A photojournalist's legacy

The photographic and written legacy of one of Canada's leading journalists has been donated to the National Library and Archives of Canada. Jock Carroll was a contributor to magazines that are long gone, like Colliers and Weekend, and magazines which are still with us, like Maclean's and Sports Illustrated. Following his wishes, his family have made a major donation of more than 21,000 photographs, personal files, manuscripts and other invaluable material.

Born in Toronto in 1919, John Alexander "Jock" Carroll worked for almost fifty years as both staff and freelancer, completing his career with the late Toronto Telegram. He covered a wide variety of topics, from Canada's involvement in the Korean War to the activities of Canadian and American celebrities to the daily lives and concerns of Canadians.

One of the major reasons for his fame was the portfolio of photos he took of Marilyn Monroe as a young starlet on the film set of Niagara (1953), which were published after her death in the book Falling for Marilyn (1996). In addition to the drafts of his literary works, Carroll preserved many of the memos and letters he wrote to his colleagues and superiors, providing a unique insight into the working life of a photojournalist. Carroll, who died in 1995, was also author of seven books, among them The Shy Photographer, a novel based on the magazine business and The Life and Times of Greg Clark (1981) about a beloved columnist for Weekend Magazine.

Ian E. Wilson, Librarian and Archivist of Canada said: "The donation...will ensure that Jock Carroll's fascinating career will be better known to Canadians,"