Dizzy Gillespie at Newspaper Guild Canteen: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A black and white photograph of Dizzy Gillespie and band by Arthur Leipzig. On the left there is an unidentified man, partially out of the image. He is in a black jacket with one hand on the bass drum. To the right a young unidentified man is seated at the drum kit holding drumsticks. He is wearing a white dress shirt, jacket, black pants, and bowtie. He is smiling and facing toward Dizzy Gillespie in the center of the image. Gillespie is standing holding a trumpet vertically in front of his chest. His body is facing toward the camera with his head tilted to the right. His mouth is open and his eyes are closed. Gillespie is wearing a pinstriped suit with a patterned tie and white shirt. In the corner is a man in a black suit resting one elbow on the piano to the right. The pianist has his back to the camera. Behind the piano is a striped flag. On the back wall is a cartoon of two newspaper writers at their typewriters. Above these figures is a collage of newspaper clippings inside black outlined letters, most of which are out of frame. [-COME] is partially visible. The print is inscribed and signed by the photographer on the reverse.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1944
• Photograph by: Arthur Leipzig, American, 1918 - 2014
• Subject of: Dizzy Gillespie, American, 1917 - 1993
• Subject of: Unidentified Man or Men
• Subject of: The NewsGuild – CWA, American, founded 1933
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
• Dimensions: H x W (Image): 10 1/4 × 13 in. (26 × 33 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (Sheet): 11 × 14 in. (27.9 × 35.6 cm)
• Place depicted: Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Associations and institutions
• Topic: Bebop (Music)
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Topic: Mass media
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Musicians
• Topic: Photography
• Object number: 2017.67.2
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Joel Leipzig in memory of Arthur Leipzig
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Arthur Leipzig Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.