[3] He became the general secretary of a Jewish youth organization, which led to his name appearing on a Gestapo hit list.

In 1937, he fled to America from Nazi Germany, claiming to German authorities that he was leaving the country to continue his graduate studies.

[3] Bernard is credited with first photographing Marilyn Monroe at the Racquet Club in Palm Springs, California, in 1947,[4] when she was still Norma Jeane.

He submitted as part of his defense a letter from then-General Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was a fan of Bernard's pinup photography.

In 1984, Bernard became the first still photographer to be honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences with a 50-year retrospective of his work.

In 1999, his photo "Marilyn in White" of Monroe in her wind-blown dress from the movie The Seven Year Itch (1955) was selected as the "Symbol of the Century" by the Museum of Modern Art in New York.