Biography

Len Steckler (May 6, 1928 – August 11, 2016) was an American photographer, illustrator, and filmmaker. Steckler was known for the artistry behind many famous ad campaigns, including Pepsi Cola's "Refreshes Without Filling" illustrations in the 1950s, Noxzema's "Take it off — Take it all off" television commercials in the early 1970s, and an ad featuring Joe Namath in Hanes pantyhose. In 2010, he received widespread attention for the release of a previously unknown series of photographs, entitled Marilyn Monroe: The Visit, which offered a candid glimpse of a 1961 encounter between Monroe and famed poet Carl Sandburg.Steckler began his artistic career with painting. The youngest member of New York's Society of Illustrators, he painted illustrations for short and serialized stories that appeared in leading magazines of the day. As photography gradually replaced illustration, however, Steckler segued to a full-time career as a photographer.

With major clients such as Pepsi Cola, Max Factor, Revlon, and Helena Rubinstein, Steckler's work was featured in magazines such as Ladies' Home Journal, McCall's, Playboy, and Look, and made the cover of publications such as Good Housekeeping (1962–66), The Saturday Evening Post (1962–66), Popular Photography (1961–68), and Camera (1968–71).