Daredevil by, 1917, Colorized

ABOUT THIS PHOTOGRAPH

Jug ‘Jammie’ Reynolds, also known as ‘The Human Fly’ balances precariously over the edge of the Lansburgh furniture building on 9th NW, Washington DC, 1917 as part of a wider routine including acrobatics. Reynolds toured his daredevil act across the USA, and began his routine by climbing up the building like Spider-Man before his acrobatic and balancing displays. Whilst the date of this particular image is dated around 1917, a similar showcase in Carlisle, PA in October 1915 drew a crowd of 1,500 people. The local paper covered the stunt, Reynolds “starting at the awning and landing on the high tower… after reaching it successfully, he placed two tables and on them several chairs,” the article reads. “Then he balanced himself on a chair while people held their breath.”

The restoration took several days on and off, with the glass plate negative itself showing extensive damage to the original coating which needed a lot of care and attention. Often with restoration, the aim is to fix the blemish while retaining the overall shape and texture of the undamaged surroundings. Colour references are taken from modern-day images of buildings that have survived and coloured postcards from the time. – Jordan J. Lloyd

Taken: c.1917
Location: Washington D.C., United States
Photographer: Harris & Ewing
Remaster & Colorization: Jordan J. Lloyd
Original Format: 5” x 7” glass negative
Commercial Use: ⇲ License this Image

RELATED PRINT

This photograph is also available as a ⇲ restored & remastered black and white original print from our ⇲ Platinum Series.