hornet,” to secure three consecutive NASCAR Grand National championships from 1951 to 1953, forever cementing its place in racing history before the company was merged into American Motors Corporation (AMC).

Here below is a collection of beautiful photos of the 1953 Hudson Hornet Sedan.

See more»

Myrna Loy Photographed by Henry Waxman as the ‘Intellectual Vamp’ for the Silent Film “What Price Beauty?” (1928)

Myrna Loy photographed by Henry Waxman for the 1928 film, What Price Beauty?. Filmed in 1925 but not released until 1928, Loy had a small role in the film but it helped give her attention. Waxman actually helped discover her, as he took portraits of her while she was performing at the Grauman’s Egyptian Theater. The portraits were seen by Rudolph Valentino and Natacha Rambova, and Rambova hired Loy for her role in What Price Beauty? in which Rambova was a producer. A few of the stills pictured here were featured in Motion Picture magazine, which then led to a film contract with Warner Bros for Loy.

Following her failed screen test for the film Cobra and extra work on Pretty Ladies, Myrna remembered how she was casted in What Price Beauty? in her book, Being and Becoming:

“Natacha Rambova came to the rescue. Henry Waxman called to say that she wanted me at the studio, so I hurried over. Lou and Betty [her best friends] waited by the phone until I called home with the news that Natacha had hired me for a small but showy part in What Price Beauty?. Mother made a midnight supper and Lillian Butterfield and Melva Lockman, my friends from Grauman’s, joined us for a celebration. They all stayed overnight, five of us crosswise in one double bed, chattering away, planning brilliant futures for ourselves.

“What Price Beauty? had a dreadful script, a variation on the country-girl-in-the-big-city theme, but done with the Rambova touch. She’d found a young designer named Adrian Greenberg—that’s where M-G-M’s Adrian started. His big test, and my only scene, was a futuristic dream sequence depicting various types of womankind. Natacha dubbed me ‘the intellectual type of vampire without race or creed or country.’ Adrian designed an extraordinary red velvet pajama outfit for me, with a short blond wig that came to little points on my forehead, very, very snaky. This bizarre film wasn’t released for three years, but Henry Waxman took pictures of me in that outfit. They appeared in a fan magazine captioned ‘Who is she?’ and eventually led to my contract.”

See more»

30 Vintage Portraits of Lea Massari in the 1950s and ’60s

Born 1933 in Rome, Italian actress Lea Massari is renowned for her extensive career in both Italian and French cinema, establishing her as a key figure in European art house film. She achieved international fame through two of her most iconic roles: the mysteriously disappearing Anna in Michelangelo Antonioni’s groundbreaking film L’Avventura (1960), and the sophisticated, complicated mother Clara in Louis Malle’s Murmur of the Heart (Le Souffle au Cœur, 1971).

Known for her subtle, elegant performances and striking beauty, Massari worked with legendary directors like Sergio Leone and Francesco Rosi, solidifying her status as one of mid-20th century European cinema's most important and enduring stars.

Take a look at these vintage photos to see portraits of a young Lea Massari in the 1950s and 1960s.

See more»