ANTHONY: NOW THE STORY BEHIND AN EXHIBIT OPENING LATER THIS MONTH IN GREAT BARRINGTON, THE LIFE STORY OF A FATHER OF MODERN PHOTOGRAPHY.
PHOTOJOURNALIST LUCIEN AIGNER COVERED MAJOR WORLD LEADERS AND HISTORY MAKING EVENTS.
SHAYNA SEYMOUR TELLS US AIGNER LEFT BEHIND AN IMMENSE BODY OF WORK THAT WAS ALMOST LOST FOREVER.
SHAYNA: IT’S CALLED THE BAGGY PANTS PHOTO.
THIS ALBERT EINSTEIN SNAPSHOT TAKEN BY LUCIEN AIGNER.
EINSTEIN SAW IT AND COMMENTED.
>> SOMETIMES WHEN YOU’RE CONSUMED WITH SCIENCE, YOUR PANTS FALL DOWN.
SHAYNA: SHE IS ONE OF AIGNER’S FOUR CHILDREN.
SHE SAYS HER FATHER WAS EAGER TO PHOTOGRAPH PROFESSOR I’M DYING -- PROFESSOR KINDS NINE.
HE WAS -- PROFESSOR ALBERT EINSTEIN.
>> HE SCHMOOZED ALBERT’S SECRETARY.
SHAYNA: THE RESULT?
THESE IMAGES.
WHILE THESE EINSTEIN PHOTOS MAY BE THE BEST KNOWN OF AIGNER’S WORK, HIS EARLIER CAREER IN EUROPE WAS GROUNDBREAKING.
>> I’VE HEARD AIGNER BEING CALLED THE WORLD’S FIRST PAPARAZZI.
SHAYNA: SHE IS AN ARC CRATER -- CURATOR WELL-VERSED IN AIGNER’S CAREER.
>> I DON’T KNOW IF WE CAN SAY HE IS THE FIRST, BUT HE WAS ONE AMONG A NUMBER OF PHOTOGRAPHERS WHO STARTED USING THE SMALL CAMERA IN A WAY TO CAPTURE CANDID IMAGES.
SHAYNA: IT WAS THE 1920’S AND 1930’S.
MOST PHOTOGRAPHERS OF THE DAY USED TRIPODS WITH BOXY CAMERAS.
>> IT CHANGED ALL OF THAT, ABOUT THE SIZE OF HALF A SANDWICH.
HE COULD PUT THAT CAMERA IN HIS POCKET, SNEAK IN TO, SAY, WHERE PRESS WAS NOT ALLOWED.
SHAYNA: AIGNER SNAPPED THIS SHOT OF HITLER’S.
>> HE WAS SURE THAT HITLER SAW HIM.
HE WAS SURE HE WAS ABOUT TO BE ARRESTED.
SHAYNA: ANOTHER, MUSSOLINI.
>> HE WAS PRETTY SURE THAT MUSSOLINI’S SECRET SERVICE SPOTTED HIM, AND HE HIGHTAILED IT OUT OF THERE.
SHAYNA: THE MUSSOLINI PHOTO ENDED UP ON THE COVER OF "NEWSWEEK." THERE WAS ALSO CHURCHILL, ETHIOPIA’S HAILE SELASSIE, AND ACTRESS MARLENE DIETRICH.
BUT -- >> THE FACT SEAT -- HE FANCIED HIMSELF A JOURNALIST FIRST.
SHAYNA: HE AMASSED A HUGE BODY OF WORK.
BUT AS WORLD WAR II APPROACHED, IT WAS TIME TO LEAVE.
AIGNER PACKED ALL OF HIS NEGATIVES IN A SINGLE SUITCASE.
>> MY MOTHER GAVE HIM AN ULTIMATUM.
YOU MAY TAKE THE SUITCASE WITH THE 50,000 NEGATIVES OR YOU MAY TAKE THE BABY CARRIAGE.
FRANKLY, YOU’RE GOING TO TAKE THE BABY CARRIAGE, SO HE LEFT THE SUITCASE.
>> HE HAD TO START HIS BUSINESS ALL OVER AGAIN IN NEW YORK CITY.
SHAYNA: AIGNER PHOTOGRAPHED NEW YORK MAYOR LAGUARDIA, NEGRO LEAGUE BASEBALL, AND DAILY LIFE IN THE CITY, AND THEN HE MOVED TO GREAT BARRINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS.
NORMAN ROCKWELL BECAME A SUBJECT.
BUT THE SUITCASE LEFT IN PARIS -- WHAT BECAME OF IT?
>> THE BUILDING WAS BOMBED OUT.
THERE WAS NO SIGN OF THE SUITCASE.
SHAYNA: THAT IS, UNTIL IT WAS FOUND YEARS LATER.
>> THE CONCIERGE SAID, YEAH, THIS WHOLE THING?
-- THIS OLD THING?
>> I STORED THIS SUITCASE AND LEFT IT THERE FOR 15 YEARS.
I DIDN’T KNOW HOW VALUABLE IT WAS.
I OPENED THE SUITCASE AND FOUND THAT I HAD 50,000 NEGATIVES, THE WHOLE BODY OF WORK OF MY EUROPEAN DATES.
>> I’M WORKING VERY HARD TO MAKE SURE SOME OF THESE IMAGES CAN BE SHARED WITH THE PUBLIC, BECAUSE THEY ARE WONDERFUL, DON’T YOU THINK?
ANTHONY: IN HIS TIME, AIGNER WAS ONE OF VERY FEW JOURNALISTS WHO TOOK PICTURES AND WROTE THE ARTICLES TO ACCOMPANY THEM.
AND HIS PRECIOUS SUITCASE?
IT WAS LOCATED AND RETURNED TO HIM BY HIS BROTHER, WHO IMMIGRATED TO THE U.S. IN 1950.
AND THE AIGNER EXHIBIT OPENS IN GREAT BARRINGTON ON JUNE 25.
IT COULD BE THE PUBLIC’S LAST LOOK.
AIGNER’S COLLECTION WAS RECENTLY ACQUIRED BY YALE UNIVERSITY.
THAT’S "CHRONICLE" FOR TONIGHT.
THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.
HAVE A GREAT EVENING.
WE HOPE TO SEE YOU BACK HERE TOMORROW NIGHT