Stanley Kubrick's 1980 adaptation of The Shining features one of the most iconic and chilling final scenes in cinema history: a photograph from the Overlook Hotel's 1921 Fourth of July ball, prominently featuring Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson), despite him not yet being born. This image, created by superimposing Nicholson onto a real photograph, had long faded into obscurity until now, resurfacing 45 years after the film's release.
Retired University of Winchester academic Alasdair Spark shared the journey of uncovering the original photograph on Getty's Instagram. He explained, "Following the earlier identification by facial recognition software of the unknown man in the photograph at the end of The Shining as Santos Casani, a London ballroom dancer, I can reveal that the photo was one of three taken by the Topical Press Agency at a St. Valentines Day Ball, 14 February 1921, at the Empress Rooms, the Royal Palace Hotel, Kensington." The post included a new scan from the image's original glass-plate negative and supporting handwritten documents.
Spark, alongside New York Times staffer Arick Toller and dedicated Redditors, embarked on a challenging quest to find the image. "It was starting to seem impossible; every cross-reference to Casani failed to match. Other likely places that were suggested didn’t match," he recounted. "There were some places we could not find images for and we started to fear that meant the photo might be lost to history, and never be found."
The historian further disclosed that on-set photographer Murray Close, who captured the image of Nicholson used in the film, had informed him that the original photo was sourced from the BBC Hulton Library. Knowing that Hulton had acquired Topical Press in 1958 and that Getty took over in 1991, Spark searched through Getty's vast archives. They found that the image was licensed to Hawk Films, Kubrick’s production company, on October 10, 1978, for use in The Shining.
Spark concluded, "Joan Smith had said the photo dated from 1923. Stanley Kubrick had said 1921 and he was correct. The photo doesn’t show any of the celebrities I had speculated on — the Trix Sisters for instance — nor the bankers, financiers or presidents others like Rob Ager have imagined there. No devil worshippers either. Nobody was composited into it except Jack Nicholson. It shows a group of ordinary London people on a Monday evening. ‘All the best people,’ as the manager of the Overlook Hotel said."
This discovery should resonate deeply with fans of the film. Stephen King's novel The Shining, published in 1977, has been adapted twice: Kubrick's iconic film and Mick Garris' faithful 1997 miniseries.
