Hey kid, second to the front, nice boots.
The Sportswriters
Army vs. Navy, November 1948. As photographed by Cornell Capa for LIFE Magazine.
Jimmy Cannon (one of the greatest sportswriters of all time) famously said that Joe Louis was "a credit to his race, the human race." Not a bad dresser either.
LIFE Archive | Marlon Brando in The Men
There is a great photo set (by Edward Clark) in the LIFE archive of Marlon Brando preparing for his 1950 film debut The Men. The story was based on a group of returning WWII vets that had to cope with the mental and physical injuries of war. After coming off of his role in Broadway’s Streetcar Named Desire, Marlon Brando spent a lot of time at a VA hospital preparing for movie.
Life Archive | Stars and Stripes
That’s America right there — a nice big fella in head-to-toe khaki standing in front of a beat up American flag. If I knew this gentleman I would buy him a beer and ask him about his days in the big one. As I powered through the Life Archive I keep coming back to photos with Old Glory in them. As it turns out, being young and patriotic is on the up-and-up, so it seems my timing is right on. Enjoy some stars and stripes before you head out for the weekend.
Life Archive | The Pentagon c.1951
At first glance this this group of photos is pretty eerie in a Dr. Strangelove type of way, but they have ice cream so how bad could it really be. Not to mention that pneumatic tube document delivery system. Any place with one of those is a-okay in my book. In fact, I am currently looking into installing a pneumatic tube document delivery system in my office, fuck email. If you are into the office tech of a certain sixties drama on AMC, then you will love this set of photos from the then “state-of-the-art” Pentagon from the early fifties, less than a decade after the building’s opening.
Man in the gray flannel suit (although that doesn't look like flannel)
Life Archive | New York Speakeasies
In 1925 there were an estimated 30,000 to 100,000 speakeasies in New York City alone. Near the end of the ban on alcohol in 1933 Life photographer Margaret Bourke-White captured some of the city’s elite speakeasies. What an amazing time, to be forced to enjoy to your after work libations underground. It is crazy to think that for 13 years (1920-1933) religious nuts took away America’s booze. I would be scared to see what New York would be like if the liquor was gone.
