ANTHONY: HE RISKED ARREST TO SNAP PHOTOS OF HITLER AND MUSSOLINI.
HE BECAME PHOTOS WITH -- FRIENDS WITH NORMAN ROCKWELL -- SHAYNA: HIS WORK WAS ALMOST LOST FOREVER.
♪ SHAYNA: IT IS CALLED THE BAGGY PANTS PHOTO.
THIS ALBERT EINSTEIN SNAPSHOT TAKEN BY POLLUTION ACT.
HIS SON COMMENTED.
>> SOMETIMES WHEN YOU ARE COMING -- CONSUMED WITH SCIENCE, YOUR PANTS FALL DOWN.
SHAYNA: ONE OF THE FOUR CHILDREN, SHE SAID HER FATHER WAS EAGER TO PHOTOGRAPH PROFESSOR EINSTEIN AT PRINCETON IN 1941.
>> WHO DIDN’T?
WORLD-RENOWNED AT THIS POINT.
SO HE SCHMOOZED UP EINSTEIN’ SECRETARY.
SSHAYNA: THE RESULT, THESE IMAGES.
♪ SHAYNA: WHILE THESE PHOTOS MAY BE THE BEST KNOWN OF HIS WORK, HIS EARLIER CAREER IN EUROPE WAS GROUNDBREAKING.
>> I HAVE HEARD ACTOR BEING CALLED THE FIRST PAPARAZZI.
SHAYNA: SHE IS AN CURATOR WELL-VERSED IN HIS 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 USE TRIPODS WITH BOXEE CAMERAS.
>> BUT THIS CAMERA CHANGED ALL THAT.
IT WAS I HAVE THEM WHICH LUNCH TIME.
YOU COULD PUT THAT CAMERA IN A POCKET, SNAKE IN TO WHERE THE PRESS WASN’T ALLOWED.
SHAYNA: HE SNAPPED THIS SHOT OF HITLER.
>> HE WAS SURE HITLER SAW HIM, AND HE WAS SURE HE WAS ABOUT TO BE ARRESTED.
SHAYNA: ANOTHER, MUSSOLINI.
>> HE WAS SURE THE SECRET SERVICE SPOTTED HIM AND HE HIGHTAILED IT OUT.
SHAYNA: THE PHOTO ENDED UP ON THE COVER OF NEWSWEEK.
THE RESULTS -- ETHIOPIA’S POLITICIAN, AND OTHERS.
>> HE WAS A JOURNALIST FIRST.
SHAYNA: HE DOCUMENTED EVERY DAY LIFE IN PARIS, AMASSING A HUGE BODY OF WORK.
AS WORLD WAR II APPROACHED, IT WAS TIME TO LEAVE.
HE PACKED ALL HIS NEGATIVES IN A SINGLE SUITCASE.
>> MY MOTHER GAVE HIM AN ULTIMATUM.
HE MAY TAKE THE SUITCASE WITH THE 50,000 NEGATIVES OR HE MAY TAKE THE BREAD -- THE BABY CARRIAGE.
HE LEFT THE SUITCASE.
>> HE HAD TO START HIS BUSINESS AGAIN IN NEW YORK CITY.
SHAYNA: HE PHOTOGRAPHED NEW YORK MAYOR FIORELLO 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, NO SIGN OF THE SUITCASE.
SHAYNA: THAT IS UNTIL IT WAS FOUND YEARS LATER.
>> THEY SAID, OH YEAH, THIS OLD THING?
>> I STORED THIS SUITCASE UNDER MY LARGE.
I 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, A FULL BODY OF WORK WITH EUROPEAN DATES.
>> I AM WORKING HARD TO MAKE SURE SOME OF THESE IMAGES CAN BE SHARED WITH THE PUBLIC BECAUSE THEY ARE WONDERFUL.
DON’T YOU THINK?
SHAYNA: AFTER OPENING THE SUITCASE, ACTOR TOOK HIS WORK TO THE INTERNATIONAL MUSEUM IN ROCHESTER, AND EXPERTS TOLD HIM HIS WORK HAS VALUE.
ANTHONY: CERTAINLY DID AND DOES AND THE COLLECTION IS AT THE YALE UNIVERSITY AND PHILLIPS ANDOVER.
SHAY