July 16, 2009

Karsh widow recounts Roaring Lion tale as part of festival marking 100th birthday

He was young, polite, and a rising star in the world of photography.

His subject was the British prime minister, determined and defiant against the enemy during the Second World War.

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In several moments in the Speaker’s Chambers after Sir Winston Churchill had addressed Parliament in 1941, Yousuf Karsh took two photos, creating the most famous image of Churchill and in the process, turning himself into a legend.

Sixty-eight years later, Estrellita Karsh told the story surrounding the moment in almost the exact spot where her late husband and Churchill stood when the iconic photo was taken.

“Yousuf said to Winston Churchill, ‘I hope I can make a portrait of this occasion,'” said Estrellita Karsh at an event at the Speaker’s Chambers yesterday, where she talked about the “Roaring Lion” portrait of the prime minister.

“(Churchill) said, ‘you may take one.'”

Read the complete article at Metronews.ca Ottawa…

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