Incredible Stories Behind 7 Historical Photos

5. Che Guevara, 1960, Cuba

On March 5, 1960, Cuban fashion photographer turned photojournalist Alberto Korda took this image of the 31-year-old Marxist revolutionary at a memorial service in Havana for victims of a munitions ship, La Coubre, which had exploded in the city’s harbor the previous day. Fidel Castro quickly blamed the U.S. for the blast, which killed at least 75 people and injured several hundred others, although the exact cause never was determined. After the La Coubre memorial service, the newspaper Korda worked for, “Revolucion,” ran pictures of Castro and other dignitaries and rejected the photo of Guevara. The picture appeared in various publications in Cuba and Europe in the ensuing years but drew little notice. In 1967, Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, a left-wing Italian publisher who was interested in Guevara, learned about the photo while on a visit to Cuba and was given a free copy by Korda. After the Argentine-born Guevara was captured and killed by soldiers in Bolivia later that same year, Feltrinelli distributed posters using Korda’s photo, dubbed “Guerrillero Heroico” (Heroic Guerilla), and the image soon spread around the world, becoming a symbol of revolution and youthful rebellion. It has since become one of the most widely reproduced images in history, showing up on everything from murals to beer bottles.

6. Lyndon Johnson, 1963, Air Force One

Two hours after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, Vice President Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as the nation’s 36th president aboard Air Force One at Dallas’ Love Field. Cecil Stoughton, a former Army photographer who had served as the official White House photographer since 1961 (the first person to hold the post), took the historic photo of Judge Sarah Hughes administering the oath of office to a solemn Johnson, flanked by his wife, a group of staffers and a stunned-looking Jaqueline Kennedy, still clad in the pink Chanel suit she was wearing when her husband was shot.

At the time of Kennedy’s assassination, Stoughton was riding several cars behind the president as part of his motorcade. Afterward, Stoughton went to Parkland Hospital, where Kennedy died, then raced to Love Field for Johnson’s swearing-in. Stoughton was the only photographer on the plane when Johnson was inaugurated and initially, when his camera malfunctioned, it appeared there wouldn’t be any photographic record. However, he quickly fixed the problem and was able to document the event. In a chaotic time for America, Stoughton’s photograph demonstrated the country still had continuity of government.