Posts Tagged ‘backstory’

The Story Behind an Iconic Photograph of Michael Jordan in Flight

The Story Behind an Iconic Photograph of Michael Jordan in Flight michaeljordandunkstory

You might recognize this iconic photograph of Michael Jordan flying through the air during the 1988 NBA Dunk Contest in Chicago. It was captured by renowned Sports Illustrated photographer Walter Iooss Jr., a man who has created some of the most memorable photographs of athletes over the past fifty years (another of his iconic photographs is “The Catch“).

As a followup to its ranking of the 100 greatest sports photographs of all time, the magazine caught up with Iooss to find out about the story behind this photograph.
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René Burri’s Contact Sheet That Led to an Iconic Photo of Che Guevara

René Burris Contact Sheet That Led to an Iconic Photo of Che Guevara edited small

Imagine you were a newspaper photo editor back in 1963, and Swiss Magnum photographer René Burri handed you the contact sheet above filled with portraits of revolutionary Che Guevara. Which photograph would you select for publication?

You might recognize one of the photographs, since it has become one of the most iconic portraits created of Che.
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The Backstory to the Scandal That May Bring Down Olympus

The Backstory to the Scandal That May Bring Down Olympus olympus mini1

The financial scandal rocking Olympus is one that the company may not survive. The company’s stock price plunged another 17% today, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange has informed the company that it will be delisted if it doesn’t meet a December 14th deadline for reporting earnings. The New York Times has a great piece on how Olympus got itself into this mess:

In June 1998, a disturbing rumor tore through trading floors in Tokyo: Olympus had suffered colossal losses on derivatives trading, punching a large hole in its balance sheet. The company’s shares spiraled down 11 percent in three days.

But Olympus categorically denied the rumor and went on to post record profits. All was well in the house of Olympus, the newly installed president, Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, assured investors.

Turns out the losses were in fact real. They were so colossal, however, that booking all of them could have pushed the company into bankruptcy. The management then decided to fudge their numbers in an effort to save the company.

Corporate Japan Rocked by Scandal at Olympus (via TOP)