At the age of 10, flipping through issues of Life magazine at the library every week, Dolores Allen Littles knew. “I loved photographs that told stories,” she told The Times. News stories in particular caught her attention. “I remember thinking to myself, ‘The world would be a better place if people could read and look at these pictures. It would make a difference in their lives,” she recalled.
Littles’ love for pictures that told stories would eventually lead her to Time–Life, where she worked her way up to photo editor, a remarkable feat in an era when such opportunities for women, particularly women of color, were rare.
Born in 1931 on Hempstead, Long Island, Littles remembers her childhood fondly. But she soon became aware that there was more out there for her to discover: “It was a very progressive neighborhood with Blacks and whites. But it was very small.” She recalled, “Once a month, my mother would take me to the Apollo Theater for the afternoon show. It gave me another world. There was always a Black movie. I didn’t know there was such a thing as Black actors and actresses. And in the live shows, I saw Ella Fitzgerald and people like that. The world of Black culture was opening up to me.”
Littles earned her associate’s degree at Pace University in New York City, and a B.A. in education from City College. Teaching was one of the careers commonly open to women at the time, but it was not one that Littles wanted to pursue. “I knew I needed a B.A. to progress, but I wasn’t interested in teaching,” she said.
Similarly, at her first job at a manufacturing company, Littles felt boxed in: “It was a time in life when girls did certain things. And also, I was the only Black girl. I’ve always been the only Black everything. I was there with white girls, and I remembered all they talked about was marrying well. They thought that policemen and firemen were the epitome of success. To me, that was so minimal, and my dreams were much higher than that. I couldn’t wait to get out of there.”
Determined to live out her dream, Littles applied to Time–Life about 10 times. “I thought they saw the world, and I wanted to be a part of that,” she said.
When she eventually landed a job at the clip desk, she was tasked with cutting out news articles from the New York Times, the Herald Tribune, and other papers for the research library. Following her passion for photography, Littles kept applying for jobs with ever more responsibility, eventually advancing to becoming a photo editor, a rare exception for a woman at the time: “Women were always the assistant, never ‘the’ person. I became ‘the’ person after many years.”
Now Littles was able to shape visual storytelling at Time–Life, working with photographers to craft compelling visual narratives. She selected freelance photographers, collaborated with them on assignments, and provided guidance and feedback.
Asked what makes a good photograph, Littles replies that after seeing thousands of images, “It either hits you or it doesn’t. There’s something that makes you know this will work.”
As an example, Littles refers to a 1969 photograph that hangs on her wall of Mahalia Jackson performing, given to her by Herb Robinson. The singer stands on an outdoor stage, turned away from us. Her prominent figure, hip jutting to the left, takes up much of the space, conveying a commanding presence. Robinson keeps our attention on Mahalia. The man to the left is in the far distance, hands clasped as if in prayer while listening to the singer. And the shiny black piano blocks the head of the seated man behind, rendering him less important. Littles describes her reaction. “It’s only her rear that you see, but you know what she’s thinking and where she’s coming from. Not because she’s Mahalia, but because of the way the photographer shot her. I see a woman who is in command, and that’s what stands out to me. It might be because I’m female, and I need women to command a spot, or it may be none of that at all. But there is something that draws me to it, and I know it’s a winner,” she explained.
Littles worked with some of the great photographers of her time, including Alfred Eisenstaedt, who gifted her his iconic photograph “V-J Day in Times Square” of a sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square, taken minutes after news came of Japan’s surrender to the U.S. in World War II. Others were Jay Maisel, famous for capturing the light, color, and gesture found in everyday life, and Gordon Parks, renowned for documenting social issues and the African American experience. Littles says, “It’s the relationship you make with the photographer. Sometimes you can bring out the best because you have that connection.”
Littles has also experienced history firsthand across her nearly 100 years. She was involved in the civil rights movement, and remembers the hardships that came with being a Black woman at that time. “Just to breathe air was a challenge,” she said. At work, for instance, Littles would attend meetings and ask why there were no other Black people present. “My boss said, ‘You pick where you want to go, because we can’t find them.’”
Littles has continually found refuge in the physical beauty and community of Martha’s Vineyard. “It has always been a lifesaver,” she said. She first came in 1950 when, on her first unchaperoned trip, she and a friend ventured to our shores after reading about the Island in Ebony magazine as a location for Black vacationers. The women stayed in Shearer Cottage in Oak Bluffs, a gathering place that welcomed Black visitors, many of whom had a rich arts background. When Littles married artist Jim Littles, having known him since high school, she introduced him to the Vineyard. They initially shared a house in Oak Bluffs with three other couples, eventually building a home where they later retired after summering here for 50 years.
As a full-time Islander, Littles, at 94, is still going strong, embracing life, attending exhibitions, and staying connected to photographers across the country.
