George Mann
1905 — 1977
Vaudeville photography, late 1920s through the early 1940s
1905 — 1977
Vaudeville photography, late 1920s through the early 1940s
George Mann (1905–1977) is best remembered, not only as half of the vaudeville comedy team of Barto & Mann, but for the remarkable body of photographic work he created behind the scenes from the late 1920s through the early 1940s. While performing across the United States and abroad, Mann produced an estimated 12,000 black-and-white photographs and extensive 16mm film footage, capturing candid moments of performers, backstage life, and the atmosphere of vaudeville at its height. His images reveal both technical skill and a keen sensitivity to composition, light, and character, offering a rare visual record of an earlier entertainment era. In later years, he extended his photographic interests into 3-D imagery, designing a viewer to display his work—much of it featuring Southern California landmarks—bringing the same curiosity and inventiveness that marked his earlier documentation of vaudeville life.
Licensing for these and other photographs is available through akg-images.
— Brad Smith, George Mann’s son