There will be a phalanx of photographers lined up on the field Sunday, Feb. 8, for Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium in California.
John Biever will have bragging rights over all his peers for that showdown between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots.
Only he will be able to say he’s shot photos at all 60 Super Bowls. “Coming to the 60th Super Bowl now and — ‘Wow!’ — I’ve been very fortunate,” said Biever when reflecting on his track record.
Biever’s interest in photography came early. His father, Vern Biever, was the Green Bay Packers team photographer who started taking photos of them in 1941 as a student at nearby St. Norbert’s College.
John soaked in everything his father taught and was 14 in the middle of the Packers dynasty years in the 1960s.
“How many kids can grab a professional camera at that age and get on the field of the championship game? Not too many,” said Biever. “But then you’ve got to come along with the goods, too, so I guess I did that eventually.”
At the 1965 NFL championship between the Packers and the Cleveland Browns, Biever took a black-and-white photo of Packers quarterback Bart Starr, spinning and preparing to hand the ball off, that eventually got published in Look magazine.
The next year, at 15, he wandered the sideline as a photographer at Super Bowl I at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. It was an exciting trip for a teen photographer from Wisconsin at that time.
“Part-way through the game, I look next to me, and there’s Bob Hope kneeling down,” said Biever and added with a laugh, “It’s like, ‘That’s not going to happen anymore.'”
Biever’s favorite picture from that first Super Bowl was another black-and-white photo —of Vince Lombardi. The image of the Packers’ legendary coach was captured in the moment he ran off the field following their Super Bowl victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.
Biever said that photo’s special because his father, who worked with him for the first 35 Super Bowls, is also in the picture.
The next year, vying for a chance to play in Super Bowl II, the Packers played the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL championship game. It was called the Ice Bowl because the temperature was 13 below zero in Green Bay, Wis., that day.
Biever was in the right spot for the game-winning touchdown in the final seconds.
“My dad was over photographing Lombardi, and Lombardi just turned and ran to the locker room. That was it,” Biever said. “He got nothing, and I got the winning play of the Ice Bowl.”
Biever’s black-and-white photo, taken from the end zone, shows the brute force of the blockers opening a hole, allowing Bart Starr to break through and score.
“It’s the only picture I have on my wall here,” said Biever from the living room of his San Diego home. “That was probably my, if it’s not my favorite photo, it’s the one most remembered.”
In fact, Biever says it’s an iconic photo he still sees on tavern walls in Wisconsin. The result of that Packers win over the Cowboys allowed him to travel to Super Bowl II.
He’s been on a roll ever since.
For 30 Super Bowls, Biever shot photos for Sports Illustrated magazine and, in all the years since, he’s been taking pictures for the NFL.
Jamie Squire, a long-time photographer for Getty Images, says Biever has a knack for being at the right place at the right time,
“The most amazing thing about still photography is the fleeting moment. That’s what John is best at capturing. That split-second moment that lives on forever.”
John Biever turns 75 a little more than a week after the Super Bowl, on Feb. 17. He says Super Bowl LX will probably be his last, but he still looks forward to capturing the spontaneous moment everyone will remember.
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Transcript:
STEVE INSKEEP: When the Seattle Seahawks play the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 60 on Sunday. Photographer John Biever will be there. He is the only one who has worked at every Super Bowl. Greg Echlin reports.
GREG ECHLIN: John Biever’s interest in photography came early. His father, Vern, was the Green Bay Packers team photographer. John soaked in everything his father taught and was 14 in the middle of the Packers dynasty years in the 1960s.
JOHN BIEVER: How many kids can grab a professional camera at that age and get on the field at the championship game? Not too many. But then you got to come along with the goods, too. So I guess I did that eventually.
ECHLIN: The game was the 1965 NFL championship. One of the photos John shot was published in Look Magazine. It was in black and white, and there was Packers quarterback Bart Starr spinning and preparing to hand the ball off. The next year, it was Super Bowl 1 at the Los Angeles Coliseum, as described in this NFL documentary on the game.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Quick ball line-up here. Got to take it down, fellas.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: OK.
UNIDENTIFIED NARRATOR: This premiere spectacle of sport took place in the carnival atmosphere appropriate to the Hollywood setting.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
ECHLIN: It was an exciting time for a teenage photographer.
BIEVER: Partway through the game, I look next to me, and there’s Bob Hope kneeling down. It’s like, oh, that’s not going to happen anymore.
ECHLIN: Biever’s favorite picture from that Super Bowl was another black-and-white photo, Vince Lombardi, the Packers’ legendary coach, running off the field after the Super Bowl victory. Biever got the shot and says it’s special because his father is also in the picture. The next year, vying for a chance to play in Super Bowl 2, the Packers played the Dallas Cowboys in the 1967 NFL championship game. It was called the Ice Bowl because the temperature was 13 below zero in Green Bay, Wisconsin, that day. Young John was in the right spot for the game-winning touchdown in the final seconds, as chronicled by NFL Films.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: And the Green Bay Packers, in one of the most thrilling comebacks of all time, have beaten the Dallas Cowboys to win the 1967 NFL championship.
BIEVER: My dad was over photographing Lombardi. Lombardi just turned and ran to the locker room, and that was it. He got nothing. I got the winning play of the Ice Bowl.
ECHLIN: It was another Black and white photo, this time from the end zone and shows the brute force of the blockers opening a hole, allowing Bart Starr to break through and score.
BIEVER: It’s the only picture I have on my wall here, and that was probably my – if it’s not my favorite photo, it’s the one most remembered.
ECHLIN: In fact, Biever says it’s an iconic photo he still sees on tavern walls in Wisconsin. That game allowed him to travel to Super Bowl 2, and he’s been on a roll ever since. For 30 Super Bowls, he shot photos for Sports Illustrated magazine, and in all the years since, he’s been taking pictures for the NFL. Jamie Squire is a longtime photographer for Getty Images, he says Biever has a knack for being at the right place at the right time.
JAMIE SQUIRE: The most amazing thing about still photography is the fleeting moment. And that’s what John is best at capturing, is that split-second moment that then lives on forever.
ECHLIN: John Biever turns 75 later this month. He says Super Bowl 60 will probably be his last, but he still looks forward to capturing the spontaneous moment everyone will remember.
For NPR News, I’m Greg Echlin.
(SOUNDBITE OF THE VALDONS’ “WHATCHA GONNA DO (FEAT. THE LAKER’S)”)
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