Tazio Secchiaroli was an Italian photographer known for being the 'designated leader of the pack' of the original paparazzi and subsequently a model for the character 'Paparazzo' in Federico Fellini's film La Dolce Vita. Believing a picture is a stolen moment from life; he wanted his photos full of action and in defense of his aggressive photographic style, he has said, the day photographers will no longer be after you, you'll be after them!
Starting out taking photos of tourists and American soldiers on the streets of Rome, Secchiaroli quickly realized it was more profitable to sell photographs of celebrities to the newspapers. Knowing journalists were constantly searching for a fresh angle, Secchiaroli decided to stage confrontations with his celebrity prey -- an alarming flash, an overturned table, a starlet on the run -- creating little incidents, as he says in 'Tazio Secchiaroli: Greatest of the Paparazzi', to ''produce great features that earned us a lot of money.'' And, not so incidentally, earning the 'victim' a lot of press coverage, thus satiating all parties involved. He and his fellow photographers, Sergio Spinelli, Velio Cioni and Elio Sorci, would chase celebrities on their Vespas and try to photograph them unawares. Mr. Secchiaroli found that magazine editors, bored with staged portraits, would pay dearly for what he called surprise pictures of stars, especially if they were caught in compromising positions.
The Hollywood on the Tiber phenomenon of 1958 in which American studios profited from the cheap studio labour available in Rome made this scenario possible by providing the backdrop for photojournalists to steal shots of celebrities on the via Veneto. The images these photographers created, such as Pierluigi Praturlon's shots of Anita Ekberg wading fully dressed in the Trevi Fountain prompted Fellini to drastically change the current script he was working on, giving the work a new title, La Dolce Vita as well as a new ending. Fellini wanted to meet these 'assault photographers' and was recommended introduction to Secchiaroli as he most strongly exemplified fledgling paparazzi traits.
After Fellini based the character 'Paparazzo' on Secchiaroli in La Dolce Vita his reputation soared. Various filmmakers and stars, including Marcello Mastroianni and Sophia Loren, used him as their personal photographer, in this capacity Secchiaroli turned into the star's companion and confidante. Ironically, a film that reflected Paparazzo's-- and thus Secchiaroli's-- 'other' or 'outsider' status in the celebrity world was enough to grant him unrestrained access inside it. For the next twenty years, Sophia Loren took Secchiaroli with her around the world, and on these voyages the former was privy to snap the portraits of many other international stars.
Secchiaroli's work has been featured in several solo exhibitions including such notable places as the Photology Gallery in Milan, the Palazzo delle Stelline, Patrimoine Serge Plantureux and the Niepce Museum. He has also featured in group shows at the David Miller Gallery in New York and the Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin.
1925
Tazio Secchiaroli was born in Rome, Italy.
1944
He began his career as a photographer, taking pictures of tourists and American Soldiers on the streets of Rome.
1955
He founded the Agenzia Roma Press Photos with Sergio Spinelli.
1958
Secchiaroli's reputation as an 'assault photographer' was secured in August 14th of this year when he took a photo of Egypt's King Farouk sitting in a cafe with two women, neither of whom were his wife. The former King attempted to break Secchiaroli's camera, a moment captured by yet another paparazzi.
1958
Later this year, Federico Fellini spotted him and started a collaboration with the photographer wanting ideas for his 1960 film, La Dolce Vita. Secchiaroli's persistent, mildly invasive photographic style was emulated in the films 'Paparazzo' character, thus creating the term 'paparazzi.'
1962
The popular reception of the film led Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni to use him as their personal photographer thus Secchiaroli retired from paparazzi style shots, becoming instead a freelance photographer, companion and confidante of celebrities.
1964
He became a photographer of international stars and travelled the world as Sofia Loren's personal photographer.
1980
Secchiaroli held his first personal exhibition at the Palazzo delle Stelline in Milan.
1983
He retired from photography.
1990
A personal exhibition was devoted to him at the Cartiere Milani in Fabriano.
1996
The Photology gallery in Milan presented his exhibition The original Paparazzo.
1997
Included in group exhibition at David Miller Gallery in New York: Il Paparazzo, 1954-1964, I Paparazzi, 1964-1997.
1998
He passed away at his home in Rome on July 24th, 1998.
2000
Patrimoine Photographique Serge Plantureux in Paris presented Tazio Secchiaroli, Cinquantes epreuves origianales.
2003
Musee Niecephore Niepce, Paris presents Tazio Secchiaroli, Paparazzo ?
2008
Included in group exhibition at The Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin: Pigozzi and the Paparazzi.