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Ron Galella

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Ron Galella
Galella in 2010
Born
Ronald Edward Galella

(1931-01-10)January 10, 1931
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedApril 30, 2022 (aged 91)
Montville, New Jersey, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Other namesPaparazzo Extraordinaire
OccupationCelebrity photographer
Spouse
Betty Lou Burke
​
​
(m. 1979; died 2017)​
Websiterongalella.com

Ronald Edward Galella (January 10, 1931 – April 30, 2022) was an American photographer, known as a pioneer paparazzo. Dubbed "Paparazzo Extraordinaire" by Newsweek and "the Godfather of the U.S. paparazzi culture" by Time magazine and Vanity Fair, he is regarded by Harper's Bazaar as "arguably the most controversial paparazzo of all time".[1] He photographed many celebrities out of the public eye and gained notice for his feuds with some of them, including Jacqueline Onassis and Marlon Brando.[2] Despite the numerous controversies and claims of stalking, Galella's work was praised and exhibited in art galleries worldwide.[3]

During his career, Galella took more than three million photographs of public figures.[4]

Early life

Galella was born in New York City on January 10, 1931, in a family of Italian heritage.[2] His father, Vincenzo, was an immigrant from Muro Lucano, Basilicata,[5] who manufactured pianos and coffins;[2] his mother, Michelina (Marinaccio), was born in New Jersey to immigrants from Benevento, Campania,[6] and worked as a crochet beader.[2] After graduating high school, he won a two-year scholarship at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn but turned it down due to his deficiencies in mathematics.[7]

Galella served as a United States Air Force photographer from 1951 to 1955,[8] including during the Korean War. He later attended the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, California,[2] graduating with a degree in photojournalism in 1958.[8] In his free time, Galella took pictures of the stars arriving at film premieres, selling them to magazines like National Enquirer and Photoplay.[1][2] He soon became known for his photographic approach, portraying famous people out of the spotlight.[2]

Career

Galella's photographs have been featured in hundreds of publications including Time,[8] Harper's Bazaar,[1] Vogue, Vanity Fair,[9] People,[8] Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, The New York Times,[9] and Life.[10] In his in-home darkroom, Galella made his own prints which have been exhibited at museums and galleries throughout the world, including the MoMA in New York City, [2] San Francisco Museum of Modern Art,[11][12] the Tate Modern in London,[13][14], and the Helmut Newton Foundation Museum of Photography in Berlin.[15]

In 2009, his father's hometown of Muro Lucano made Galella an honorary citizen.[16] He was the subject of a 2010 documentary film by Leon Gast entitled Smash His Camera. The film's title is a quote from Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis directed to her security agent after Galella pursued her and her children through Central Park, New York.[4] The documentary premiered at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival,[17] winning the Grand Jury Award for Directing in the U.S. Documentary category. It also received positive reviews at the 54th BFI London Film Festival before it aired on the BBC.[16]

Controversies

Galella in 1988

Galella was known for his obsessive treatment of Jacqueline Onassis and the subsequent legal battles associated with it. The New York Post called it "the most co-dependent celeb-pap[arazzo] relationship ever".[18] The 1972 free-speech trial Galella v. Onassis resulted in a restraining order to keep Galella 50 yards (later changed to 25 feet) away from Onassis.[19] He was found guilty of breaking this order four times and faced seven years in jail and a $120,000 fine; later settling for a $10,000 fine and surrendering his rights to photograph Jackie and her children.[3]

On June 12, 1973, actor Marlon Brando punched Galella in the face outside a restaurant in Chinatown in New York City, breaking the photographer's jaw and knocking out five of his teeth on the left side of his mouth. Galella had been following Brando, who was accompanied by Dick Cavett, to the restaurant after a taping of The Dick Cavett Show earlier that day. Galella hired lawyer Stuart Schlesinger to sue Brando and ultimately settled for US$40,000. Schlesinger reported in the 2010 documentary Smash His Camera that Galella received two-thirds, but only cared about getting the message out, "I don't want anyone to think they can go around punching me if I am taking their picture. Get that story out, not the money."[20] The next time Galella chased Brando, he wore a football helmet.[21]

Galella once lost a tooth when he was beaten by Richard Burton's security guards. He unsuccessfully sued the actor.[22] Elizabeth Taylor, who tended to be tolerant towards photographers, was often heard to mutter, "I'm going to kill Ron Galella!",[23] although the actress would later use his photographs in her biography.[3] Galella's other targets included Elvis Presley, whose bodyguards slashed his tires, Brigitte Bardot, whose security staff hosed him down, the restaurateur Elaine Kaufman of Elaine's once threw a trashcan lid at his head[24], and Sean Penn, who spat at him and reportedly punched him while being photographed with his then-wife Madonna.[25]

In spite of these controversies, art galleries across the world have valued his work for its artistic and socio-historical value.[26] He was praised by Andy Warhol, who said: "My idea of a good picture is one that's in focus and of a famous person doing something unfamous. It's being in the right place at the wrong time. That's why my favorite photographer is Ron Galella".[3] Art writer Glenn O'Brien defined him as a "brilliant realist able to represent the world faithfully".[6] One of Galella's pictures depicting Jacqueline Onassis, dubbed "Windblown Jackie", was included among "The most influential images of all time" by Time magazine in 2016.[27][28]

Personal life

Galella married Betty Lou Burke in 1979. She worked as a photo editor for Today Is Sunday,[10] and was subsequently his business partner.[2] They remained married until her death on January 9, 2017, at the age of 68. Speaking of his wife, Galella said, "When Betty first purchased my photos for publication and granted me assignment credentials over the phone, I fell in love with her warm soft, loving voice. I met her in person for the first time, two years later, on Dec. 10, 1978, at the Kennedy Center for the premiere of Superman. With one look at that beautiful girl, I said, 'I'm gonna marry you.' And five months later, we were. Once married, we became a team."[29]

After retiring as a paparazzo, Galella was active as a photographer at prominent culture events.[30] He resided in Montville, New Jersey, during his later years.[2]

Galella died on April 30, 2022, at his home in Montville, New Jersey. He was 91, and suffered from congestive heart failure prior to his death.[2]

Bibliography

  • "Shooting Stars" (January 2019, Ron Galella, Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9857519-7-5)
  • “Donald Trump the Master Builder” (August 2017, Ron Galella, Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9857519-6-8)
  • “Rock and Roll” (October 2016, Ron Galella, Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9857519-5-1)
  • “Sex in Fashion” (December 2015, Ron Galella, Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9857519-4-4
  • The Stories Behind the Pictures (December 2014, Ron Galella, Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9857519-3-7)
  • Pop, Rock & Dance (2013, Ron Galella, Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9857519-2-0)
  • Jackie: My ObsessionJ (January 2013, Ron Galella, Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9857519-0-6)
  • Ron Galella: Paparazzo Extraordinaire with Mathias Prinz (April 30, 2012, Hatje Cantz Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7757-3324-3)
  • Boxing With the Stars (2011, Verlhac Editions) ISBN 978-2-916954-82-0
  • Man in the Mirror: Michael Jackson (December 2009, PowerHouse Books) ISBN 978-1-57687-535-3)
  • Viva l'Italia! (May 2009, Ron Galella, Ltd. – Distributed by PowerHouse Books) ISBN 978-0-615-28678-5)
  • No Pictures (November 2008, PowerHouse Books) ISBN 978-1-57687-457-8)
  • Warhol by Galella: That's Great! (May 2008, Verlhac Editions – Montacelli Press – Seeman Henschel Verlag) ISBN 978-1-58093-204-2)
  • Disco Years (2006, PowerHouse Books) ISBN 978-1-57687-325-0)
  • Ron Galella Exclusive Diary (2004, Photology) ISBN 978-8888359137)
  • The Photographs of Ron Galella: 1965–1989 (2001, Greybull Press) ISBN 978-0-9672366-6-7)
  • Offguard: A Paparazzi Look at the Beautiful People (1976, McGraw-Hill Book Company) ISBN 978-0-07-022733-0)
  • Jacqueline (1974, Sheed and Ward, Inc.) ISBN 978-0-8362-0573-2)

Exhibits

Galella's photographs have been exhibited in galleries across North America and Europe:[31]

  • Photo House– Brussels, Belgium – “55 Years a Paparazzi” – June 29 – September 2016
  • Int'l Center for Photography – New York, NY – “Public, Private Secret” – June 23 – January 28, 2017
  • Staley Wise Gallery – New York, NY – “55 Years a Paparazzi” – September 25 – November 28, 2015
  • Photology Garzón – Garzón, Uruguay – “Vintage Galella” – January 2016
  • Photology Noto – Noto, Sicily – “Vintage Galella” – Summer 2015
  • C/O Berlin – Berlin, Germany – “Blow-Up” January 24 – April 5, 2015
  • Musée de l'Elysée – Lausanne, Switzerland – “Paparazzi! Photographers, Stars, and Artists” – September 2014 – January 2015
  • Schirn Kunsthalle – Frankfurt, Germany – Paparazzi! Photographers, Stars, and Artists" – June 27 – October 12, 2014
  • Albertina – Blow-Up -Vienna, Austria – May 8 – August 24, 2014
  • Fotomuseum Winterthur – Switzerland – September 13 – November 30, 2014
  • Staley-Wise Gallery – Pop, Rock & Dance – December 13, 2013 – January 25, 2014, New York, NY
  • Centre Pompidou Paparazzi! – Metz, France – Photographers, Stars, and Artists – February 26 – June 9, 2014
  • Fundación Novacaixagalicia – Ron Galella: Paparazzo Extraordinaire! – La Coruña, Spain – October 3, 2013 – January 11, 2014 – Pontevedra, Spain – January 23 – April 19, 2014
  • Galerie La Flo – St. Tropex France – Boxing with the Stars, July 21 – September 15, 2012
  • Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam, Netherlands- Ron Galella: Paparazzo Extraordinaire!, June 8, 2012 – August 22, 2012,
  • PowerHouse Arena – Man in the Mirror: Michael Jackson by Ron Galella, January 7, 2009 – February 14, 2009, Brooklyn, NY
  • Lena Di Gangi Gallery – The Photographs of Ron Galella, December 5, 2009 – January 31, 2010, Totawa, NJ
  • Irish Museum of Modern Art – Picturing New York: Photographs from the Museum of Modern Art, November 25, 2009 – February 7, 2010, Dublin, Ireland
  • Centaur Theatre Company – Viva l'Italia, October 6, 2009 – December 6, 2009, Montreal, Canada
  • MART Museo di arte moderna e contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto – Picturing New York: Photographs from the Museum of Modern Art, July 11 – October 11, 2009, Rovereto, Italy
  • La Casa Encendida – March 28, 2009 – June 14, 2009, Madrid, Spain
  • Archeology Museum of Muro Lucano – Viva l'Italia, May 2009–Present
  • Palazzo Lanfranchi, Carlo Levi Hall – Ron Galella: Italian Icons, May 2009 – June 7, 2009, Matera, Italy
  • Hamburger Bahnfof Museum Fur Gegenwart – Celebrities: Andy Warhol and the Stars October 2008 – February 2009
  • Helmut Newton Foundation Museum of Photography – Pigozzi and the Paparazzi, June 2008 – November 2008 Berlin, Germany
  • GMW Law Offices – Offguard: Ron Galella Photography, October 2008–Present Den Haag, Netherlands
  • Staly-Wise Gallery – Warhol by Galella: That's Great!, May 2008–Present New York, New York
  • Galerie Wouter van Leeuwen – Warhol by Galella: That's Great!, May 2008–Present Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel Warhol by Galella: That's Great!, May 2008–Present Hollywood, CA
  • The Tate Modern Museum – Street + Stuido: An Urband History of Photography, May 2008 – August 2008 London, England
  • The Museum of Modern Art – Iconic Photos of Ron Galella acquired into collection, January 2008 New York, New York
  • The Museum of Modern Art – Iconic Photos of Ron Galella acquired into collection, October 2007 New York, New York
  • PowerHouse Arena – That 70's Show, March 2007 – April 2007 Brooklyn, New York
  • The Gershwin Hotel – February 2007 – March 2007 New York, New York
  • PowerHouse Arena – Warhol is Dead!, February 2007 – March 2007
  • Galerie Wouter van Leeuwen – Disco Years, December 2, 2006 – January 6, 2007, Amsterdamn, Netherlands
  • Buro Beelende Kunst Vlissinger Ron Galella: The One and Only Paparazzo, Brooklyn, New York
  • Paul Kasmin Gallery – Disco Years, November 2005 – January 2006 New York, New York
  • PowerHouse Arena – Ron Galella: The Kennedy, New York, New York
  • Kunstforum – Superstars: From Warhol to Madonna, October 2005 – February 2006
  • Ferragamo Gallery – Ron Galella Exclusive Diary: Caught Off-Guard, September 12, 2005 – December 31, 2005, New York, New York
  • Artelibro Festival of Art and Books – Ron Galella Exclusive Diary: Caught Off-Guard, September 22, 2005 – September 26, 2005, Bologna, Italy
  • Galerie Wouter van Leeuwen – The Photographs of Ron Galella, November 27, 2004 – August 1, 2005, Amsterdamn, Netherlands
  • Photology – Ron Galella Exclusive Diary, September 2004 – November 2004 Milan, Italy
  • Holt-Renfrew – Flick, September 2003 – December 2003 Toronto, Canada
  • Paul Kasmin Gallery – The Photographs of Ron Galella, June 2002 – August 2002 New York, New York
  • Andy Warhol Museum – Ron Galella Retrospective, June 2002 – September 2002 Pittsburgh, PA
  • Serge Sorokko Gallery, 1997 New York, New York
  • Nikon Gallery, 1993 New York, New York
  • Octagon Club, 1987 New York, New York
  • William Lyons Gallery, 1980 Coconut Grove, Florida
  • Union Carbide, 1977 New York, New York
  • Rizzoli Gallery, 1976 New York, New York
  • G. Ray Hawkins Gallery, 1976 New York, New York
  • Soho Gallery, 1972 New York, New York

References

  1. ^ a b c Cowles, Charlotte (April 7, 2014). "Ron Galella: Unseen Photographs From the World's Most Infamous Paparazzo". Harper's Bazaar. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Vitello, Paul (May 2, 2022). "Ron Galella, Celebrity-Hounding Photographer, Dies at 91". The New York Times. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d Hatje Cantz. "Ron Galella Q&A". artbook.com. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
  4. ^ a b Julian Sancton (January 24, 2010). "Sundance: Smash His Camera – Portrait of Ron Galella, Paparazzo Superstar". Vanity Fair. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  5. ^ "Ron Galella – Biography". rongalella.com. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  6. ^ a b Nicoletta Altomonte. "Ron Galella e la magia dello scatto "rubato"" (PDF) (in Italian and English). consiglio.basilicata.it. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  7. ^ "Ron Galella Q&A". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  8. ^ a b c d Blasberg, Derek (November 19, 2015). "Ron Galella on the Paparazzi's Golden Era and Why Marlon Brando Broke His Jaw". Vanity Fair. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  9. ^ a b Beckerman, Jim (May 6, 2019). "Montville's Ron Galella shot the stars, and the stars took pot shots at him". NorthJersey.com. North Jersey Media Group. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  10. ^ a b Goldman, Andrew (May 10, 2020). "Barbarian at the Lens: Ron Galella and the Dawn of the Age of Paparazzi". Town & Country. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  11. ^ "'Smash This Camera': Galella On His Iconic Shots". NPR. August 11, 2010. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  12. ^ "Ron Galella". San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  13. ^ "Prying eye: Tate Modern's Exposed uncovers the art of secret photography". The Guardian. London. May 16, 2010. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  14. ^ Pitman, Joanna (May 27, 2010). "Tate Modern: leering behind the lens". The Times. London. Retrieved May 2, 2022. (subscription required)
  15. ^ "Pigozzi and the Paparazzi". Helmut Newton Foundation. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  16. ^ a b "An Evening with Ron Galella at Anthology Film Archives". New York City: International Center of Photography. October 13, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  17. ^ Moczydlowsky, Carl (January 23, 2010). "Please Don't Break My Camera: Stalking the Greatest Paparazzo Ever, Ron Galella, at the Sundance Film Festival". Sundance Film Festival. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  18. ^ Dodai Stewart. "The Love/Hate Relationship With Paparazzi, Caught On Camera". jezebel.com. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  19. ^ Frank P. Hoy, Photojournalism: The Visual Approach, Prentice-Hall, 1986, p.206
  20. ^ HBO,Smash His Camera
  21. ^ Elizabeth Day (March 2, 2014). "Snap! Classic paparazzi moments – in pictures". The Guardian. theguardian.com. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  22. ^ Christopher Turner. "Ron Galella: big fame hunter". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  23. ^ Liz Smith (March 21, 2013). "Ron Galella's Magnificent Obsession: Jackie – New Book Celebrates Celebrity and Passion to Get the Picture Before Anybody Else". huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  24. ^ "Elaine Kaufman: Manhattan's Madame | the Rake".
  25. ^ Ottawa Citizen. "Sean Penn in another fight with photographer at apartment". Retrieved February 9, 2015.
  26. ^ "Shooting Stars: A Big Interview with Paparazzi Photographer Ron Galella". professionalphotographer.co.uk. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  27. ^ "100 Photographs | The Most Influential Images of All Time". Time. Archived from the original on February 19, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  28. ^ "Ron Galella – Biography". rongalella.com. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  29. ^ "BETTY GALELLA Obituary (2017) New York Times". Legacy.com.
  30. ^ Feifei Sun. "Ron Galella: America's Most Famous Paparazzi Photographer". lightbox.time.com. Archived from the original on May 16, 2012. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  31. ^ "Ron Galella – Exhibits". Archived from the original on February 8, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
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