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Marlene Dietrich making one of the first transatlantic telephone calls from Hollywood to her daughter in Berlin

Photograph
20th century (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Salomon, Erich (Dr) (photographer)
Place of origin
United States (photographed)

Black and white photograph of Marlene Dietrich on her bed with an early telephone apparatus to her ear and mouth, as if making a phone call. A photo of a young girl rests on the bedside table beside her.

Object details

Category
Photographs
Object type
Photograph
TitleMarlene Dietrich making one of the first transatlantic telephone calls from Hollywood to her daughter in Berlin (generic title)
Materials and techniques
gelatin-silver print
Brief description
Black and white photograph of Marlene Dietrich making one of the first transatlantic telephone calls from Hollywood to her daughter in Berlin, by Erich Salomon, United States, 20th century
Physical description
Black and white photograph of Marlene Dietrich on her bed with an early telephone apparatus to her ear and mouth, as if making a phone call. A photo of a young girl rests on the bedside table beside her.
Dimensions
  • Height: 18cm
  • Width: 24.5cm
Gallery label
(10/2018)
Photography Centre, 2018-20:

Collection in Focus: John and Judith Hillelson
1930s–1970s

The Hillelson collection includes some of the most significant works of photojournalism from the 20th century. John Hillelson (1923–2012) founded the John Hillelson Agency in London’s Fleet Street in 1958. He was also the London agent for Magnum Photos, a cooperative that brings together photojournalists from across the world. His wife Judith (1930–2010) ran the agency's extensive picture library, from which this collection is drawn.

The agency collaborated with weekly magazine editors to publish photo-reportage, a genre that flourished in the 1930s with the invention of smaller, more portable cameras and new printing technology. The Hillelsons gained a reputation for presenting lesser-known work such as the pictures of apartheid, smuggled out of South Africa by Ernest Cole in 1966 and 1967. The Hillelson collection comprises key images from the agency’s library and reflects their position as leading advocates of human interest photography.

1. Erich Salomon (1886–1944)
Marlene Dietrich making one of the first
transatlantic telephone calls from Hollywood to her
daughter in Berlin
1930
Gelatin silver print
Museum no. E.127-2003
Credit line
Given by John and Judith Hillelson
Subjects depicted
Actors
Telephones
Beds
Photographs
Dietrich, Marlene
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
E.127-2003

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Record createdJanuary 27, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O90157/marlene-dietrich-making-one-of-photograph-salomon-erich-dr/
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