Biography / Administrative History
A graduate of Boston University's school of journalism, Carl Mydans joined Life Magazine as a staff photographer in 1936. His work over the years sent him overseas where he covered events in Britain, Sweden, Finland, Italy, France, China, and the Philippines. In 1941, the Japanese captured and held Carl and his wife, Shelley, in Manila for almost one year and then transferred them to Shanghai, China. They finally returned home in 1943 after being repatriated in a prisoner-of-war exchange. After his capture and release, Mydans covered the war in Europe, specifically the battles of Italy at Cassino, Rome and Florence and the American-Free French invasion of southern France in August, 1944. The following year saw him back in the Philippines covering General MacArthur's landing, and in 1948, he covered the earthquake in Fukui, Japan. Mydans would photograph General MacArthur's forces again during the Korean War. The photographs Mydans took from this time earned him U.S. Camera Magazine's Gold Achievement Award. Carl Mydans died on August 16, 2004 at his home in Larchmont, New York. His wife, whom he married in 1938, died in 2002.
From the guide to the Estate of Carl Mydans Photography collection, 1935-1968, (Stanford University. Libraries. Dept. of Special Collections and University Archives.)
