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3000 Hours Later, Here Are 102 Old Black & White Photos Of Famous People That I Colorized
Hi, my name is Mario Unger, I'm a photographer and digital artist from Austria. Last year my main work was restoring and colorizing old photographs. In this post I show some of my favorites.
The reason for doing all of this work was to reduce the felt distance in time a little bit. I love B&W photography, but for some images I think, color is needed and most of B&W photography was done for one reason, there just was no color film!
If you want to see more, please follow me on social media.
More info: unarts.at | Instagram | Facebook
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Albert Einstein
Final score:
173points
Kim Lorton 7 years ago
In real life, though a genius, he was a real a*****e. Also, ended up secretly married to his first cousin, still forbidden!
neverbeenbored 7 years ago
I always think he looks like he's got a secret and he's trying not to laugh. Love love love pics of him!
RELATED:
#2
Mulberry Street, New York, 1900
Final score:
148points
Ladies and Gentlemen 7 years ago
Man.. this one would have taken ages to achieve this perfection!
Marian Mccoy 7 years ago
This is gorgeous. It feels as though I could step right on to the street.
Stephen Walshe 7 years ago
You've put so much warmth into this scene, the original looked so cold and miserable, excellent job.
#3
Adrienne Ames ("From Hell To Heaven", 1933)
Final score:
146points
Sparked Silly 7 years ago
She is a stunner, I am loving how she is styled in this photo and the drama of her expression..
#4
Walter Catty Allen CA 1900
Final score:
139points
#5
Maud Wagner CA 1905
Final score:
139points
Emma Jayne 7 years ago (edited)
Her name was Maud Wagner, she was the first known female tattoo artist in U.S.
Daria B 7 years ago
Thank you for this information. Please, author of the post, change the caption. She should be credited for her role in history.
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Gerry Higgins 7 years ago
Did they have coloured ink back then? I thought it was all blue tattoos
Sabal Minor 7 years ago
Ha ha- Snerd indeed! I hope today's youth doesn't give the next generation any ideas but whatever- it's yur body.
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#6
Grace Kelly
Final score:
131points
Mary Tonningsen 7 years ago
So gorgeous! This reminds me of the old 'Breck Shampoo' ads I would see in magazines in the 50's and 60's. Love it!
#7
Humphrey Bogart, "Casablanca", 1942
Final score:
129points
Stannous Flouride 7 years ago
Rick never says "Play it again, Sam." in the movie.
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Ann-Charlott Boynton 7 years ago
This is so well done, you almost forget the movie was in B&W!
Sue Clasen 7 years ago
Because it's such a mythic film, this one looses with coloring, but you have managed to give it the light and colors of those days.
Stannous Flouride 7 years ago
Nice work but sorry, the piano was yellow.
It sold in 2014 for $3.4 million: https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/22196/lot/83/
btw- Many of the extras and costars in this scene in the movie were refugees from the Nazis. Screen-Sho...7a89a8.png 
BusLady 7 years ago
Thanks for the pic and info. I wonder who owns it now? Hard to believe it still exists after all these years.
Load More Replies... Gerry Higgins 7 years ago
Now you're messing with my favourite film. I had to scrutinize this closely. I wouldn't want the whole movie colourized but you did a good job on this pic. Well done.
Robert J. Williamson 5 years ago
WOW! I literally said that out loud when I saw this photograph. It's like stepping into a legend. It is absolutely astonishing to see this for someone that loves old B&W movies. I wonder what the entire film would be like in colour. I know you lose a lot of the atmosphere but I'd like to see it just for the connection to it.
#8
Laurel Hardy, UK Tour, 1953
Final score:
129points
diane a 7 years ago
Stan came from my home town - they visited here on that tour and my mum saw them very close up
#9
Texas Couple, Early 20th Century, Heavy Restoration
Final score:
128points
BusLady 7 years ago
I used to do this kind of work. It's fascinating. I restored a lot of damaged photos like this. You wouldn't believe how grateful people were. Such fulfilling work.
Bruce Kunde 7 years ago
Took awhile to see umbrella, lady looked like she is taking pic with cell phone
El-Ray King 7 years ago
Incredible. You should be working for a museum as a restoration artist.
Ivy Ruonakoski 7 years ago
Only thing that seems a bit wrong is the tie. It's definitely too light.
#10
Evelyn Nesbit CA 1900
Final score:
118points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
Why is her hair blonde? Evelyn Nesbit famously had very dark auburn hair. There are a number of photographs of her in which the harsh lighting makes it look as if her hair is lighter than it actually was, but she was ever blonde!
besides, if you look at another image from the same series, of her posing as "Thisbe", you will see her hair is definitely dark: large.jpg 
Mario Unger (Submission author) 7 years ago
in the original image her hair was definitly blonde. no idea why
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Bear Trapp 7 years ago
Because her grandfather and Evelyn were in a relationship for a time.
Load More Replies... Grumble O'Pug 7 years ago
She wasn't a blonde. In fact as most contemporary media reveal, dark hair. BTW the Thaw murder of Stanford White was epic news and she wasn't obscure. I'd say this is a miss, sadly. Also I think her skin would have been more of an ivory cast.
AndyMurray 7 years ago
Stunning, you can even see the odd strands of hair going over her shoulder.
#11
Picasso
Final score:
104points
BusLady 7 years ago
I enjoy some of his work, but I don't think I would ever have wanted to meet him.
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Kathleen Blanchard 7 years ago
In his book about Picasso painting with light, I believe Gjon Mili said it was white light. He collaborated with Picasso on this project.
#12
Oscar Wilde
Final score:
94points
Rich Auntie Skeleton 7 years ago (edited)
Oscar Wilde would be the King of Instagram if he were alive today. You all know it.
Cody Eriksen 7 years ago
Jesus! I had no idea how dashing he was! Kinda reminds me of Jason Segal from 'How I met your mother'. Actually see jason in SLC Punk and it looks just like him!
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Stephen Walshe 7 years ago
The colour version is superb, but i think he looks a lot more moody in the Black and white
#13
East Side Jewish Market, 1895
Final score:
91points
#14
Jerome, L.E., 1900
Final score:
90points
Hisseefit 7 years ago
She looks like she modeled for Charles Gibson for his 'Gibson Girl' drawings. Beautiful.
Turd Ferguson 7 years ago
I wonder was blue her eye color (and in the photo above as well) or was it simply colored that way for its aesthetic appeal. Either way it looks nice.
Mortimer Snerd 7 years ago
It's the 'girl next door' from the century next door. Beautiful. (And hot. Well, she is.)
Honesty Olishia 7 years ago
I always wondered how they got their hair to stand up so well before hairspray? Does anyone know?
Bethany Wolfe 7 years ago
Usually something was rolled up/tucked inside of the hair to give it volume.
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#15
Walt Disney, 1931
Final score:
88points
Night Owl 7 years ago
I wonder what he's telling the cat here. Did Mickey Mouse have to be approved by a cat?
Crazy Cow Lady 7 years ago
Mickey was created in 1928. 1931 is a little late to ask for approval ;)
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Alfie Alfie 7 years ago
Walt conversing with a stuffed feline and hand-drawn mouse. No wonder our kids are nuts. 🤪🤪😂😂🤡😅
#16
In Honor Of A Great Person. Sophia Magdalena Scholl (1921-1943). Executed 75 Years Ago By The Greatest Criminals Humanity Has Ever Seen
Final score:
86points
April Simnel 7 years ago
We could learn a lot today from these kids. Look at Sophie's face; she is absolutely down for the cause. They knew they could pay the ultimate penalty, yet they were willing to face that and do what was right in spite of that, God bless their souls.
H. Roon 7 years ago
Reincarnated today as Emma Gonzalez who faced off openly and bravely against the fascist white nationalist establishment of the USA that IS the Trump Administration and today's Republican Party. Oh how history repeats itself when people refuse to learn its lessons.
Lee Chizum 7 years ago
Fascist do not condone viewpoints other than their own. You have it backward. It's Leftists that are Fascists.
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Janine B. 7 years ago
The greatest criminals humanity has ever seen? Evil as hell but surely and sadly not the only ones in history. There always have been and there always will be too many of those creeps.
El-Ray King 7 years ago
Nah, they are pretty much the greatest criminals that have inflicted the most damage upon the most people. Therefore, the greatest criminals humanity has ever seen.Can you think of others who are worse? I certainly can't.
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Theodore Andrews 7 years ago
Israel has replaced Germany and the NAZIs as the greatest criminals humanity has every seen....
Robert J. Williamson 5 years ago
What utter nonsense. Palestine has one of the fastest-growing population on earth. The police in the USA shoot dead more civilians (over 1000 every year) than the security forces in Israel kill Palestinians (133 in 2019). They have every right to protect their borders and to retaliate when rockets (690 fired in 2019) are fired into their territory. Saudi kills more political prisoners each year in their own country than Israel kills Palestinians. So that's Muslims killing Muslims. Israel is a tiny area compared to the Islamic world and yet you want it wiped off the map and Jews exterminated which is the case without a homeland of their own. You are just another Nazi.
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Andrei Daniel Petre 7 years ago (edited)
2nd greatest killers as communists killed 3 times more...
Robert J. Williamson 5 years ago
Many more died under Stalin but the majority were due to famine. Far fewer were deliberately killed by the government as with the Nazis. I'm certainly not defending Stalin but if you start including famines it confuses the issue. Stalin was actually trying to increase the population. He ordered the shooting of birds that few on crops and this meant insects decimated crops and so millions died. He didn't march 6 million of the death campus like the Nazis.
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Mohamed Behery 3 years ago (edited)
The greatest criminals the humanity has "ever" seen, only happened to exist in the last century?! That's awkwardly ill-sighted and silly. Around the same time, Stalin did put his hands in Hitler's at first before the latter's betrayal and started rounding up Soviet Jews in gulags long after the WW has ended and he ended up participating in causing the deaths of more than 20 million people mostly from the Soviet Union most of which were from famines and carrying out executions on a daily basis quota on non-prisoner civilians to begin with, but apparently that didn't matter for you. Slavic and Eastern Europeans are far less wealthy to drive the media perception towards their historic problems. Then again, you haven't read about the bloodbaths the Tatars caused 800 years ago. Or the IDF knowingly bombing a primary school in the late 1970 in the middle of a school day. Rachel Corrie being crushed by an Israeli bulldozer while protesting the demolition of Palestinian homes. Jews from Brooklyn kicking out Palestinians from their homes and living there instead of them. IDF's massacres of Sabra and Shatila, Serbian massacres against Bosnians... Sadly the list can go on and on.
#17
Mark Twain
Final score:
82points
Rich Auntie Skeleton 7 years ago
Big 'ol fluffly 'stashes were the thing of the 1880's.
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Sabal Minor 7 years ago
We need a man like this today! Wickedly accurate perception & social observation.
Eric Spence 7 years ago
He looked pretty uncomfortable in the dark suit and the top hat. I believe he was much more comfortable in the white suit he was more commonly seen in.
Andrea Delden 7 years ago
They all wore tha same clothes, hair style, shoes etc. and they all look the same age here.
#18
Greta Garbo
Final score:
80points
Stephen Walshe 7 years ago
Always thought Greta looked so austere in B&W but the colour really brings out her femininity , she looks stunning.
Melia Janssen 7 years ago
I love this one!!! I've loved her movies since I was young and yet I have never seen one coloured picture of hers. This is excellent!!!!
#19
Edmund Hillary, 1953
Final score:
79points
Ladies and Gentlemen 7 years ago
I refuse to believe its colored, but at the same time I know it is. You are one talented human sire!
Sue Clasen 7 years ago
Even if Mallory was first, what this man did for sherpas he deserves to be remembered as the first to climb the Everest.
Ged Maybury 7 years ago
Oh that's fab! I was 3 months old when he went to the top of that mountain. I met him later, on the school stage of Kaikouri Valley High School, Dunedin. Shook his hand, and Tenzing Norgay's too. Later he wrote the foreword for one of my books (published by a lady who used to know him - way back in 1951!) And just last year I finally saw the camera he had with him that day, and one of his gloves, in a museum. This means a lot to me!
#20
Pjotr Iljitsch Tschaikowski
Final score:
73points
Louise Brigance 7 years ago
some how the colorization has made his this man look softer and friendlier
neverbeenbored 7 years ago
I'm curious, why is his name spelled so differently than how I've usually seen it? I usually see it. Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky.
#21
The Andrews Sisters
Final score:
70points
Grumble O'Pug 7 years ago
Largely a product of the makeup, the 40's was a cookie cutter.
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Carole Reid 7 years ago
The three Ks have no discernible talent other than shilling.
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Stephen Walshe 7 years ago
This brings back memories LOL, As a scout leader back in the '90s we did a 'Gang' show one Christmas, three of us Leaders ( all 18 stone plus) dressed up as the Andrews Sisters in '40s style dresses, ( we managed to get dresses that had to be slightly adjusted ) full make-up, wigs and welly boots, we sang the Rosemary and Betty Clooney song 'Sisters'! totally brilliant show, bought the house down LOL. Great photograph.
#23
Tsar Nikolaus Ii
Final score:
68points
Honesty Olishia 7 years ago
Fun Fact: Tsar Nikolaus II had a dragon tattoo on his arm.
Load More Replies... Rich Auntie Skeleton 7 years ago
WOW, him and King George V looked like twins, gets me every time.
B Hernandez 7 years ago
Tsar Nicholas II, in a British Royal Navy uniform as an honorary Admiral of the Fleet, 1909
Gerry Higgins 7 years ago
I always feel a little sad looking at the Romonovs; knowing what will happen to him and his children
Jay Donne 3 years ago
King Edward VII was father to George V, and uncle by marriage, to Nicholas.
Load More Replies... Alfie Alfie 7 years ago
If the leader of Russia is called a czar, and his wife is a czarist, what are the kids? Czardines!
Jay Donne 3 years ago
She's actually a "czarina"... a czarist is someone who is a pro-Russian monarchist or an adjective referring to something owned or controlled by a czar.
Load More Replies... #24
Mark Twain, 1907
Final score:
66points
Gary Addis 7 years ago
Hal Holbrook could have passed as Twain's twin: https://tinyurl.com/y6wabwhv
#25
"Arsenic And Old Lace", 1944
Final score:
64points
Elisabeth Blackwood 7 years ago
This movie is hilarious, if you haven’t watched it, I highly recommend it.
Grumble O'Pug 7 years ago
apparently the people down-voting don't understand the reference.
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Peggy Slaughter-Wilson 7 years ago
I so love this movie! So funny and I'd love to see it colorized for the lovely house and costumes!
#26
Che Guevara
Final score:
63points
sh 7 years ago
It is just a picture; no one is praising the man or agreeing with what he did.
Load More Replies... #27
Hellen Keller
Final score:
63points
#28
Old Man, 1890
Final score:
62points
Jacqueline Lavanchy 7 years ago
Just what I was humming when I read the title...LOL
Load More Replies... Alfie Alfie 7 years ago
These are artworks, great presentations, can’t get enough of them. Hope there’s a colorized book in your future.
Ellen Eades 7 years ago
Love the old masters feel of this. Looks like St. Jerome. But the line of the hair changed in the left side and it has a bit more movement in the original.
#29
Puppet Designer, 1936
Final score:
60points
Hisseefit 7 years ago
It's interesting that he's wearing a belt with the overalls. I'm not criticizing, just never thought overalls were worn with a belt. Of course it emphasizes his body nicely.
Rubee Tubesteak 7 years ago
Maybe a tool belt/pouch that hangs on his left side?
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Louise Brigance 7 years ago
He designed and built Pinocchio for Geppetto , then became disillusioned and thought Chucky would cheer him up .
Benevolent Panda Mouse 7 years ago
Gorgeous...simply gorgeous, and i’d say the physique was not won by hours spent in a gym but sweat and passionate work, just gorgeous. Where's my fan?!
#30
Arthur Conan Doyle, 1922
Final score:
58points
Cody Eriksen 7 years ago
If only he and Vern got to see today... Can you imagine what they would be today? Doyle would be head writer for CSI, and Vern would have Elon Musk's job.
#31
Mary Badham And Gregory Peck In 'To Kill A Mockingbird' (1962)
Final score:
55points
BusLady 7 years ago
I tried reading the "sequel" Go Set a Watchman. I never finished it. I found it disappointing. I think I will give it another try, tho. It got some good reviews.
Eric Spence 7 years ago
I read it and it was an excellent read. I highly recommend it.
Load More Replies... Maria Campbell 7 years ago
A friend always called me Scout. I think I would prefer to imagine the movie in black and white. The story was about black and white races and I think, no offence, but the movie would deserve no colourisation. Nice job, though!
Connie Martin 7 years ago
I love that her foot is pushed up against him. But why are her feet orange?
#32
Babe Ruth CA 1920
Final score:
55points
Sheila Lovelace 7 years ago
He was a big smoker. Babe Ruth died from nasopharyngeal carcinoma in 1948.
#33
Silvia Sidney And Henry Fonda In "You Only Live Once" (1937)
Final score:
53points
Turnip and a Frog 7 years ago
Just a detali, really, but Fonda’s eyes were blue. But the whole selection is just fantastic :-)
Elizabeth Violette 7 years ago
Seatbelts weren't commercially installed in cars until 1949.
Load More Replies... #34
Victor Hugo, 1876
Final score:
53points
Destiny Rose 7 years ago
One of my favorite authors. His imagery and story-telling is incredible. He was a true literary artist.
Deb Sullivan 7 years ago
Thank you, Victor Hugo, for Les Miserables!! You may have seen the play and watched the movie, but don't miss reading the book!
#35
Buck Craske By Olive Edis CA 1910
Final score:
52points
Peak25500 7 years ago
The photographer really mastered the light, or was it improved in post processing?
Mario Unger (Submission author) 7 years ago
no, the photographer was a master
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#36
Last Photo Of Oliver Hardy, 1957
Final score:
51points
Bryan Withiam 7 years ago
Nah, I'd recognize that face through the smile and eyes, in any situation. Highly, highly recognizable. Maybe not to you.
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Lora Allen 1 week ago
Love these guys. All they have to do is point at each other and it's funny!
David Berry 4 years ago
This photo was taken in 1956. "Hardy suffered a major stroke on September 14, 1956 that left him confined to bed and unable to speak for several months." -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Hardy
Jana Long 6 years ago
My daddy loved them so much. As a child he would always do the who's on first joke with my uncle bud.. those days are so missed and this man knew how to make you laugh from the bottom of your gut...
Ralph Dannheisser 4 years ago
Jana Long: "Who's on First" was Abbott and Costello, not Laurel and Hardy.
Load More Replies... Alfie Alfie 7 years ago (edited)
Never could figure out who was whom? Stan (or is it Laurel?) has a god-given clownish face. Amazing! 🤡 Yea, I know, me neither. 🤔 No, on his left, no, your left, no..!🤪🤪
#37
Louis And Grace
Final score:
49points
#38
Colley, Mrs. F. & Bell, Mrs. C.M. 1901
Final score:
48points
Rich Auntie Skeleton 7 years ago
I'mma say it. I know it was the style back in the day, and they look AWESOME, don't get me wrong. But something about them gives me a Harry Potter vibe.
Grumble O'Pug 7 years ago (edited)
Monkey fur, folks. Nasty, eh? I think if I imagine the rare and endangered birds on the hats, I'll cry.
Megan O'Neill 7 years ago
Some birds almost went extinct to make hats like these. Fashion is crazy.
#39
Grace Kelly With Robert Cummings, Famous Bruegel Painting On The Wall
Final score:
47points
Mimis Nachbarin 7 years ago
That's quite an impressive work to make the dress that shiny green. Sehr beeindruckend.
rustic raven 7 years ago
They both look so good an yes that dress it beautiful love the green !;=]]
#40
Heffner, Mrs. T.M. 1900
Final score:
45points
Ivy Ruonakoski 7 years ago
What is that thing sticking out of her head? A weird looking piece of jewellery?
Aneese 7 years ago
Hair Stick ... Ornamental ~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_stick
Load More Replies... Stephen Walshe 7 years ago
looks like you could almost feel the velvet of her dress, fantastic work.
Honesty Olishia 7 years ago
Talk about "Look at my breasts", I wonder how the trend of that boob necklace came around?
#41
Buffalo Bill, 1906
Final score:
45points
Stannous Flouride 7 years ago
The word back then was that some of them were even partly true,
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#42
Grace Kelly
Final score:
43points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
Sorry, but that dress was actually yellow. She wore it in the 1956 film "High Society" which was shot in Technicolor: http://www.cinestylography.com/film-style-high-society-1956/
Aneese 7 years ago
YOU again? Arrrghhhhhhhhhhh .... Go away. Shooo! There is ART here to be admired and enjoyed. No one wants a negative nelly around ... no one cares if the colors are authentic ... they are looking at the sheer joy of color ... If authenticity is so damned important to you .. then YOU go spend thousands of hours and apply your 'skill' to these photos you criticize and then come back and post them ... otherwise ... shut the hell up.
Load More Replies... Grumble O'Pug 7 years ago
Someone has a crush on grace. Also, her brows would not have been black, they would have been ash blonde.
julie owen 7 years ago
Alexandru why don't you colorize the photos yourself? all i see is you telling the artist he is wrong. maybe instead of the negative comments you should compliment his work. just a thought. have a great day
Stephen Walshe 7 years ago
Yellow ,Lavender, what difference does it make, it's a wonderful photograph and Grace is stunning.
LaDonna Hulcy 7 years ago
Even if it's supposed to be Yellow, it's still a beautiful job. it's stunning.
#43
Child CA 1870
Final score:
41points
Connie Whiting 6 years ago
You are so talented! I love all of the photos.You've brought these people to life for me. Thank you for all the time you spent doing them.
rustic raven 7 years ago
Not to be mean they should of stopped at the black & white cause her cheeks are just a tad to pink for the last picture ;=]]
#44
Laurel & Hardy, 1933
Final score:
39points
rustic raven 7 years ago
Hey what are we suppose to do with these silly things now that I have pulled this piece out of it ? Hey I don't know what does NITRO mean to you ?
#45
Rachmaninoff CA 1915
Final score:
39points
#46
Fridtjof Nansen
Final score:
38points
Mick Fowler 7 years ago
Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Brilliant work!
#47
Leo Tolstoy, 1897
Final score:
38points
#48
Boris Karloff As Imhotep In "The Mummy", 1932
Final score:
38points
neverbeenbored 7 years ago
They look gold to me. Either way they look really weird.
Load More Replies... Ivy Ruonakoski 7 years ago
I only found out this week that Boris Karloff was his stage name and he was actually an Englishman called William Henry Pratt. Weird...he thought Boris Karloff would sound more exotic, and he was right.
#49
Marilyn Monroe, 1951
Final score:
38points
Turnip and a Frog 7 years ago
It often strikes me when I see her pictures, especially the ones in which she is older - there are so many women who are beautiful in this traditional sense, obviously more beautiful or sexy than her, but she just glows and emanates such emotional intensity, a charisma of some sort that I can’t take my eyes off her. Pure vibrancy and colour.
Alfie Alfie 7 years ago
I don’t get why they say she’s the most beautiful woman in the world, something is not right with her personality. Am I nuts? Don’t answer that.
Mortimer Snerd 7 years ago
Just why? Is that a kitten in her sweater? Just surprised they would release that photo.
April Simnel 7 years ago
This must be before they got rid of her widow's peak with electrolysis. I love that belt!
#50
Errol Flyn
Final score:
38points
#51
Toulouse Lautrec
Final score:
37points
Nadja Lambacher 7 years ago
I always adored his work. But like many artists he had a sad and lonely life. He thought he was unlovable because of his short stature.
BusLady 7 years ago
His parents were first cousins, and there had been a lot of inbreeding for generations. It's believed that that could have been the cause of his condition. They were aristocrats, and that was considered acceptable.
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Mimis Nachbarin 7 years ago
That was ironic, right? Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec didn't had a twin.
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#52
Julie Adams In "Creature From The Black Lagoon", 1954
Final score:
37points
Robert J. Williamson 5 years ago
This looks superb. I bet man movie fans would love to buy prints of this. It's just such a cool thing to look at.
Karla Littke 7 years ago
What's up with his costume on the lower parts of his legs? Why don't they match? I know it's not anything the artist Mario did. Odd.
chi-wei shen 7 years ago
In the original movie posters the creature appeared in different shades of green, not in this pinkish colour.
#53
Margaret O'Brien (1937-) In "Lost Angel" (1943)
Final score:
36points
#54
Albert Einstein
Final score:
36points
Eric Spence 7 years ago
He was a perfectionist, prone to temper, and was so into his work as are a lot of geniuses nowadays.
Carol Williams 7 years ago
Now he was a rake...treated his wife and girlfriends abominably....
Alfie Alfie 7 years ago
He couldn’t connect with them, something about his theory of relativity. Perhaps he was living in an alternative reality, like Kelly Ann Conway and Donald Trump, which is defined as being looney.
#55
Powerhouse, 1920
Final score:
35points
April Enos 7 years ago
Many tools and bolts of this time period were of brass, also the housings were painted to prevent rust........in all colors imaginable, as paint seconds were cheaper.
BusLady 7 years ago
Reminds me of the hunk in Modern Times. 56456875-6...9003b7.jpg 
#56
Greta Garbo
Final score:
35points
Mimis Nachbarin 7 years ago
Her eyes in the picture match beautifly the green of the emerald ring - but Greta Garbo was famous for her blue eyes. Nevertheless: amazing work.
rustic raven 7 years ago
She looks so beautiful in anything that she wore . there is just something about the ladies in the 40"s they were so pretty ;=]]
#57
Walt Whitman CA 1860
Final score:
34points
#58
Kaiser Wilhelm II From Germany
Final score:
33points
Maximilian Livingston 7 years ago
Nope. Austria did. But he was very much willing to follow instantly.
Load More Replies... Grumble O'Pug 7 years ago
He needed his butt kicked. Him and his withered arm and wholesale entitled a*****e-hood.
#59
Mickey Rooney, 1930s
Final score:
33points
#60
Al Grey
Final score:
33points
#61
Punlun, 1870
Final score:
32points
Mimis Nachbarin 7 years ago
No. Pun Lun was the famous chinese fotographer who took that picture. The woman is one of his models. There are serveral pictures like that showing mother and and child.
rustic raven 7 years ago
The funny thing I really like the original much better than the color picture ;=][]
#62
Gioacchino Rossini, 1856
Final score:
32points
My dog is my co pilot. 7 years ago
Born on February 29th 1792 and died on Friday 13th of November 1868. I hope he wasn't superstitious.
#63
Ellen Terry At Age Sixteen, By Julia Margaret Cameron, 1864
Final score:
32points
#64
Crown Prince Rudolf Of Austria, 1889 (Year Of His Suicide)
Final score:
32points
Night Owl 7 years ago (edited)
Yeah, it should be darker, maybe more brownish? Anyway, there is so much pain in his look.
Load More Replies... Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
He had BROWN eyes, not BLUE.
Also, he was wearing a Hungarian Cavalry General's uniform, which was RED. Here is the actual uniform: https://www.hermann-historica.de/en/l/27921/uniform_eines_oesterreichischen_generals_der_kavallerie?aid=25&Lstatus=0&Accid=1000¤tpos=15
Finally, this is how the Order of the Golden Fleece should have looked like: Order_of_t...sia_02.jpg 
Amanda Ford 7 years ago
These are all beautiful! This one is the only one where I've really noticed a "mistake"
Kathy Baylis 7 years ago
This is the Prince Rudolph who committed suicide with his mistress, Baroness Maria Vetsera, at Mayerling. Wow.
Stephen Walshe 7 years ago
The colour version shows him to be a very troubled soul.You can see it round his eyes.
#65
"Once Upon A Time", 1944
Final score:
32points
Connie Martin 7 years ago
James Gleason on the left. Wonderful character actor. Unforgettable voice.
#66
Old Tom Morris, 1867
Final score:
30points
David Berry 4 years ago
This was taken in 1880, not 1867 according to his Wikipedia bio. He was born in 1821, so would have only been 46 in 1867, and he is much older than that here. He was a pioneer of modern golf, golf course design, and greenskeeping. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Tom_Morris
#67
Woman In The White House, 1944
Final score:
30points
Debbie Parrish 7 years ago
This photo talks better than most taken today. This picture is definitely better than a thousand words on our past.
#68
Franz Liszt, 1886
Final score:
30points
April Simnel 7 years ago
Well, this is a long way from Lisztomania! Would love to see a version of him as the young pianist and composer who made teenage girls and young women swoon.
Aneese 7 years ago
Younger: https://www.elrelojdesol.com/en/doctor-j/classical-music-online-liszt/
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#69
Marlon Brando As Marc Antony, 1953
Final score:
29points
BusLady 7 years ago
Have you seen Streetcar Named Desire? He was hot in that one. Lol
Load More Replies... #70
"Lotion" Tar Bishop
Final score:
29points
Vicki Armstrong 4 years ago
Trust the Gorton's fisherman. Fantastic, but it's funny too. Beautiful job, though. You've done amazing work with all of these priceless photographs.
Wendy J Shores 7 years ago
I love the pictures of the older folks with the deep crevices and wrinkles that are so full of character!!! Beautiful!
#71
Louis Pasteur By Felix Nadar CA 1890
Final score:
28points
#72
Jascha Heifetz, 1920
Final score:
28points
#73
Belcher Johnson By Olive Edis CA 1910
Final score:
28points
#74
June Allyson CA 1940
Final score:
27points
BusLady 7 years ago
It took a lot of work to style the hair like that. They didn't have the styling tools we have today.
Aneese 7 years ago
Clips and bobby pins and those manual curling irons: https://www.etsy.com/market/1930_curling_iron
Load More Replies... #75
Henry Ford, 1863-1947
Final score:
26points
Conni Robertson 7 years ago
"...In the Dearborn Independent, a local newspaper he bought in 1918, Ford published a number of anti-Semitic writings that were collected and published as a four volume set called The International Jew. Though he later renounced the writings and sold the paper, he expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler and Germany, and in 1938 accepted the Grand Cross of the German Eagle, the Nazi regime’s highest medal for a foreigner."https://www.history.com/topics/henry-ford
Nakia Simmons 7 years ago
Well with people like you around, we will all make sure that you get the same footnote in history that all you type of people in history have, dumbed down, pea brained, mental midgets. No matter how 'great the contributions' have been made, their lack of humanity will speak much more.
#76
Grace Kelly
Final score:
26points
April Simnel 7 years ago
Would wear that entire outfit, and those espadrille wedges are amazing!
#77
Portrait Of The Photographer Dr. George Wharton James (1858-1923) CA 1908
Final score:
25points
#78
John L. Burns, The Old Hero Of Gettysburg, 1863
Final score:
25points
David Berry 4 years ago
Born in 1793, he was a veteran of the War of 1812, and at age 69 he took up his flintlock rifle and became a civilian combatant with the Union army at Gettysburg. He was wounded, but lived to become a national hero and celebrity. He died in 1872. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_L._Burns
#79
Charles Baudelaire, 1853
Final score:
25points
Connie Martin 7 years ago
Had no idea what he looked like. I assumed he looked more like Balzac.
#81
Egon Schiele, 1914
Final score:
23points
Kathy Baylis 7 years ago
I have to apologize in advance for this: every time I see the name Egon, I get a mental picture of Annie Potts lusting after Harold Ramis in Ghostbusters. Long live Egon Spengler!
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
Ok, this I can respect - you made a deliberate artistic choice rather than go for a straight colourisation.
Sierra Batten 7 years ago
Isn't everything this person is doing an "artistic choice"?
Load More Replies... #82
Archduke Franz Ferdinand, 1893, Elephant Hunting, India
Final score:
22points
Zenozenobee 7 years ago
Stop downvoting this one. It also hurts me to see this poor animal with those "hunters" sitting on him as if he was nothing. But it's definitivly a good reason not to hide the pic ;) It won't erase what has been done. When you read that elephants are endangered because of poaching it could be fun if it wasn't so sad. The poachers are distoying what is left (and it's bad of course) from all those legal hunts that have lower the number of individual so drastically. Works for so many species. Hunting to eat is understable. Hunting to sit on a body to mean "Hey, I'm proud I killed this one" is not new, is a shame and shouldn't be hidden.
Walter Cheego 7 years ago
Gun safety??? Ha - Look at the guy in the middle with the barrel of his gun pointed at his face. WTH!
Thomas Turnbull 7 years ago
Horrible bit of history shooting this magnificent beast for FUN. I hope they all went to hell.
#83
Billy The Kid
Final score:
22points
#84
Lewis (Powell) Payne Minutes Before He Was Executed, 1865. He Was A Conspirator In The Lincoln Assassination
Final score:
22points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
No, that's not "minutes before he was executed", that's a photograph taken aboard USS Saugus by Alexander Gardner, on April 27, over two months before the actual execution, which took place on July 7, 1865.
#85
Photographer C. M. Bell CA 1890
Final score:
21points
Nasos Dimis 7 years ago
A photographer and freemason as he proudly has the mark symbol and the "forget me not" on the tie
#86
Walt Whitman, 1858
Final score:
21points
#87
Stewart Granger CA 1933
Final score:
21points
#88
C. M. Bell Jung CA 1865
Final score:
20points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
I'm not quite sure what uniform this is, but it looks a lot like the service uniform of a Lieutenant of Marines around the 1880s rather than the 1860s. In which case the stripe on the trousers would be RED. The shoulder boards are ok. s-l1600.jpg 
CrunChewy McSandybutt 7 years ago
I only wish I could upvote your comments more than once to counter the haters.
Load More Replies... Andrea Delden 7 years ago
It reminds me of the uniforms that Prince Harry and Prince William wore at Prince Harry’s wedding.
#89
U.S.C.P. 60 Policeman CA 1890
Final score:
20points
#90
General Oglesby CA 1862
Final score:
20points
Tish Stapf 7 years ago
For a general, he’s sure slouchy and unkempt. Look at the belly busting out there! Not sure why anyone would want a picture like this taken for posterity unless f***s were given...
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
General staff had BLACK shoulder boards, but at least it's not red this time...
#91
Mercer Washington, Baseball Player, 1896
Final score:
19points
#92
US Civil War Admiral David Dixon Porter CA 1860
Final score:
18points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
David Dixon Porter had dark hair and beard and the shoulder straps on his uniform were BLACK, not RED, which was the colour for the artillery! I get it you like to add a splash of colour here and there, but just making stuff whatever colour with no regard for context and authenticity, just makes this a half-assed effort at best.
Jan Lasher 7 years ago
Did you ever hear of artistic expression? Mario has done an amazing job on all his pictures. Just st enjoy.
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Christopher Lee 7 years ago
I find it really odd the number of people who are seemingly interested in looking at historical photographs but have no interest in historical accuracy. If it is all about 'artistic interpretation' then essentially there are no limits and Marilyn Monroe can be given jet black hair and people would apparently be fine with that? So, if historical photographs depict historical people what is so wrong about pointing out that the features depicted on them are incorrect?
#93
Chaplin And Sousa Not Exactly Fitting The Post, But Sousa Is Wearing A Uniform At Least
Final score:
18points
Alice Heitland 7 years ago
Alexandra Bucur, were you a time traveler and there for these pictures? Surely you must have a low opinion of yourself if you feel the need to tear apart every picture
Christopher Lee 7 years ago
If the colors and details are wrong, then they are wrong. There's nothing wrong with pointing out that the colorist didn't take the time to research his subject properly.
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BusLady 7 years ago
And he's so young in this photo. I almost didn't recognise him.
Load More Replies... Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
He did have a red uniform, but it wasn't this one. This one was dark blue with gold lace trimmings: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/large-group-john-phillips-sousa-band-uniforms
MMichelle Gonzales 7 years ago
Can’t you just enjoy the pictures without tearing them apart??? Sheesh!
Load More Replies... #94
Thomas Wodrow Wilson, 1913 -1921
Final score:
17points
Peggy Sigmon 7 years ago
The years are wrong too...he looks older than eight years
Load More Replies... #95
Ed Walsh, 1911
Final score:
17points
#96
German Naval Officer, WWI, CA 1915
Final score:
17points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
I get it that you're from Austria, but the K.u.K uniform was completely different. This guy's a German, so the cap roundel should have been BLACK-WHITE-RED, because those were the state colours. As for the medals - from the right, the Württemberg "Order of Friedrichs" had a LIGHT BLUE ribbon, the Saxon "Order of Albrecht" had a GREEN ribbon and a GREEN wreath with a BLUE enamel medallion, the Bavarian "Royal Merit Order of St. Michael" has a PINK and BLUE ribbon and the medal itself is SILVER with BLUE enamel on the cross, the 1897 Prussian Kaiser Wilhelm Centennial Medal has a YELLOW ribbon, the Boxer Rebellion Medal ribbon is striped WHITE-BLACK-RED-YELLOW, the Herero Rebellion medal is BLACK-WHITE-RED, the Prussian 25-Year Long Service Cross has a BLUE ribbon, the Prussian Royal Order of the Crown has a LIGHT BLUE ribbon and medallion and the Prussian Order of the Red Eagle has an ORANGE-WHITE ribbon and the cross is silver, not gold.
William Morales 7 years ago
I applaud your knowledge and corrections, obviously it bothers you that details are just incorrect. As a photog it bothers me when I see errors in films, like when they hit the magic enhance button in movies, and they can magically zoom in 1000 times and it be crystal clear.
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Christopher Lee 7 years ago
Bravo Alexandru for knowing your stuff - if this was being illustrated for a book historical accuracy would be essential - so why are people so opposed to the actual photograph colors being accurate?
#97
Roger Fenton As "Zuave", Crimean War, 1856
Final score:
16points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
The French Zouaves very famously had RED trousers and it's something they kept until WW1! How can you even get this wrong?!? http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_ceSTr5SwE/ULTGANAN88I/AAAAAAAAARA/AOisyLwBL8A/s1600/100_0942.JPG RaczynskiA...e.1858.jpg 
serena 7 years ago
A lot of the colorization doesn't make sense to me. Like the wrong eye colors, famous dresses, etc. Maybe the artist is intentionally doing this, but I prefer it to be in the ballpark of correct.
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Wendy J Shores 7 years ago
Alexander Bucur, why cant you just give this man credit for dedicating hundreds of hours to colorizing all of these photos for our enjoyment? Well it WAS enjoyment until you started picking apart all of his efforts. Cool down and smell the roses and just enjoy the things the photographer DID get right which is the majority of the items in each picture. I, for one, have thoroughly enjoyed looking at every one of the pictures which gave a face to many names I have heard over the years but never had a face until now. Thank you very much Mario Unger!
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
It wasn't "enjoyment", it was paid work. Mario said as much. So he took the money, but didn't do the research. Now, does that sound ethical to you?
Load More Replies... Tantethenoma 7 years ago
Alexandr’a’ (yes.. intentional!) Bucur!! You are such a downer .... looking for mistakes to point out in EVERY frickin post throughout 11 pages!!! Does NOT make you come across as intelligent or knowledgeable. Rather makes me believe you probably failed as a compassionate educator and need to feed your low self esteem by showing your research skills on bored panda! If you find it difficult to appreciate the talents of others and can only give negative feedback, make sure YOU are absolutely perfect in every way .... and that includes the English language.
#98
Martin Van Buren, 1837-1841
Final score:
15points
Kimberly Davis 4 years ago
I'm related to him. I can actually see a resemblance between Martin and my dad. 01c6e90a-e...bd0f27.jpg 
Cole More 2 years ago
recolored it for you the best i can bn4FIAvc-6...5c5e8f.jpg 
BusLady 7 years ago
No! No! No! His cravat was orange and his hair was black. I've seen the original!! 😱
BingeFest1 5 years ago
Me Keith. Why don't you do something actually productive with your life instead of bashing somebody else's work while you sit in your musty trailer with your dirty drawers on
Load More Replies... #99
James Buchanan, 1857-1861
Final score:
15points
#100
Rasputin CA 1910
Final score:
15points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
Come on, Rasputin with GREEN eyes, when everybody who met him commented on just how piercing the gaze of his BLUE eyes were? You made him look less like the madman mystic he was and more like he's stoned!
B Hernandez 7 years ago (edited)
Most people aren't aware that Mr. Unger is just one member of a large community of people who colorize old historical photos such as this. Many colorized versions of the same photo with varying results are posted on the web. Mr. Unger and Mr. Bucur are no doubt familiar with these artist names and the quality of their work. Mr. Unger should be applauded for his efforts and thanked for posting. But he will probably admit that there are better versions out there of some of these photos. With no disrespect to Mr. Unger, my favorite artist is Klimbin.
Dalriada Skillen 7 years ago
Alexandru, I can find nothing that cites the colour of Rasputin’s eyes and so perhaps you can enlighten us further by citing your sources. Moreover, by the time I reached this final image I was well and truly tired of your commentary. I can see how historical accuracy in terms of uniform, medals etc is important to those who enjoy militaria and perhaps even the colour of a Hollywood actresses’ dress is deemed important in some way, but in the end it all just got a bit, ‘not again’, and I think your point was made some time ago. You ought to have just allowed users to enjoy the pictures once you had made your point.
#101
Kaiser Franz Joseph, 1895. The Second To Last Austrian Emporer In His Military Uniform
Final score:
15points
Alexandru Bucur 7 years ago
His general uniform had two broad red stripes running down each pant leg: des-kaiser...formen.jpg 
The decorations are also a bit off, here is how they should have looked like: Galaunifor...seph_I.jpg 
Shari H 7 years ago
"here is how they should have looked like" is a grammatically incorrect sentence. "Here is what they looked like" or "here is how they should have looked" are both correct. You do not use how and end with like.
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Trish Bradley 7 years ago
Quit bitching Alexandru Bucur, he is an artist and has used artistic licence!
#102
Gustav Mahler
Final score:
13points
Add New Image
What do you think ?
Devon Delzine 7 years ago
Great i think too much people here comments want perfect but they them selves need practice being perfect before stating it should be
Mark D 7 years ago
IKR? It was almost like “How fake! His mole was 16cm not 15cm”😂🤣😂🤔
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Kenny Kulbiski 7 years ago
Enjoyed this very much. I have no idea how it's done but it seems it would be tedious and very difficult. I'm impressed.
Mario Unger (Post author) 7 years ago
Thank you. Yes it is a bit difficult, but with a lot of practice it is not :)
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Bonnie Fullerton 7 years ago
These are astounding, I don’t care what your critic says. You bring these people vibrantly to life.
Devon Delzine 7 years ago
Great i think too much people here comments want perfect but they them selves need practice being perfect before stating it should be
Mark D 7 years ago
IKR? It was almost like “How fake! His mole was 16cm not 15cm”😂🤣😂🤔
Load More Replies... Kenny Kulbiski 7 years ago
Enjoyed this very much. I have no idea how it's done but it seems it would be tedious and very difficult. I'm impressed.
Mario Unger (Post author) 7 years ago
Thank you. Yes it is a bit difficult, but with a lot of practice it is not :)
Load More Replies... Bonnie Fullerton 7 years ago
These are astounding, I don’t care what your critic says. You bring these people vibrantly to life.
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