Photomontage of John Bubbles: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A silver gelatin print depicting a black-and-white image of a photomontage of John Bubbles posing on stage in three (3) different costumes. John Bubbles depicted on the left, is standing on a semi-circular platform, holding a cane in his proper right hand and full champagne glass in his proper left hand. He is wearing a black tuxedo and top hat. He is looking towards the other figures in the photograph. Bubbles, pictured center, is depicted with his proper left foot propped up on a shoe shine stand. He is wearing a medium toned suit, vest, striped tie, and a bowler hat. He has a cane hooked over his proper right arm and a cigarette held by his ear in his proper left hand. Bubbles pictured right, is crouched next to the shoe shine stand, holding a white cloth shining the shoe of Bubbles in the bowler hat. He is wearing a light colored newsboy cap and a plaid jacket. White text in the negative in the bottom left corner reads, [Maurice / CHICAGO]. An inscription in blue ink to the left of Bubbles reads, [To Laurie / My Dear Darling / With Best / Wishes for / your / Happiness / John / Bubbles]. There are no inscriptions on the back of the photograph.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: early 20th-mid 20th century
• Photograph by: Maurice Seymour Studio, American, founded 1929
• Subject of: John Bubbles, American, 1902 - 1986
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Type: portraits
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
• Dimensions: H x W (Image): 7 1/2 × 9 1/2 in. (19.1 × 24.2 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (Sheet): 8 × 10 in. (20.3 × 25.4 cm)
• Place made: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Entertainers
• Topic: Photography
• Topic: Vaudeville
• Object number: 2013.46.25.20
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• 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: Unknown - Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.