Source: American Annual of Photography and Photographic Times Almanac, Volume 11, 1896.
Prolific
In a long career it is estimated that Sarony photographed tens of thousands of celebrities including Mark Twain, Walt Whitman, Tchaikovsky, and as many members of the general public.
Did Sarony pay?
Typically, commercial photographers like Sarony paid celebrities for their image, and it has been asserted that Wilde waived this fee. This newspaper cutting suggests otherwise.
Copyright
The Sarony picture of Wilde No. 18 plagiarized for a trade card. This led to a famous case in the Supreme Court that established the law of copyright for photographs.
37 Union Square
The building where Wilde’s pictures were taken located two buildings to the right of the tall Decker Building (extant). Note the familiar Sarony signature used as signage. Sarony rented the entire building at $8,000 p.a.
Fez
Sarony was barely five feet tall. He wore his trademark red fez no doubt to enhance his stature.
Sarony Studios
The Sarony studio building at 38 Union Square (but not the facade) is extant, as seen in this revealed elevation bearing the words Sarony Portraits.
Signature
The familiar Sarony signature often seen on a the border of a cabinet card below the image.
Studio
The entrance to Sarony’s studio was bizarrely decorated with mummies, pottery, sleighs, armor, idols, statues, draperies, and a stuffed crocodile.
Napoleon Sarony
Oscar Wilde In America | © John Cooper, 2023
