Victor Jorgensen (July 8, 1913 – June 14, 1994) was a former
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...
photo journalist who probably is most notable for taking an instantly iconic photograph of an impromptu scene in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
on August 14, 1945, but from a different angle and in a less dramatic exposure than that of a photograph taken by
Alfred Eisenstaedt
Alfred Eisenstaedt (December 6, 1898 – August 23, 1995) was a German-born American photographer and photojournalist. He began his career in Germany prior to World War II but achieved prominence as a staff photographer for ''Life'' magazine af ...
. Both photographs were of the same V-J Day embrace of a woman in a white dress by a sailor. Eisenstaedt's better known photograph, ''
V-J Day in Times Square
''V-J Day in Times Square'' is a photograph by Alfred Eisenstaedt that portrays a U.S. Navy sailor embracing and kissing a total stranger—a dental assistant—on Victory over Japan Day ("V-J Day") in New York City's Times Square on August 1 ...
,'' was published in ''
Life
Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...
''.
On the day after the images were taken by the two photographers, the one taken by Jorgensen was published in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
''.
His photograph, which was taken while he was on duty, is retained in the
National Archives and Records Administration
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It ...
.
Biography
Jorgensen was born in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...
. He attended the
University of Oregon
The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...
and
Reed College
Reed College is a private liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus in the Eastmoreland neighborhood, with Tudor-Gothic style architecture, and a forested canyon nature preserve at ...
, graduating in 1936.
He married Betty Price on June 17, 1935.
After college, he joined the staff of ''
The Oregonian
''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 18 ...
'', working his way up from copy boy to night city editor. During his time at the newspaper, he became interested in photography and by the advent of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
he was becoming a respected photographer.
In 1942, Jorgensen enlisted in the Navy and was one of six initial photographers recruited by
Edward Steichen
Edward Jean Steichen (March 27, 1879 – March 25, 1973) was a Luxembourgish American photographer, painter, and curator, renowned as one of the most prolific and influential figures in the history of photography.
Steichen was credited with tr ...
to join the
Naval Aviation Photographic Unit
The Naval Aviation Photographic UnitFaram, Mark D. (2009), ''Faces of War: The Untold Story of Edward Steichen's WWII Photographers,'' Berkeley Caliber, New York, New York, was a group of War photography, military photographers in the United Stat ...
during the war. He served aboard aircraft carriers
USS ''Lexington'' in the
Gilbert Islands (fall 1943); the
USS ''Monterey'' in the
Mariana Islands (1944); destroyer
USS ''Albert W. Grant'' and shore duty in Borneo and the Philippines during
Douglas MacArthur's
return in 1944; and the hospital ship
USS ''Solace'' off Okinawa, spring 1945.
While aboard the USS ''Monterey'', he captured Navy pilots in the forward elevator well of the ship playing basketball during June 1944. One of the subjects, the jumper of the left, is
Gerald Ford, who later became the president of the United States upon the resignation of
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
.
On
V J Day, 1945, both Jorgensen and Eisenstaedt captured the image of a U.S. sailor grabbing a nurse for an impromptu kiss in the midst of Times Square celebrations. In a 2010 article, ''The New York Times'' described it as "a defining image of the American century, one that expressed the joy of a nation at its moment of greatest triumph."
In the post-war decade, Jorgensen and his wife traveled the world as a photographer researcher team, contributing to magazines including ''
Fortune'', ''
Saturday Evening Post'', ''
Collier's, ''Life'', and ''
Ladies Home Journal
''Ladies' Home Journal'' was an American magazine last published by the Meredith Corporation. It was first published on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States. In ...
. Jorgensen served as president of the
American Society of Media Photographers
The American Society of Media Photographers, abbreviated ASMP, is a professional association of imaging professionals, including photojournalists, architectural, underwater, food/culinary and advertising photographers as well as video/film maker ...
, working to establish minimum pay scales and fair practices for the photography industry.
Later life
After he left the Navy, Jorgensen settled in Maryland. He took over ''Chesapeake Skipper'' magazine, renaming it ''The Skipper'' and boosted its subscriptions from 1,500 to 50,000 by 1968. He and his wife moved to Portland at that time and started a boaters' consumer report newsletter. Jorgensen died of cancer in 1994 and was survived by his wife; two daughters; and two sisters.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jorgensen, Victor
1913 births
1994 deaths
20th-century American photographers
War photographers
University of Oregon alumni
Reed College alumni
Artists from Portland, Oregon
The Oregonian people