The Man Who Shot Garbo

Clarence Sinclair Bull was born in Michigan but spent most of his life in Hollywood where he died in 1979. He was hired by movie mogul Sam Goldwyn in 1920 to photograph publicity stills of the studio's stars. Four years later, when Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer was founded, Bull was appointed as the head of their stills department where he remained throughout his career. During that time he took portraits of the most celebrated Hollywood film stars, however, he is particularly known for his photographs fo Greta Garbo who was almost exclusively photographed by Bull from 1921 to 1941. This book highlights Bull's 40-year career at MGM with nearly 200 of his enduring portraits of filmstars such as Clark Gable, Joan Crawford, Vivian Leigh, Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly and Katherine Hepburn. This monograph presents an array of star portraits as well as a history of Hollywood in its heyday. The book will accompany a major exhibition organized by the National Portrait Gallery in collaboration with the John Kobal Collection and American Express.