World War ll – Navy

Engel enlisted in the navy, and became a photographer in Combat Unit #8 under Captain Edward Steichen.

He landed in Normandy on D-Day, but always said he was lucky that he landed on Utah Beach, and lived to tell about it.

He was very proud of a commendation that he received, and after four years returned home.

Morris Engel was born in Brooklyn, New York on April 8, 1918. He attended Abraham Lincoln High School and joined the Photo League in 1936 where he met Aaron Siskind and Paul Strand who became major influences in his life. He worked on the paper PM, and then enlisted in the Navy, where he was a combat photographer. He later did many magazine picture stories in the late 40’s. He also made films, and his classic film, LITTLE FUGITIVE was released in 1953. He shot several more features, and later worked with video.

The Morris Engel archive is run by his daughter, Mary Engel. Many of the photographs on the website are available for licensing or for purchase. His 3 feature films are available on the DVD boxset “The Films of Morris Engel” or for 16mm or 35mm film rental.

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World War ll – Navy

Morris Engel & Ruth Orkin

About Morris Engel

About the Archive