This biography of George Eastman is the first since 1930 to explore the life of the man who revolutionized photography. Starting as a 23-year-old bank clerk, Eastman simplified the cumbersome wet-plate process after purchasing his first camera. Within two years, he patented a dry-plate coating machine and began selling photographic plates, ultimately leaving his bank job to establish his own company. His success stemmed not only from his inventions but also from his talent for raising capital, recruiting skilled employees, and outmaneuvering competitors. Brayer vividly portrays Eastman as a man who preferred to stay out of the public eye, insisting on anonymity for his donations, which led the Boston Globe to label him "America's most modest and least-known millionaire." His aggressive business acumen contrasted with his personal life; he humorously aimed for two six-month vacations each year, often cycling through Europe or exploring Yellowstone Park by stagecoach. An art lover, Eastman once traded 60 shares of Kodak stock for a painting, and he was a classical music enthusiast who founded a school for virtuosos. He contributed to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's new campus and a medical school for the University of Rochester, becoming the largest benefactor for African American education in the 1920s and a key supporter of the Tuskegee Institute.
