Works by notable photojournalist John Launois 'L'Americain' on display in Club lobby

The works of iconic photojournalist John Launois, who traveled around the world to capture major historic events for the great photo magazines, are on display this month in the lobby of the National Press Club.

Launois, a naturalized American citizen, died in 2002 in Liechtenstein.

The exhibit opened Oct. 7 with a panel discussion of Launois' posthumous book, "L'Americain: A Photojournalist's Life," co-sponsored by Photography and Book and Author committees as a fundraiser for the National Press Club Journalism Institute. Donald Connery, a former Time-Life foreign correspondent, led the discussion with Launois' son and co-author Chris Pan Launois.

With the book, Launois has "scripted his own resurrection," Connery said.

Launois, who grew up poor in France, became one of the most prolific, highly paid and wildly traveled photojournalists of his time, Connery said. Among his many assignments, he and Connery explored the Soviet Union during the Cold War for a 16-page Life Magazine spread titled, "Two Yanks in Siberia."

Launois made his mark as a photo essayist whose subjects included The Beatles and Malcolm X.

His photographs appeared in many of the great magazines of the day, including Fortune, Time, Life, Newsweek, Look, Rolling Stone, National Geographic, Look, Paris Match, London’s Sunday Times, and many other American, European, and Asian publications.