San Luis Obispo Museum of Art is showcasing the celebrity photos of Michael Childers

Point to any of the celebrity photos on display at the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art and Michael Childers can tell you a story.

Take, for instance, the shot of a normally gregarious Ringo Starr looking very serious in a photo Childers shot for Rolling Stone.

“They thought he might not show up for the photo session because John Lennon had just been murdered about six days before, and he was shattered,” Childers says, sitting on a bench in front of the photo. “But he came to the photo session, and we talked about what it was like to be a Beatle after the death and murder of John Lennon. He said, ‘From now on, I look over my shoulder with fear every day of my life because we’re targets.’ ”

Near Ringo, there’s a photo of an aging Mae West, shot during a break from her last movie, “Myra Breckinridge.”

“That was in that famous Edith Head dress that was made of shark bone and steel reinforcement,” he says.

On the other side of the room there’s the photo of one of his favorite celebs. “Natalie Wood was my first big star,” Childers says. “She was a huge star — and so wonderful and nice. I loved her. I did all her photography up until the week before she died. In fact, I was invited to go on that boat that week.”

The Childers show — capped off by a gala party Saturday — is a rarity for the small museum in San Luis Obispo: a series of black and white photos focusing on celebrities in music, movies, the visual arts, architecture and literature.

The show consists of two exhibits— Icons and Legends, featuring photos of artists like rocker Rod Stewart, actor Clint Eastwood, director James Cameron and author Mickey Spillane. The other show — Images of Warhol — features photos of the pop artist Andy Warhol that had been missing for nearly three decades.

“I lost all these negatives for 28 years,” Childers said. “And they were found by a friend when we moved out of our studio in New York. Up in a shoebox.”

Childers, whose photos have graced hundreds of album covers, magazine covers and movie posters, had an affinity for movie stars as a child.

“I grew up in small towns,” he said, speaking at the Museum of Art during a visit from his home in Palm Springs. “My father was in the Marine Corps, so he was always stationed in these terrible places out in the middle of nowhere. Movies were my escape. And magazines — I used to cut out great images from great photographers.”

While studying film at UCLA — where future Doors front man Jim Morrison was a sound man on one of his film projects — Childers took head shots of many unknown artists who would later become famous. Some of those included rock groups, like Jefferson Airplane, the Grass Roots and the Lovin’ Spoonful. Later, he would capture up-and-coming actors, like John Travolta, Susan Sarandon, Richard Gere and Al Pacino.

“It was amazing to work with them and help form their image,” Childers said. “And the freedom — you could do anything And they weren’t superstars. Later on, when I worked with them again, they were superstars, and there was a whole list of things from their PR people — ‘You can do this, you can’t do that, you can’t show them laughing ’ ”

A 35-year relationship with the late director John Schlesinger — who hosted many celebrity-packed parties after his film “Midnight Cowboy” — generated even more contacts, making Childers an entertainment insider.

“From age 8, I didn’t want to be rich,” said Childers, who also photographs ballet dancers, figures in yoga poses and home interiors. “I didn’t want to be about success. I didn’t want money. I didn’t want to be a lawyer or a doctor, like my brothers. I wanted my life to be an adventure.”

And for over 40 years, Childers has traveled the world on that adventure.

The photos in his exhibit chronicle a few of those.

There’s Cameron on the set of “The Terminator,” with star Arnold Schwarzenegger in the background. There’s Stewart sitting in a pub during his heyday. And English artist David Hockney lounging on a pool inflatable while wearing a $10,000 suit.

“It’s basically a copy of a photograph taken in 1903 by Lartig, the great French photographer, of his brother, Zazou,” Childers says of the Hockney shot. “I showed him that famous photography by Lartig and told him, ‘I want to do our version of it.’ ”

The most recognizable photo is his close-up of actor Laurence Olivier.

Because he’d shot photos at Olivier’s National Theater in London — he remains the only American photographer invited to shoot productions there — he had earned Olivier’s trust. So, while shooting images during the making of the movie “The Marathon Man,” he took Olivier aside for a stark portrait that played off Olivier’s role as a Nazi war criminal.

“He allowed me to get closer and closer with that big wide angle lens,” Childers said. “He hated photographers. But because I’d worked with him at the National Theater, he let me do whatever I wanted. I was so nervous. And he said, ‘I assume you’re coming in for my mean upper lip.’ And I said, ‘Yes, sir.’ And he said, ‘Go right ahead — get my mean upper lip.’ ”

A photo across the room shows a more candid moment from the “Marathon Man” set — actor Dustin Hoffman taking his own photo of Olivier.

“They were just goofing around together at Paramount, between takes,” Childers said. “And Dustin grabbed my camera and said, ‘Let me take some of Larry.’ He called him ‘Lord.’ They had a love-hate relationship with each other because Dustin always liked to improvise, and Laurence Olivier would say, ‘My dear boy — can’t you just learn how to act?’ ”

Click here to see some of Childers' photography »

This story was originally published March 18, 2012 at 12:01 AM with the headline "San Luis Obispo Museum of Art is showcasing the celebrity photos of Michael Childers."