Ed van der Elsken

'These are more of less the dangerous guys...off course you never know exactly. But in a later stadium i have heard some of these guys do creepy things in certain situations. Just being for sale, for hire. Guns for hire, etc. Tough guys fighting for corporations or political parties. Concerning their appearance, their clothing: in Japan today, there is this tendency for imitation. In this transitional period from traditional life to modern, western style, a lot of people miss confidence, an own style. There is a tremendous amount of seeking, experimentation and imitation. These guys echo the Chicago 1930s style gangsters. They see the films and the copy it, the hats, gloves, dark suits, way of walking and a slight aggressive this-is-our-street attitude. They were kind of flabbergaster when I made the picture, there are not that many westerners in Kamagasaki. Before they knew it, they picture was taken. For the fans: half a second, not looking through the viewfinder, in F2.' - From: Ed van der Elsken, 'Sweet Life', Amsterdam, De Bezige Bij 1966 "These are more or less really dangerous cats - you never know for sure, of course. But later I read and heard that such men in certain situations are capable of very nasty things. Guns for hire to the highest bidder, political or commercial. As far as their clothes are concerned: in Japan today, during this transition period from the old traditional life to the modern Western style, many people have lost their self-confidence, their own individuality. There's a tremendous lot of searching, experimenting, imitating. These boys have found what they want: the Chicago gangster style of the 1930s. They've seen all the movies, and they've got it down pat - hat, gloves, dark suits, the way of walking. A bit of terror in the streets. They were slightly taken aback when I made the picture, for not many Westerners roam around the Kamagasaki, but it was all over before they quite realised what had happened. For camera buffs: half a second, hand-held, diaphragm F2, with a Summicron wide-angle lens." From: Elsken, Ed van der., et al. Ed Van Der Elsken: Sweet Life. Errata Editions, 2012. "Young Yakuza Gangsters, Osaka, 1960. In Japan Van der Elsken became more and more the director: 'I seem to recall that I told them what they had to do in Dutch- the tone of your voice is part of your body language. They posed, I took two shots. One was blurred... Their fashions and poses were inspired bu Chicago gangsters, Al Capone style.'" - Visser, Hripsime, " Ed van der Elsken 55". New York: Phaidon Press, 2002. 'Chinpira, young yakuza thugs. I seem to recall that I told them what they had to do in Dutch - tone of voice is part of your body language. They posed, I took two shots. One was blurred. Technically they were tricky, long exposures hand-held. Leica with a wide angle. Their fashions and poses were inspired by Chicago gangsters, Al Capone style'. Osaka 1960 (From: Elsken, Ed van der. 'Once Upon a Time'. Amsterdam: Fragment Uitgeverij, 1992., pp. 172/173)