Shirlie Alice Montgomery June 9, 1918 – November 5, 2012

Shirlie Alice Montgomery was born on Chapman Street in San Jose on June 9, 1918. She was an only child. To her friends and neighbors she was a treasure trove of history. Shirlie remembered it all. She remembered the Great Depression as a child, the Second World War as a young woman, and eventually the transformation of the Santa Clara Valley from a moderately sized agricultural town to the hustle and bustle of modern Silicon Valley. The majority of her memories were supported by the thousands of photographs in her collection.


She was the surviving grandniece of San Jose’s forefather T.S. Montgomery. Shirlie lived a colorful life but professionally she photographed it with a 4X5 Speed Graphic in B&W. She was a celebrated photographer that shot Hollywood stars, U.S. Presidents and pro wrestlers. Although Shirlie did work for the S. F. Examiner and the San Jose Mercury, her works remain some of the best representations of pro wrestling from the 40’s thru the 60’s. When asked about her penchant for shooting professional wrestlers she would answer “I always liked the big boys.” Such stories Shirlie had!


She will never be forgotten. God rest her soul. (Obituary by Joe Holt, neighbor and friend.)

Friday, July 19, 2013

Graphic Props for Photography

Shirlie explained these little graphical images to me. They are like the cover of a book, the title of a movie, the headline in the newspaper. She created these "title images" as props to introduce a collection of photographs. She did the same thing in her own photo and scrapbook albums.

I found these in a box filled with her photos. Many of these in this little collection are from the Ad Club's trip to Hawaii in 1957. They demonstrate Shirlie's talents, not just as a photographer, but also as a graphic artist/illustrator. She also exhibits her whimsical side is some of them. Pretty neat stuff!