king of cool

steve mcqueen aims a pistol in his living room, ca, 1963 

steve mcqueen & his wife, neile adams, in sulphur bath, big sur, ca 1963 

steve mcqueen swinging from rope in his gym, ca, 1963 

steve mcqueen after motorcycle race, mojave desert, ca, 1963 

steve mcqueen & his wife, neile adams, in target practice, ca, 1963

steve mcqueen & his wife, neile adams, at home, hollywood, ca, 1963 

steve mcqueen & his wife, neile adams, in sulphur bath, big sur, ca 1963 

steve mcqueen smoking while talking on the phone, ca, 1963 

steve mcqueen sleeping in the back of his pick up truck, ca, 1963 

steve mcqueen in black jaguar at studio, ca 1963

all photographs by john dominis

in the spring of 1963, actor steve mcqueen was on the brink of superstardom, already popular from his big-screen breakout as one of the magnificent seven & just a couple of months away from international acclaim with the release of the great escape.

intrigued by his dramatic back-story & his off-screen exploits - mcqueen was reformed delinquent form a very poor family who got his thrills racing cars & motorcycles - LIFE magazine sent photographer john dominis to california to hang out with the 33 year old actor in his palm springs home.

three weeks & more than 40 rolls of film later, dominis had captured some astonishingly intimate & now iconic images of mcqueen & his then wife, neile adams- photos impossible to imagine in today's restricted access celebrity culture. dominis followed mcqueen through every action of daily life during their time together; the photographs that resulted lend insight into the life of an icon & reflect both is on-screen & off-screen personae - anti-hero, no-conformist, rebel, ladies man & suddenly the hottest star in hollywood.

now showing at the atlas gallery in london through october 27, 2012.