Nat Fein
Nathaniel Fein (August 7, 1914 – September 26, 2000) was a photographer for the New York Herald Tribune for 33 years. He was an only child and he grew up in Manhattan New York. During the Great Depression in the United States his father left and he was raised by his mother Frances.
Also recorded as Nathaniel Fein
Nat Fein

Nathaniel Fein · Time 100 Photos: The Babe Bows Out. Originally published in the New York Herald Tribune. Cropped from the source image to reflect the portions of the photograph that were published in newspapers at · Public domain
- Name
- Nathaniel Fein
- Born
- August 7, 1914
- Birthplace
- Manhattan, New York, U.S.
- Died
- 26 September 2000
- Place of death
- Westwood, New Jersey, U.S.
- Occupation
- Photographer
- Known for
- 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Photography
- Spouse
- Lois Fein
- Nationality
- United States
- Honours
- Pulitzer Prize for Photography
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Documentary summary
Nathaniel Fein (August 7, 1914 – September 26, 2000) was a photographer for the New York Herald Tribune for 33 years. He was an only child and he grew up in Manhattan New York. During the Great Depression in the United States his father left and he was raised by his mother Frances.
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Note VALÉORINE
Nat Fein (1914–2000) was a journalist and photographer, of American nationality. The journalist was born in Manhattan and died in Westwood.
Works are held at Museum of Modern Art and The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Honours include Pulitzer Prize for Photography.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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wikidata · Q6967831 · wikipedia · Nat Fein
In this article
Biography
Biography
Fein was known for taking human-interest photos, but he did take a photograph of Babe Ruth at the occasion of Ruth's number retirement ceremony in 1948. Fein received the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for the photograph which he titled, Babe Ruth Bows Out. Fein was married to his wife Lois and together they had one child named David.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Nathaniel Fein • Birth Name — Nathaniel Fein • Born — August 7, 1914 • Birthplace — Manhattan, New York, U.S. • Died — 26 September 2000 • Place of death — Westwood, New Jersey, U.S. • Other Names — Nat • Occupation — Photographer • Years Active — 1933–1966 • Employer — New York Herald Tribune • Known for — 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Photography • Notable Works — Babe Ruth Bows Out • Spouse — Lois Fein • Children — David Fein
Early life
Early life
• Illustration — Babe Ruth Bows Out, 1948 Fein was born August 7, 1914 to Jewish-Russian immigrants and he was raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. His father Hyman Fein was a Vaudeville actor who left him and his mother Francis during the Great Depression in the United States. His mother worked in the garment district as a seamstress. He graduated from Erasmus Hall High School in 1932. In 1933 he began working as a copy boy for the New York Herald Tribune. During World War II Fein served as an Army Air Force photographer.
Career
Career
In 1936 Fein was hired as a full-time photographer. He was a staff photographer at the New York Herald Tribune and he worked for the newspaper until 1966 when the paper ended. On June 13, 1948, Fein took his most well-known photograph, Babe Ruth Bows Out, which was awarded the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Photography. He referred to himself as a person who took human-interest photographs and he was not normally a sports photographer. On the day he captured the Pulitzer prize winning photograph Fein was filling in for a photographer who had called in sick. He used a Speed Graphic camera to capture images. In his career he took over 50,000 photographs. He photographed Albert Einstein, John F. Kennedy and Queen Elizabeth.
Personal life
Personal life
After the New York Herald Tribune went out of business Fein went to work as a corporate photographer. From 1968 to 1980 he worked for Orange and Rockland Utilities. He lived in Tappan, New York with his wife Lois and his son David. Fein died on September 26, 2000, at the age of 86. In 2008, author David Nieves wrote a book about Fein titled: The Fein Story Behind the Pictures: A Revealing Look at the Famous Images of Pulitzer Prize Photographer Nat Fein. Fein's life was the subject of a 2013 documentary titled, Nat Fein: A Talent for Living. Filmmakers Frank and Catherine LoBuono used the Fein images from Fein's career to create the documentary.
Identity and overview
Identity and overview
The following is established of the heading itself.
Works and production
Works and production
The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Manhattan.
Birth place
Westwood.
Death place
Primary material
Documents and archives
Institutional database
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q6967831: Nat Fein
Scholarly · Wikimedia Foundation
reference work
- “Nat Fein”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Nieves, David. Who was Nat Fein?. The Journal News. 4. 2 February 2009.
- 2.Goldstein, Richard. Nat Fein, 86, Pulitzer Winner For Picture of Ruth's Final Bow. The New York Times. September 29, 2000.
- 3.Pitoniak, Scott. Back to Babe: The Nat Fein photo Baseball Hall of Fame. baseballhall.org. National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- 4.The Pulitzer Prize Photographs @ NCSU Libraries, 2003.
- 5.Baird, Bob. Film Glimpses Nat Fein. The Journal News. 3. 9 October 2011.
- 6.Nieves, David. The Fein Story Behind the Pictures: A Revealing Look at the Famous Images of Pulitzer Prize Photographer Nat Fein. Nat Fein Collection Incorporated. 2008. 978-0-9820943-0-3.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
Institutional database
Wikidata, structured authority record Q6967831: Nat FeinWikimedia Foundation
Institutional witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
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