Dick Whittington Studio photographs, 1920-1980

View only results with digital items
Printable guide [HTML]
Request items

Summary

Title:
"Dick" Whittington Studio photographs
Dates:
1920-1980
Creators:
Dick Whittington Studio
Abstract:
The "Dick" Whittington Studio was the largest and finest photography studio in the Los Angeles area from the mid-1920's to early 1980's. Specializing in commercial photography, the Whittington studio took photographs for nearly every major business and organization in Los Angeles; in so doing, the studio documented the growth and commercial development of Los Angeles. Clients included Max Factor, the Broadway, Bullocks, and May Co. department stores, the California Fruit Growers Association, Signal Oil, Shell Oil, Union Oil, See's Candies, Van de Kamp's bakeries, Forest Lawn, Sparkletts Water, CBS, Don Lee Television, Goodyear Tire and Rubber, real estate developers, construction companies, automobile, aircraft, and railroad companies, and drive-in theaters. Another notable client was the University of Southern California, which contracted with the Whittington studios for coverage of athletic and other events. The photographs were produced between 1923 and 1985.
Extent:
450 Linear Feet 697 boxes
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[Box/folder# or item name], Dick Whittington Studio photographs, Collection no. 0250, Special Collections, USC Libraries, University of Southern California

Background

Scope and content:

The collection consists of 61 boxes of photographs printed from the original glass negatives, as well as 636 boxes of negatives.

Biographical / historical:

The "Dick" Whittington Studio was the largest and finest photography studio in the Los Angeles area from the mid-1920's to early 1980's. Specializing in commercial photography, the Whittington studio took photographs for nearly every major business and organization in Los Angeles; in so doing, the studio documented the growth and commercial development of Los Angeles. Clients included Max Factor, the Broadway, Bullocks, and May Co. department stores, the California Fruit Growers Association, Signal Oil, Shell Oil, Union Oil, See's Candies, Van de Kamp's bakeries, Forest Lawn, Sparkletts Water, CBS, Don Lee Television, Goodyear Tire and Rubber, real estate developers, construction companies, automobile, aircraft, and railroad companies, and drive-in theaters. Another notable client was the University of Southern California, which contracted with the Whittington studios for coverage of athletic and other events.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Jacqueline Morin
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2025-11-05 15:21:44 -0800 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Advance notice required for access of the photographic prints. The negatives are currently inaccessible.

Terms of access:

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Preferred citation:

[Box/folder# or item name], Dick Whittington Studio photographs, Collection no. 0250, Special Collections, USC Libraries, University of Southern California

Location of this collection:
Special Collections
Doheny Memorial Library, Room 209
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0182, US
Contact:
(213) 740-5900
specol@usc.edu
Website