William L. Miller, 87, Photographer
William L. Miller, a Chicago resident and former longtime Brookfield resident, died Jan. 1, 2006 at the West Side V.A. Hospital in Chicago.
Born William Bennet Finnerty in Pittsburgh on Dec. 7, 1918, he was orphaned as a baby. Adopted by Alphonso Miller, he spent his early childhood in Kansas City, Mo. Following the death of his adoptive mother, Mr. Miller moved to Brackenridge, Penn. There he and his father, who worked as a stone mason, lived with his father’s brother, George, and his wife, Minnie.
A member of the Boy Scouts, Mr. Miller attained the rank of Eagle Scout and, as a member of the Brackenridge volunteer fire department, played cymbals in that group’s drum and bugle corps, which won a national championship in the 1930s and marched in the Apple Blossom Festival of 1938 in Winchester, Va.
Mr. Miller joined the U.S. Army in 1939, rising to the rank of master sergeant. In the early days of World War II, he trained recruits at Fort Ord, Calif. Later, he deployed to the South Pacific as a member of the 1st Medical Regiment, 603rd Medical Clearing Company, participating in seven invasions.
Island hopping throughout the Pacific Theater, the unit finally ended up in the Philippines, where it became one of the medical teams that cared for survivors of the Bataan Death March. In all, Mr. Miller spent six years in the army, and later joined the American Legion.
Discharged from the army, Mr. Miller set off for Chicago to fulfill his dream of becoming a professional photographer. He studied with Hungarian artist and former Bauhaus instructor Laszlo Maholy-Nagy at the Institute of Design (later part of the Illinois Institute of Technology).
In the late 1940s, Mr. Miller joined the A. George Miller Photography Co. in Chicago and often contributed to photographic magazines, specializing in darkroom techniques. Soon after, he established his own photography studio, which he ran until his retirement.
In Chicago, Mr. Miller photographed musicians (including Ella Fitzgerald) and sports figures. His photograph of Bill Veeck graced the cover of Veeck’s biography, “Veeck?”As In Wreck” by Ed Linn. He later donated much of his work from the 1950s and 1960s to the Chicago Historical Society.
For many years, Mr. Miller was also the photographer for the Ebony Magazine food feature. He made lifetime friends at the magazine and gained great respect for its founder, John H. Johnson. Over the years, his pictures graced the pages of the Chicago Tribune magazine, Life, Ebony and many corporate publications.
He was an active member of the Suburban Fellowship Center of Forest Park, where he was past president. He was also a member of the Serenity Club in LaGrange.
Mr. Miller was preceded in death by his first wife, Rose (nee Kuzelka), and his son, Michael Miller.
He is survived by his wife of 16 years, Alison Hubbard; his son, William (Kate McWhirter) Miller Jr.; his daughter, Sue Ann Miller; and six grandchildren.
A funeral service was held Jan. 6 at Kuratko Funeral Home in North Riverside. Memorial contributions were appreciated to the Alzheimer’s Association.