Photographer Donates King Collection to University of Texas

Black Issues in Higher Education, Oct 14, 1999

AUSTIN, Texas -- The photojournalist who was the personal photographer for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. has donated his archive of photographs to the University of Texas-Austin.

The collection of Flip Schulke includes more than 300,000 original images. An exhibit of 60 of his photos of King and his family opened late last month to coincide with the unveiling of a new statue of King on the university's campus.

"This is an incredibly important collection of photographs. It constitutes the largest single archive of photographic images of Dr. King and his family," says Don Carleton, director of the university's Center for American History, which will house the collection.

"Dr. King allowed Mr. Schulke to take candid photos of his daily life, and many have never been seen by the public. It will be an outstanding researching and teaching resource for our students and faculty," Carleton says.

Schulke, a leading innovator in underwater photography and photographer for deep sea adventurer Jacques Cousteau, also has photographed numerous national and international figures, including President John F. Kennedy, Elvis Presley, Jimmy Hoffa, Pope Paul and Muhammad Ali. His work has been in many magazines, including Life, National Geographic and Ebony.

Much of Schulke's work is documented in three of his books--Martin Luther King Jr.: A Documentary from Montgomery to Memphis; King Remembered and He Had a Dream. He was the only photographer allowed into the King home following the assassination of the civil rights leader.

He was also one of three photographers allowed in the Ebenezer Baptist Church to record King's funeral. It was during the funeral that he made the close-up photo of a grieving Coretta King, which Life magazine ran on its cover.