Sid Avery

Liz Taylor Sunning Herself, 1955

Sid Avery Biography Sid Avery’s candid snapshot portraiture offers a glimpse into the off-screen lives of some of the 20th century’s golden-age Hollywood’s most celebrated icons, including James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Marlon Brando, Audrey Hepburn, Frank Sinatra, Sophia Loren, Humphrey Bogart & Lauren Bacall, and Paul Newman & Joanne Woodward amongst others. Sid Avery also famously photographed the original 1960 cast of “Ocean’s Eleven” and later came out of retirement to recreate that photograph with the cast of 2001’s remake. Sid Avery’s early photographs appeared in many magazines, among them the Saturday Evening Post, Look, and Colliers and his portraits hang in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, and MoMA. James Dean on the set of Rebel Without a Cause; Audrey Hepburn on her bike with pet dog in tow; Marlon Brando taking out the garbage; Rock Hudson emerging from the shower; Elizabeth Taylor soaking up the sun. These are just a few of the myriad of iconic images for which Sid Avery is responsible. The renowned photographer was one of the greatest names working in Hollywood from the 1940s to 1960s and became known for his candid portraits of the stars. He made history as the only photographer to shoot both the original 1960 cast of Ocean’s Eleven and the 2001 remake, recreating his iconic group shot around the pool table. Sid Avery was one of the biggest names in Hollywood portraiture in the 1950s and 1960s. He later also became one of the top names in advertising photography, as well as a successful commercial director. In the 1980s, he established the Motion Picture and Television Photo Archive. Avery’s son, Ron, has continued this legacy and under his ownership, mptvimages is today recognized as one of greatest archives of Hollywood imagery.