Prior to our acquisition by Backstage, Robert Kim was our most prominent photographer advertiser for over fifteen years. The advertising concepts and memorable images he created for so many talented actors have not gone unnoticed by everyone who worked at Drama-Logue these many years. His photographs were not only unique but launched the successful career of more actors than can adequately be appreciated. Among his many lasting contributions to our publication Robert was the first photographer to give actors full credit in all of his advertisements, one of the pioneers in utilizing visual elements that have come to be known as “The L.A Look” in headshots, the first photographer to share his personal testimonials from the most recognized professionals in our industry to demonstrate his standards of excellence, and the only photographer to regularly create ads with memorable themes and eye-catching designs, the cumulative effect of which can be immediately recognized with even a brief glance at what photo advertisements looked like prior to the introduction of his imaginative concepts, then after.
In what was a Drama-Logue benchmark, Robert Kim was the only photographer in our long history to feature the headshot of a different actor every week, an ambitious fifty performers a year for a record ten consecutive years, a feat that will certainly never be duplicated. His many innovations can still be seen in most headshots and advertisements today and in every major market– Los Angeles, Chicago and New York (coincidentally all cities in which he first introduced his work). But perhaps the most notable of these would be his creation of what has come to be known as his “Before & After” portfolios, which for the first time since headshots were used to sell actors, gave the actor the opportunity to compare the work of virtually every important photographer the business in a single viewing– another industry “first”.
Hollywood has always been the leader in the way film and photographs are produced, and will continue to be. But to our knowledge, there is no other single photographer in our industry to have so dramatically and permanently influenced the look of headshots and “raised the bar” in the way in which they are promoted than Robert Kim. His keen sense of humor and passion for his craft left an indelible impression on everyone here.
We shall miss him.
Jane Hersholt, Publisher
Drama-Logue, 1996
Los Angeles, California
