Voting Station

Herman Leonard

Please vote to return to collections.

Photographer

The Resume

    (March 6, 1923-August 14, 2010)
    Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania
    Known for his black and white photos of jazz legends
    Published the books 'The Eye of Jazz' (1985), 'Jazz Memories' (1995) and 'Jazz, Giants and Journeys: The Photography of Herman Leonard' (2006)
    Received a lifetime achievement award from 'Downbeat' magazine (2004)

Why he might be annoying:

    He was married and divorced three times.
    He used his camera to gain entry to New York jazz clubs whose cover charges he could not afford.
    He ordered thermometers in bulk in order to use the mercury for developing prints.
    Because there was initially not much of a market for his jazz photos, he put the negatives away in a box and forgot about them for three decades.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He served as a medical technician with the US Army in Burma during WWII.
    His first London exhibition attracted over 10,000 visitors, including Bono and Sade (1988).
    Hurricane Katrina destroyed his house in New Orleans and thousands of his prints; fortunately, the negatives had been placed in a museum vault for protection.
    His collection of jazz photographs were added to the permanent archives of the Smithsonian.
    Quincy Jones said, 'When people think of jazz, their mental picture is likely one of Herman's.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 7 Votes: 85.71% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 13 Votes: 61.54% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 6 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 9 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 10 Votes: 70.0% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 52 Votes: 61.54% Annoying