PHOTOGRAPHER TONY VACCARO REMINISCES ABOUT HIS AMAZING LIFE
Tony Vaccaro (photo by Manolo Salas NYC 2017)
The AMHS was recently very honored to present a virtual talk with a famous photographer who grew up in Molise, Tony Vaccaro, who came to us live from Long Island City, N.Y. Tony may well be the only man living who survived the Battle of Normandy and who also survived COVID-19. We would like to thank Tony’s daughter-in-law Maria, who has taken over organizing his archives and who kindly facilitated Tony’s talk with us. Tony is a member of the International Photography Hall of Fame. His pictures range from images of World War II to leading celebrities and fashion icons. Tony may be best known for his photos taken in Europe during 1944 and 1945, and in Germany immediately following World War II. Later on, after coming to America, he became a fashion and lifestyle photographer for U.S. magazines such as Look and Life. Among his famous photographs are ones he took of President John F. Kennedy and actress Sophia Loren.
▲Kiss of Liberation. St. Briac Sur Mer, France 1944 by Tony Vaccaro, Tony Vaccaro Studio
▲ Marimekko Logs, Helsinki Finland 1963 by Tony Vaccaro, Tony Vaccaro Studio
Tony told us about his fascinating life. He was born in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, but when he was a young boy, his family pulled up stakes and went back to Italy — specifically, the town of Bonefro, in Molise. With the outbreak of World War II, and to avoid being drafted into Mussolini’s army, Tony came back to America but within a few months, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and fought in Normandy and elsewhere in Europe (he was later awarded the French Legion of Honor). After the war, Tony remained in Germany for a time, married a model in Finland and began working professionally as a photographer. And the rest, as they say, is history Tony shared many wonderful stories with us. Among them was the one about Sophia Loren. She had an appointment to come to Tony’s penthouse in Manhattan for a photography session, so Tony said he was taking a shower and preparing for her to come at the appointed hour.
When he heard a knock at his door half an hour before the appointed time, he assumed it was the New York Times newspaper boy, so he got out of the shower, wrapped a towel around himself, and answered the door. And there was Sophia, who exclaimed, “Tony! Sempre pronto!!” The picture he took, of a young Sophia lounging on a divan in a white gown with white fur trim, is truly beautiful. Another of Tony’s famous photographs is the one he took of Enzo Ferrari. On the appointed day, he arrived at Ferrari’s home to take his photograph, not knowing that the man’s only son had been killed in an accident just an hour before. Instead of sending him away, Enzo Ferrari allowed him to take his picture, and the remarkable photo he took is haunting.
Tony once went to photograph Pablo Picasso, who ended up inviting Tony to stay for a while. So he ended spending 51 days with the world-famous artist, who apparently was lonely after his wife’s death and liked Tony’s company. During his early career, Tony was in Paris and lacked the money to leave a tip in a restaurant. He got take-out and sat on a bench near Notre Dame Cathedral where he struck up a conversation with Marcel Marceau, the famous French actor and mime artist. They became close friends. Tony called Marceau “one of the finest human beings” he ever met. A museum named after Tony was inaugurated in Bonefro in 2014.
Tony says he plans to return to the town to celebrate his 100th birthday. He sang a song for us about his town, which he loves and where he said he may even retire someday. During Tony’s remarkable life, just a few months ago, at the age of 97 years young, he survived COVID-19 (he says his secret to a long life is red wine, chocolate and eggs). And, keeping up with the times, Tony has many followers on Instagram. If you are interested in watching the movie about Tony’s life, it’s called “Underfire: The Untold Story of Pfc. Tony Vaccaro.” It tells the story of how, during World War II, Tony played two risky roles, serving as a combat infantryman on the front lines, as well as a photographer who shot 8,000 photographs. Literally, he had a gun in one hand and a camera in the other. Since Tony’s talk was so popular with our members, we arranged a chance to participate in an event marking Tony’s exhibition opening just prior to his 98th birthday.
The November 20 event was hosted by Tony’s Santa Fe gallery reps, Sid and Michelle Monroe. Their Monroe Gallery website monroegallery.com, is a wonderful online showcase of Tony’s famous photographs. We would like to thank AMHS Board Member Andrea Bolzano for making the connection with Tony. Andrea knows one of Tony’s cousins, Antoinette Silvestri-Kellaher, who is from Bonefro and is related to him. We were very pleased to have some of Tony’s friends and relatives from as far away as Australia join us for this wonderful event.
We would also like to thank Peter Bell for his expertise in hosting the Zoom event. The following are excerpts of Antoinette’s remarks on her cousin Tony: “I had heard stories and seen pictures that Tony had taken in Bonefro of all walks of life. He had some of my mother, relatives, and cousins. But where were my pictures? “Once having my own children and losing my parents, I resumed my search for MY photographs leading me right back to Tony…. I finally realized that the readings I was doing about Tony Vaccaro were really what I needed to expand my feelings of being part of the Bonefro community that will always remain dear to my very being. È stata una lunga strada, maestro. Finalmente saremo insieme!”