Thousands of Milton Greene's unpublished photographs of Hollywood's most iconic women, from Marilyn Monroe to Elizabeth Taylor and Linda Lovelace, will go up for auction this week.
California auction house Profiles in History are putting nearly 70,000 images from Greene's estate under the hammer - many of which have never been seen before.
'Because he worked before modern digital methods of archiving and restoration, much of what he shot remained unpublished,' the auction notes explain of the images, which are estimated to sell for between $1,000 and $5,000.
Intimate and unseen: Thousands of Milton Greene's unpublished photographs, many of which were taken of Marilyn Monroe from 1953 to 1957, will go up for auction this week
It was 1953 when Look magazine editor Fleur Cowles lured Greene away from Life, where he had established a reputation for delivering incredible cover-worthy images.
The photographer's first assignment was a trip to California to shoot Hollywood stars, and when Greene sent Monroe proofs from their first sitting, 'she responded with two dozen roses and called to say they were the most beautiful pictures she had ever seen.'
Linda Lovelace: Dated November 1973 after sje filmed Deep Throat, this image was entirely unseen until now and is set to fetch $3,000 at auction
Elizabeth Taylor: Photographed at the Hermitage, St. Petersburg from The Blue Bird set for cover of People, set to sell for between $2,000 and $3,000
Audrey Hepburn: Off duty images from the set of War and Peace for Look, August 1955, priced at $3,000
Jane Fonda: The sultry actress pictured in Malibu for Marie Claire, May 1965, $3,000
Claudia Cardinale: Greene shot her for for Life in 1963
The 3,700 camera negatives comprising the Monroe portion of Greene's archive represents the largest sequence from the actress’ mature working life ever put up for public sale.
Marilyn Monroe: An image from an unpublished sitting for Look magazine
Marilyn Monroe: Shot for Look, unpublished during Monroe's lifetime until some of the images were featured in the January 1997 issue of Playboy; these particular images have never been published, however
Marilyn Monroe: Pictured in Laurel Canyon for Look in September 1953
Marilyn Monroe: From a sitting titled Graduation in June 1956, after Monroe told Greene she had never had a proper graduation, he produced this sitting for her
Marilyn Monroe: Intimate snaps from the Tennis Sweater sitting in Weston, Connecticut, taken in January 1956
He also photographed screen legends like Doris Day, Catherine Deneuve, Lauren Hutton, Audrey Hepburn and French actress and dancer Leslie Caron, best known for her roles in An American in Paris and Gigi.
Agnès Laurent: From a selection of images Greene shot for Life in March 1963
Audrey Hepburn:On the set of War and Peace for Look in August 1955
Barbra Streisand: Snapped at a full dress rehearsal of Funny Girl in March 1964, for Life
Catharine Deneuve: Quirky images for Life taken in August 1962
Jane Fonda: The sultry actress pictured in Malibu for Marie Claire, May 1965, $3,000
Ali MacGraw: From a handful of images for Life taken in May 1965
Barbra Streisand: Snapped at a full dress rehearsal of Funny Girl in March 1964, for Life
And in 1973, after Linda Lovelace filmed Deep Throat, Greene shot the actress naked wrapped in plastic wrapped for an unpublished project - images entirely unseen until now.
Greene, who pursued perfection of his subjects through minimal means, was often quoted as saying: 'If you can’t light it with one light, then you can’t light it.'
His magical eye for natural and reduced lighting, and his extraordinary rapport and trust with his subjects, with whom he formed many life-long friendships, are what make his images infinitely timeless.
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