The Strange Career of Otto Sarony

Take a close look at this photograph and see a credit for O. Sarony.  There are tens of thousands of photographs credited to Otto Sarony, and he didn't take one of them.

Otto Sarony, 1859-1903, was the privileged son of famous photographer Napoleon Sarony.  The elder Sarony was born in Canada, but made his fortune in New York City.  A society photographer, Napoleon Sarony came up with an interesting business model.  Rather than waiting in his studio for the rich and famous to show up for a portrait, he paid sitting fees to his clients in exchange for the right to reproduce and sell their images.  Napoleon Sarony dressed flamboyantly, attended the parties given by the New York theatrical community and became every bit as well known as his celebrity sitters.  His studio sold cartes de visite, cabinet cards, and latter postcards of 19th century stage stars to anyone with a few pennies in their pocket.  Despite his public image, Napoleon was a hard working, successful businessman who made a lot of money.

 Raised by his father to take over the business, working as a studio assistant, Otto didn't share his father's enthusiasm for the photographic business.  It wasn't that Otto wanted to follow another profession.  He preferred yachts, gambling and parties.  Perhaps that's why Napoleon's will required Otto to run the business for at least fifteen years, and limited his weekly wages to $75.  To put it mildly, Otto was unhappy.  In 1898, two years after his father's death, Otto sold the studio to William F. Burrow, but remained as the public face of The Sarony Studios.  In 1901, Otto Sarony wanted even more money, so he sold rights to his name to Col. Theodore Marceau.  So, there were two competing studios in New York City producing photographs credited to Otto Sarony.  In 1903, Otto Sarony died of pneumonia.  For the next decade a series of law suits were filed as William F. Burrow and Theodore Marceau fought over who had the right to use the Sarony name.  Marceau managed to use the Sarony name into the 1910s.  Burrow's Sarony Studios closed in 1930.

Robert Edeson was a successful stage actor in New York and latter a well respected character actor in silent movies.  He was in a favorite silent movie of mine, The Clinging Vine, starring Leatrice Joy.  Highly recommended.  Edeson's career survived into the sound era.  He died in 1931.

The German American Collection, The Album11

Posing with books was once quite common. When and why did that change?

Men In Love

Well. it's hard not to jump to conclusions on this one. The heart shape has been a symbol of a romantic relationship for centuries. This picture probably dates from the late nineteenth to the early twentieth century.

Alfalfa, Sr. Cabinet Card

I dare anyone to tell me that this guy doesn't look like Alfalfa from The Little Rascals. All that's missing is the cow lick and a few freckles. This card was probably made in the nineteenth century, so it is possible that this man could be an ancestor of little Al. Nice tie, too.

Columbus

I run across these strip photographs from time to time and if anyone out there knows, are they made in camera or in the darkroom? Stamped on the back, "SCHREICK'S "CUTE" PHOTO STUDIO 202 1/2 N. High Street, COLUMBUS, -OHIO. DEC. 12, 1911" Hand written. "Oscar Krustf " Schreick's Photo Studio was founded by Frank X. Schreick in 1902 and remained open to 1979.

We Will Never Say Goodbye in Heaven

Well, I know how it was done. The printer wrote his message on a clear piece of film, sandwiched it on the bottom of the negative. The ink, probably black, then printed white. What I don't know is why he made some of his N's backwards. Click on the image to see it in a bigger window, if necessary. Printed on postcard stock. What a way to announce that Uncle Harry had kicked the bucket.

What Makes a Great Cabinet Card Part 2?

Yesterday I asked the question, with millions to choose from, what makes a great cabinet card. Well, here is an example. The photographer, M.J. Streuser from Bellevue, Iowa had a great eye for composition, the subject matter, a group of guys out having a good time, the sense of movement one gets from Arnie brandishing his club. Wow. I feed the name M.J. Streuser into Google, not expecting much, and found another example of his work on the Cowan Auctions site, of a photographer and his assistant posing with their wares. Probably a self portrait and it was wonderful too. I really recommend that others visit and take a look. The very first post I put up on this blog was a group of prints I made from a set of glass negs, all from the same photographer, and the thought of picking up more Streuser prints, well it's the same. Written on the back, "Arnie, Geo. Zentiner, Frank Kegles, Charles Hartley, Ed Kamp, Phil, Joe Brandt, From one of Arnie's birthdays." Go punch in M.J. Streuser into Google before the Cowan Auctions site takes down the cabinet card I mentioned, and please use the archives section to the right to navigate back to Montana Glass Negatives, pubished on June 9. 2009.

What Makes a Great Cabinet Card?

There are millions of cabinet cards out there, so why buy one over another? A great pose, interesting face, unique clothing or a particular skill on the part of the photographer are all great reasons to buy an image. Sometimes, as was the case with this card, it's the back. I saw all of the medals and assumed that photographer Dabbs was a multi award winner, but when I got home and looked at them with a lens, I was a bit surprised. Three are identical logos for The Pennsylvania State Agricultural Society, three are basically advertising marks, a couple of things in Latin that could be anything and one, and only one, award medallion. Well, I guess that means that false advertising is nothing new. It reminds me of the old story of how P.T. Barnum got people to move out of his venues. He put up big signs that said "This way to the Egress." Egress is just a fancy way of saying, this way out.

The Patriarch of East Liverpool, Ohio

This guy is the stereotype of the stern family patriarch. Hard to believe that this man's life might have overlapped the life of Thomas Jefferson.

More of the Currie Boys

A friend of mine who had taken a couple of psychology courses and fancied herself a therapist once told me that my tendency to collect things was about a need to apply order to a chaotic life. Personally, I think I just like stuff. In any case, I started this blog to bring some order to a chaotic collection of old photographs, and in doing so, somehow or another these three shots of the Currie boys got separated from a couple of shots that were posted on 10/19/10. Written on the back of the balding Currie boy, "Thos. G. Currie, 323 Electric Av. E. Pittsburg, Pa. Return to Mrs. D. Currie, 323 Electric Av. E. Pittsburg, Pa." On the back of seated, civilian Currie, "Donald Currie." The E. Pittsburg is for East Pittsburg, along the Monongahela River. Probably from World War 1. Printed on postcard stock.

True Color, Grayscale, and Silvering

Every time I scan in a photograph I have to make a decision whether I should use the grayscale or the true color setting. As a former professional black & white printer, I'm always tempted to go grayscale, but after some thought, I decided that, for this blog, I should do my best to duplicate the look of the original. That would be an easy decision for this image. The original is a mounted albumen print with a rich brown, sepia tone. But with many photographs the choice is far less obvious. Many of the old snapshots I have in the collection are in that zone between a nice black & white photo with blacks, whites, and gray mid-tones, and slightly yellowish-brown tones, caused by a less than successful, final, archival wash. When I worked at photo labs, one of my jobs was operating a copy camera. Sometimes our customers would bring in old family photos, and some of those would be leaching photographic silver and, of course, silver reflects light. When prints aren't washed or fixed properly, over time the residual silver will begin to show on the surface of the print. When making prints from copy negs, if the silvering wasn't too bad, we could always burn in backgrounds or print to a non matching contrast to hide the problem. When scanning a print into a computer the silver can make it almost impossible to get a decent scan. There is a bit of silvering on this print, seen in the uneven tones in the bottom third of the print. Mounted on cardboard, labeled, "Milton Loryea SPOKANE WASH." Written on the back, "Charles Butter."

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Added: Milton Loryea Photo Studio was listed in the Spokane city directory from 1893 to 1909. He and his brother Archie, also a photographer moved to Spokane from San Jose, California in 1892. Archie died in 1900.

Tintype Dated (Sort of)

Unless you're an expert on nineteenth century clothing, dating a tintype is almost impossible. In this case though, we have a hint. Placed in a decorative paper frame, the photographer used a scrap of newspaper as backing. While there is no dateline, the bit of article refers to Maryland Governor Bowie. In nineteenth century Maryland there was only one Governor Bowie, Oden Bowie who served from 1869 to 1872. A sangerfest is a German song festival.

Bernard Pefferman, Worker

Printed on postcard stock and labeled, "Bernard Pefferman, 532 Grandview Ave. E.P." The E.P. stands for East Pittsburgh, a borough about ten miles or so from downtown Pittsburgh. On the Monongahela River, East Pittsburgh is where George Westinghouse built the factories that built the huge generators that provided power for, among other things, the New York Subway System. With his soft cap, and rough clothes, Mr. Pefferman was very probably a blue collar worker at the Westinghouse factory or in one of the steel mills or iron foundries in nearby Braddock. Late nineteenth or early twentieth century.

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This is a message for Lauren. For some reason that baffles me, Blogger won't allow me to post a comment from my home computer. To answer your question, I've had this photo in my collection for at least thirty years. More than likely I purchased at a flea market or garage sale. If you've read this, leave another comment and anything you know about Bernard.

Tintype Men

A companion piece to my last post, "Tintype Women." The professional tintypist couldn't go down to the local camera store and buy materials. He had to buy sheet iron, either lacquer or paint the metal, make his photographic emulsions from basic chemicals, and often make his own camera. Because every photographer didn't have the same level of technical skill, tintypes often have ridges where the emulsion was unevenly applied. Variation in chemical mixing meant that some tintypes were more sensitive to light than others allowing for shorter exposures. Tintypes, like many other early photographic process were a one off. Without a separate negative, it was impossible to go into the lab and make additional prints. Some photographers built cameras with multiple lenses so that they could make multiple exposures at once. Note that the second image in the group is a copy made from another tintype. It's impossible to tell, but that may be a thumb holding the original when the exposure was made. Since tintypes are flopped, a tintype copy of another tintype would be right reading. The heavily damaged image not only shows a great deal of corrosion of the metal base and missing emulsion, but a loss of the underlying black coating that makes the tintype negative appear positive. As usual, click on tintype in the labels section for more info on the history of tintypes.

Green Bay Business College- Mr. Kenneth Bierke

From the "MODERN ART STUDIO, LUXEMBURG, WIS." A portrait of Mr. Kenneth Bierke of the Green Bay Business College. The last image from the collection. Click on Green Bay in the labels section to bring up the other 11 posts.

Another CDV From C. C. Shadle

Most of the carte de visites I own were purchased when I first started collecting photographs and most are from my home state of Pennsylvania. C.C. Shadle was born in 1817 and learned photography at the age of 45, around 1862. After working as an engineer for three years, he opened a photography studio in Apollo, Pennsylvania, (My home town.) around about 1865, the year that the Civil War ended. He then set up a studio in Tarentum, PA, and then moved to Kittanning, (The town where I was born.) in 1869. For more detailed information on the life of C. C. Shadle go to www.freepages.geneology.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~treasures/pa/.../ccshadle.pdf Written on the back, "Nancy's Grand Pa." Stamped on the back, "C. C. SHADLE, Photographer, TARENTUM, Penna."

A Portrait By George H. Van Norman

Every time I find a commercial photograph with a photographers mark, I always run an web search and I almost never get a hit. Well, this one is an exception. George H. Van Norman was a prominent local Massachusetts photographer active from 1884 to 1890 in Waltham, Mass. and then he relocated to Springfield and was active there from 1890 to 1901. I've also found reference to him in a book titled, "Photo Miniature vol. 6" published in 1905, and have found a cabinet card of a woman wearing a dress decorated with photographs, a head piece made from a studio view camera with the curtain framing her face, holding an advertising banner for the Van Norman studios that's part of the permanent collection of The Portland (Oregon) Museum of Art. This wonderful portrait is mounted on a card, embossed "GEO. H. VAN NORMAN SPRINGFIELD MASS." so we can date this image from somewhere between 1890 and 1901.

19th Century Portrait of a Man

A nineteenth century portrait of an upper class man mounted on a card embossed, "THE WATERTOWN STUDIO 7 MAIN ST." Watertown is in Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston, near Cambridge, the home of Harvard College.

Nine Women

There are a lot of reasons these nine women could be posing together, but with the corrugated sheet metal wall that is the backdrop, my guess is that these ladies may be the office staff in a mill, or perhaps garment workers.

Tintype With Mustache

I've put up a number of tintypes, and would suggest clicking on tintype in the labels section to pull up information on the history of the medium. This 19th century dandy has a great mustache, hair cut, cravat and bowler hat, and because he's so stylish, he gets a separate post.