Adorable Kittens of 1902

Nothing meaningful or insightful, just some very, very cute kittens from 1902. 

These photographs come from the Canadian Copyright Collection of the British Library (which the BL put on the Wikimedia Commons). From 1895 to 1924, to register copyright in Canada you had to send one copy of the relevant work to Canada, and one to the British Library. So whoever took this pictures copyrighted them--why isn't known, although I suspect it was for use on postcards, as lots of similar kitten photo postcards can be found. No other information is known (including why they are called "The Globe Kittens"), although pretty much every site mentioning the Canadian Copyright Collection on the Wikimedia Commons has shared at least one image of the set (I haven't found any posts with all, though! and all are just so darn cute). 

British Library

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British Library

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British Library

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Cat Eats Corn

Another look at the fluffy side of LIFE magazine. This is one of my favourite examples of "fluff"-- photographs of a cat that apparently likes to eat corn on the cob. I'm sure that only one of these pictures was actually published, possibly on the last page which for a while was reserved for a light-hearted picture (I haven't yet found it, but still looking), but of course, an actual real-life photojournalist was dispatched to do this so as per the course he shot a range of pictures to get the best one/one that would best fit the page. So the LIFE archives, as well as containing some of the defining photographs of our era, includes a whole bunch of photos of a cat eating corn. 

1951, by Allan Grant. 

Allan Grant, LIFE © Time Inc.

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Allan Grant, LIFE © Time Inc.

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Allan Grant, LIFE © Time Inc.

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The Photographer's Cat

Gjon Mili is one of my favourite photographers, and I've shared photographs of his on many occasions (A general selection, stroboscopic photographs, filming of West Side Story, and 1940s nightlife in Paris). He did a lot of shooting in his own studio where he could control the lighting, of which he was a master. 

Also at his studio was his gorgeous black cat, Blackie. Blackie, it seems, never hesitated to make friends with Mili's sitters, and Mili in turn didn't hesitate to use Blackie in his shots. He also used Blackie as a sitter himself, resulting in the kind of gorgeously lit black-on-black shots only Mili could create. 

Gjon Mili, LIFE © Time Inc.

Blackie and nightclub entertainer Maune de Revel, 1946. Source

Gjon Mili, LIFE © Time Inc.

Blackie joining a model in a bridal fashion shoot, 1945. Source

Gjon Mili, LIFE © Time Inc.

Blackie sitting on a piano as opera star Jennie Tourel plays and sings, 1952. Source

The Cat Show

Photographs from a cat show in Los Angeles, 1952, shot by George Silk, some of which appeared in the December 1952 issue of LIFE. 

George Silk, LIFE © Time Inc.

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George Silk, LIFE © Time Inc.

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George Silk, LIFE © Time Inc.

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Cats and Dogs

As regular visitors to the blog know, I love old pictures of pets almost as much as people in the past loved taking pictures of them. I have just heaps sitting around waiting to be shared. Today, a small start on that!

I couldn't decide whether to post cats or dogs... so here's both!

Alfred Eisenstaedt, LIFE © Time Inc.

Dog walkers in Central Park, NYC, 1964. Source

Library of Congress

A woman with a "smoke Persian" cat, c. 1910. Source

Ralph Crane, LIFE © Time Inc.

A Siamese cat nuzzling poet Rod McKuen as he plays a record, San Francisco, 1967. Source

The Kittens of the LIFE Archives

All the vintage kitten photos you've ever wanted, and more!

Anonymous photographs from the LIFE archives. 

LIFE archives © Time Inc.

Have you melted yet? Source

LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

Nice squirrel. Source

LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

 I think I'll have him write the rest of these posts. Source

LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

Poor humiliated kitty. Source

LIFE archives © Time Inc.

Real friends chew on branches together. Source

LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

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LIFE archives © Time Inc.

This one looks like myyy kitten. :) Source