Burt Glinn (American, 1925–2008)

Photojournalist Burt Glinn covered some of the most important events of the late 20th century. Glinn began his career in 1949 when a scout for LIFE magazine saw work for the Harvard Crimson and by 1951 he was one of the first American photographers to sign on to the influential agency Magnum. In six decades on assignment around the world, Glinn captured events such as the Cuban Revolution, the Fall of the Berlin Wall, the launch of Apollo 11, and the important moments in the American Civil Rights Movement. Still, throughout his prolific career, he captured many images documenting the lives of ordinary people. Artists, musicians, poets, and more live on in his photographs, which present us with a startlingly full picture of what it meant to an American at the end of the last century.