"Shining's Iconic Final Shot Photo Found After 45 Years"

Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 film adaptation of The Shining boasts one of the most iconic final shots in horror cinema: a haunting photograph from the Overlook Hotel's 1921 Fourth of July ball, prominently featuring Jack Torrance (played by Jack Nicholson), who, paradoxically, had not yet been born at the time the photo was supposedly taken. This image, where Nicholson's face was digitally added to a real photograph, had faded into obscurity until recently. Excitingly, the original 1921 Fourth of July ball photograph has now been unearthed, 45 years after the film's release.

Retired University of Winchester academic Alasdair Spark shared insights into the discovery process on Getty's Instagram. He detailed, "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. Valentine's Day Ball, 14 February 1921, at the Empress Rooms, the Royal Palace Hotel, Kensington." Alongside this revelation, a new scan from the image’s original glass-plate negative and supporting handwritten documents were also shared.

Spark, along with New York Times staffer Arick Toller and a dedicated group of Redditors, embarked on an extensive search to find the image. He recounted, "It was starting to seem impossible, every cross-reference to Casani failed to match. Other likely places that were suggested didn’t match. 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."

Spark also mentioned that on-set photographer Murray Close, who captured the image of Nicholson used in the film, had initially pointed him toward the BBC Hulton Library as the source. Knowing that Hulton had acquired Topical Press in 1958 and that Getty later took over in 1991, Spark decided to delve into Getty’s vast collection of images. This led to the discovery that the image was licensed to Hawk Films, Kubrick’s production company, on October 10, 1978, specifically for 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 revelation should thrill fans of The Shining. Stephen King's novel, released in 1977, has been adapted into two notable productions: Kubrick’s iconic film and Mick Garris’ faithful 1997 miniseries.