László Willinger

Willinger left Berlin in 1933 when Adolf Hitler became chancellor, settling in Vienna, where he began photographing celebrities such as Marlene Dietrich, Hedy Lamarr, Pietro Mascagni, Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and Max Reinhardt.

By the mid-1930s, Willinger was traveling through Africa and Asia before being invited by studio photographer Eugene Robert Richee to move to the United States.

After establishing a studio in Hollywood, California, Willinger became a frequent contributor to magazines and periodicals, providing cover portraits of some of the most popular stars.

In his later years, shortly before his death, Willinger was accused of stalking some celebrities, including Charlie Chaplin.

Willinger died of heart failure on 8 August 1989 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.