Imagine Albert Einstein with his tongue sticking out. If this is the image you have in mind, it comes from a famous photo taken by Arthur Sass on March 14, 1951. Einstein was leaving his 72nd birthday party at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. As he got into a car with Dr. Frank Aydelotte and his wife, Marie Jeanette, photographers crowded around him. Frustrated, Einstein stuck his tongue out at them, and Sass captured the moment. Despite his annoyance, Einstein liked the photo and even sent copies to his friends. This playful image, along with his wild hair, contributed to the public’s view of Einstein as a quirky genius.
It’s not unusual for celebrities to meet the president, but the story behind the famous photo of Elvis Presley and President Richard Nixon is quite unique. By 1970, Elvis was going through a strange phase. He was worried about threats to his life and started carrying firearms on stage. He also spent a lot of money on Christmas gifts, including cars and handguns. During an unplanned trip to Washington, D.C., Elvis showed up at the White House unannounced, hoping to meet Nixon. He wanted a badge from the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, which he believed symbolized ultimate power. Nixon, eager to connect with the popular singer, agreed to meet him. Elvis wore a purple velvet suit and brought a gun as a gift for Nixon. Although the badge he received was honorary, Elvis left the meeting happy, thinking he had gained some authority.
The most famous photo of Earth, known as the Blue Marble, shows swirling clouds over the South Polar Ice Cap and a stunning view of Africa. It was taken on December 7, 1972, during the Apollo 17 mission, about five hours after launch. The astronauts were around 28,000 miles from Earth when they took turns using a Hasselblad camera to capture the image. Although there is an audio recording of their conversation, it doesn’t reveal who took the iconic photo, and all three astronauts claimed credit. Former NASA archivist Mike Gentry suggested that the crew decided to keep the photographer’s identity a mystery.
In the late 1870s, Edward Muybridge took a series of photos of a horse to determine if all four of its hooves were ever off the ground at the same time while galloping. This project was commissioned by Leland Stanford, a railroad tycoon and horse enthusiast. Muybridge faced delays, including a trial for the murder of his wife’s lover, from which he was acquitted. He also had to invent technology to capture images quickly. He developed a system of tripwires connected to mechanical shutters that took photos in about one one-thousandth of a second. His work, titled “The Horse in Motion,” laid the groundwork for the development of motion picture technology.
In 1985, during Princess Diana’s first trip to the U.S. with Prince Charles, President Ronald Reagan hosted a glamorous dinner at the White House. Diana had requested the presence of Clint Eastwood, Neil Diamond, and John Travolta. Travolta later recalled that Nancy Reagan approached him around 10 p.m., saying that Diana wanted to dance with him. When they were introduced, the room cleared, and they danced to a medley from “Saturday Night Fever,” played by the military band.
The medal ceremony for the 200-meter dash at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City was unforgettable. U.S. athletes Tommy Smith and John Carlos, who won gold and bronze, respectively, stood on the podium and raised a black-gloved fist during “The Star-Spangled Banner.” This was a powerful symbol of Black Power and unity. They also went shoeless to highlight the poverty faced by many Black Americans and wore badges for the Olympic Project for Human Rights. Their protest aimed to raise awareness about racial inequality, but it led to their expulsion from the Olympic Village and suspension from the U.S. team. The photo of their salute remains a powerful symbol of standing up against injustice.
For nearly 90 years, Florence Owens Thompson has been the face of the Great Depression, but her identity was unknown for almost half that time. During the Dust Bowl era, photographers were hired to document the lives of farm workers. Dorothea Lange took a series of photos in March 1936 of Thompson and her children at a pea pickers camp in Nipomo, California. The most famous image, known as “Migrant Mother,” helped secure food for the camp, but the family had already moved on by the time it arrived. Lange did not ask for Thompson’s name or story. Thompson, a member of the Cherokee Nation, later expressed regret about the photo, saying she never benefited from it. However, her family eventually embraced the image and started the Migrant Mother Fund, raising money for their needs.
Do you have a favorite story behind a famous photo? Share your thoughts, and thanks for exploring these iconic images with us!
Imagine you’re a photographer capturing a moment that will become iconic. Choose a subject or event in your life, and take a photo that represents it. Write a short paragraph explaining the story behind your image and why it is significant to you. Share your photo and story with the class.
In groups, choose one of the historical meetings from the article, such as Elvis meeting Nixon or Princess Diana dancing with John Travolta. Research more about the event and create a short skit to reenact it. Focus on the emotions and motivations of the people involved. Perform your skit for the class.
Select one of the iconic images discussed in the article. Analyze the photo by considering the context, the emotions it evokes, and its impact on society. Prepare a short presentation to share your analysis with the class, and lead a discussion on the significance of the image.
Create a timeline that includes the iconic images from the article. Research additional details about each image, such as the date it was taken, the photographer, and its historical context. Use visuals and brief descriptions to enhance your timeline. Present your timeline to the class.
Form two teams and debate the impact of iconic images on society. One team will argue that these images have a positive impact by raising awareness and inspiring change, while the other team will argue that they can be misleading or exploitative. Use examples from the article to support your arguments. Conduct the debate in front of the class.
Here’s a sanitized version of the YouTube transcript:
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Picture Albert Einstein now with his tongue sticking out. If your mental portrait is based on a photo captured by Arthur Sass, it was March 14, 1951, and Einstein was leaving his 72nd birthday party at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. Paparazzi swarmed as the famed physicist got into a car with Dr. Frank Aydelotte, the institute’s former director, and Aydelotte’s wife, Marie Jeanette. After reportedly shouting something like “enough is enough,” Einstein stuck his tongue out at the persistent press. Sass snapped the shot. However exasperated Einstein felt in the moment didn’t last; he actually procured a number of copies of the photo to send to friends. The image has been recreated on everything from brick walls to cornfields, perpetuating the public impression of Einstein as a bit of a goofball—his messy hair probably helped too.
Hi, I’m Erin McCarthy, editor-in-chief of Mental Floss. A picture’s worth a thousand words, but sometimes you also want the words. In this episode of The List Show, I’m talking about the who, when, where, why, and how behind some of history’s most iconic photos—from Elvis Presley wearing a velvet suit to Richard Nixon, to the migrant mother who unwittingly became the face of the Great Depression. Let’s get started!
A celebrity meeting the president isn’t strange, but the story behind a famous photo of Elvis Presley and President Richard Nixon is. By 1970, things were getting odd for the King of Rock and Roll. After becoming aware of credible death threats, he began taking the stage with multiple firearms. He had also spent more than a hundred thousand dollars on Christmas gifts that year, purchasing 10 cars and 32 handguns. On an impromptu trip to the nation’s capital, Presley arranged a meeting with Nixon—by showing up at the White House uninvited and asking to meet the press. He already had a collection of police badges but decided he wanted a badge from the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. The badge wouldn’t have conferred any special powers, but as his wife Priscilla put it, the narc badge represented some kind of ultimate power to him. Nixon was probably eager to associate with such a beloved pop culture figure, even if he wasn’t at his peak. Presley wore a purple velvet suit to the meeting and brought along a gun to give the commander-in-chief some notes. Toward the end of the meeting, Nixon instructed an advisor to get Elvis the badge he wanted, but of course, it was an honorary badge. A Secret Service agent later noted that Elvis believed he had some authority, which he did not have, but he went away happy.
The most famous photo on Earth features swirling clouds over the South Polar Ice Cap and a breathtaking view of Africa. The reason it’s called the Blue Marble is hardly a mystery, but the photographer’s identity is. The snapshot was taken on December 7, 1972, roughly five hours after the Apollo 17 mission launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Saturn V rocket was about 28,000 miles from Earth at the time. The Blue Marble was part of a series of photos captured over a few minutes when the three astronauts aboard were taking turns with a Hasselblad camera. Although there is an audio recording of their exchange, it doesn’t clarify who snapped the prize shot, and the astronauts’ accounts contradicted each other. All three claimed credit for the photo. Former NASA archivist Mike Gentry has a theory as to why, suggesting that the crew got together and decided to keep it ambiguous.
When Edward Muybridge took a series of photos of a horse in the late 1870s, he wasn’t trying to invent cinema; he was trying to see if all four of a galloping horse’s hooves were ever in the air together. This task was assigned to him by Leland Stanford, a railroad tycoon and racehorse enthusiast. It took a while for Muybridge to get the project off the ground, partly because he had to take a hiatus to stand trial for murdering his wife’s lover, which he was acquitted of on the grounds of justifiable homicide. Muybridge was also delayed because he had to invent the technology needed to capture images in quick succession. He created a system of tripwires connected to mechanical shutters that would snap a photo in about one one-thousandth of a second as the horse sped down the path. His various experiments generated a series of photos titled “The Horse in Motion.” Although projectors didn’t yet exist, the project led to the development of a device that helped inspire the invention of projectors.
In 1985, Nancy Reagan played Fairy Godmother to Princess Diana during her first trip to the U.S. with her then-husband, Prince Charles. On November 9, President Ronald Reagan hosted a star-studded dinner for the royal couple at the White House. The Washington Post reported that three guests had been invited specifically at Diana’s request: Clint Eastwood, Neil Diamond, and John Travolta. Travolta recalled how the action unfolded in an interview, saying that around 10 o’clock at night, Nancy Reagan tapped him on the shoulder and said, “The princess’s fantasy is to dance with you.” He agreed, and when introduced, the whole room cleared for them to dance. They danced to a medley of songs from “Saturday Night Fever,” played by the military band.
The medal ceremony for the 200-meter dash at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City was unlike any other. U.S. track stars Tommy Smith and John Carlos stood on the podium sporting gold and bronze medals, respectively. As “The Star-Spangled Banner” began to play, they bowed their heads and raised a black-gloved fist, unmistakably the Black Power salute. Carlos later wrote in his memoir about the silence of the crowd, describing it as being in the eye of a hurricane. Smith explained that his right glove signified power in Black America, while Carlos’s hand represented black unity. Neither athlete wore shoes on the podium, symbolizing the poverty faced by many Black Americans. They also donned badges that read “Olympic Project for Human Rights,” an organization formed to condemn racism and foster equity. Their act aimed to raise awareness for these efforts, but the backlash was swift. They were immediately evicted from the Olympic Village and suspended from the U.S. track and field team. The photo of Smith and Carlos with raised fists has become one of the most celebrated examples of using one’s platform to stand up to injustice.
For almost 90 years, Florence Owens Thompson has served as the face of the Great Depression, but for nearly half that time, nobody knew who she was. During the Dust Bowl era, the Federal Resettlement Administration hired photographers to document the experiences of farm workers. Dorothea Lange was one of them. In March 1936, she took a series of photos depicting a harrowed widow and her children in a pea pickers camp in Nipomo, California. The most famous one is known as “Migrant Mother.” Lange’s efforts helped secure food for the camp, but by the time it arrived, the family had already moved on. Lange later recounted that she did not ask for Thompson’s name or history. Thompson was revealed to be a member of the Cherokee Nation, born in 1903. She had moved to California in the mid-1920s, predating the Dust Bowl. Thompson later expressed her wish that Lange had never photographed her, saying, “That’s my picture hanging all over the world, and I can’t get a penny out of it.” However, the family’s attitude toward the image eventually evolved, and they started the Migrant Mother Fund, which raised tens of thousands of dollars for them.
What’s your personal favorite story behind a famous photo? Let me know in the comments below, and thanks for watching The List Show. We’ll see you next time!
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This version removes any inappropriate language and maintains a respectful tone throughout.
Einstein – A famous physicist known for developing the theory of relativity, which revolutionized the understanding of space, time, and energy. – Albert Einstein’s theories changed the course of history by providing a new way to understand the universe.
Elvis – A legendary American singer and actor, often referred to as the “King of Rock and Roll,” who had a significant impact on music and culture in the 20th century. – Elvis Presley’s influence on music and popular culture is still felt today, decades after his rise to fame.
Photo – A picture made using a camera, which captures a moment in time and can serve as a historical record. – The photo of the civil rights march became an iconic image in American history.
Motion – The action or process of moving or being moved, often used in art to depict dynamic scenes or in history to describe events in progress. – The artist captured the motion of the dancers in a way that made the painting come alive.
Olympics – An international sporting event that originated in ancient Greece and was revived in the modern era, showcasing athletic talent from around the world. – The Olympics have a rich history, bringing together athletes from diverse cultures to compete in various sports.
Power – The ability or capacity to influence or control people or events, often a central theme in historical events and artistic expressions. – The power of the Roman Empire was evident in its vast territories and enduring cultural influence.
Mother – A female parent, often symbolized in art and literature as a nurturing and protective figure. – In many cultures, the image of a mother is celebrated in art as a symbol of life and care.
History – The study of past events, particularly in human affairs, which helps us understand how societies have evolved over time. – Learning about history allows us to appreciate the achievements and challenges of those who came before us.
Art – The expression or application of human creativity and imagination, often in visual forms such as painting, sculpture, and architecture, reflecting cultural and historical contexts. – The Renaissance period was a golden age of art, producing masterpieces that continue to inspire people today.
America – A continent comprising North and South America, or often used to refer specifically to the United States, with a rich and diverse history. – The history of America is marked by waves of immigration and the blending of different cultures.
