Sam Shaw (photographer)
Sam Shaw | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 15, 1912 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | April 5, 1999 (aged 87) Westwood, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Known for | Photography, filmmaking |
| Notable work | Paris Blues (1961), A Woman Under the Influence (1974) |
| Website | shawfamilyarchives |
Sam Shaw (January 15, 1912 – April 5, 1999) was an American photographer, film producer, and painter. He is best known as the photographer of Marilyn Monroe, with whom he was a personal friend. In 1954, he created his iconic image of the actress standing over a subway air shaft in a billowing white dress.[1]
Life
Sam Shaw was born in Manhattan and grew up on the Lower East Side. He showed an interest in art early on, and by the end of high school, he had turned his attention to painting.[1]
Photography
After a brief stint as art director for the Brooklyn Eagle, Shaw began working as a photojournalist for Collier's magazine in the 1940s. Later, his photographs also appeared in Life and Look magazines, frequently as cover images.[1]
At the same time, Shaw became increasingly active in the film industry, working as a unit still photographer on various film shoots. In 1951, he photographed Marlon Brando on the set of A Streetcar Named Desire wearing a T-shirt—a garment Brando had previously rejected as "vulgar."[2]
Shaw met Marilyn Monroe in 1952 during the filming of Viva Zapata!. Monroe had unsuccessfully tried to get a role in the film and was instead assigned as a driver for Shaw. A friendship developed between the two. In 1954, Shaw worked as a still photographer on the production of Billy Wilder's The Seven Year Itch, which would see Marilyn Monroe get her final breakthrough. During this filming, the image of the actress in a white dress above the subway air shaft was taken. Shaw had remembered a similar incident at an amusement park on Coney Island while reading the script and suggested the implementation of the scene to producer Charles K. Feldman.[3]
Film
From the early 1960s onwards, Shaw was also active as a film producer. He produced films by director John Cassavetes, including Husbands, A Woman Under the Influence, Opening Night, and Gloria. In 1990, Romuald Karmakar made the short documentary "Sam Shaw on John Cassavetes" with him.
Filmography
- 1961: Paris Blues
- 1970: Husbands
- 1974: A Woman Under the Influence
- 1977: Opening Night
- 1980: Gloria
- 1986-1989: Simon & Simon
References
- 1 2 3 "Sam Shaw, 87, Film Producer and Photographer". The New York Times. 1999-04-09. Retrieved 2026-06-05.
- ↑ Dannatt, Adrian (1999-06-16). "Obituary: Sam Shaw". The Independent. Retrieved 2026-06-05.
- ↑ Davies, Amy (2014-04-29). "Marilyn Monroe by Sam Shaw – Iconic Photograph". Amateur Photographer. Retrieved 2026-06-05.