Pathbreaking AP Photographer Kathy Willens, 74, Dies; Captured Sports & More

NEW YORK (AP) — Kathy Willens, a pioneering photojournalist, who established the presence of women behind the camera from the Super Bowl to war-torn Somalia during her nearly 45-year career at The Associated Press, passed away on Tuesday. She was 74.

Willens died at her Brooklyn home from ovarian cancer, diagnosed shortly after her retirement in 2021, according to her nephew, Ben Willens.

A generous colleague and a fierce competitor, Willens was one of the AP’s first female staff photographers. Over her career, she captured over 90,000 images—documenting presidents, Pope John Paul II, protests, wars, sports victories, and human tragedies.

“A stroll through her archive is a walk through history,” said former AP Director of Photography J. David Ake, who edited many of her pictures over the last two decades of her career. He referred to her tendency to shoot numerous frames, but among them, he always found a gem capturing something no one else had seen.

Willens specialized in sports, gaining enough prominence that the New York Yankees honored her on the field during her retirement. In a pre-game ceremony, manager Aaron Boone presented her with a framed print, signed by former pitcher David Cone, of her photo of him after a perfect game in 1999.

Her journey in photojournalism began in the mid-1970s when women were scarce in the profession. “When covering sports, I was almost always the only female on the field,” Willens told Buzzfeed News in 2021. “There were no role models for me.”

Her interest in cameras was sparked by her father, Lionel, a jewelry store owner and hobbyist photographer, who maintained a darkroom in their Detroit-area home. Her mother, Gertrude, a dental hygienist, would blend her professional interests into family activities, such as displaying vacation slides alongside photos of molars.

Willens began her career as a freelancer for suburban Detroit newspapers in 1974. She soon joined The Miami News as a photo lab technician, later becoming a staff photographer, capturing front-page and prominent pictures. She was hired by AP in 1976.

Based in Miami, Willens covered significant events such as the 1980 Mariel boatlift, when nearly 125,000 Cubans arrived in the U.S. in six months, and the aftermath of riots following the acquittal of officers charged with beating a Black executive.

She snapped historic moments, including Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign, George H.W. Bush’s post-victory surf-fishing, and Queen Elizabeth II’s 1977 visit to the Bahamas. She also caught legendary shots like world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali training in Miami Beach.

“Sports can capture moments of extreme emotion,” Willens told Buzzfeed. “The joy of it is always right there in front of you.”

Willens covered six Olympics, 11 Super Bowls, and numerous NBA finals, World Series, and championships. A point of pride was seeing her 1977 photo of tennis icon Billie Jean King on the cover of King’s 2021 autobiography, “All In.”

She also focused on stories about Florida’s Haitian and Cuban immigrants, which became part of a 2004 exhibition at the Historical Museum of Southern Florida.

Transferring to AP’s New York headquarters in 1993, Willens was sent to civil war-torn Somalia. After enduring the loss of fellow journalists there, she decided to focus on news and sports closer to home.

Her New York colleagues recognized her determination and skill in getting the perfect shot, no matter the challenges. AP business photo editor Peter Morgan praised her precise yet exquisite photography.

Willens pursued many projects, including an eight-month documentary photo series on mothers in New York state prisons. She continually sought to capture essential stories, even during the final months of her career.

Her accolades included an Associated Press Managing Editors Award for Reportorial Excellence and multiple wins in the Baseball Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame photo competitions.

While at AP, Willens taught photojournalism as an adjunct professor at New York University and continued to share her expertise shortly before her passing. She was also an avid birder, often documenting her sightings in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park.

A memorial service is planned for her at Prospect Park.

Source: AP