Obituaries : Antony di Gesu; Photographer Known for Celebrity Subjects

Antony di Gesu, 79, a photographer known for his celebrity portraits. Di Gesu began his career at age 14 as an assistant to a theatrical photographer, and his work became known for its theatrical style and creative use of shadows. His subjects included authors, musicians, politicians, scientists and business leaders. Among them were J. D. Salinger, W. H. Auden, Norman Mailer, Truman Capote, Irving Berlin, Margaret Mead and Jonas Salk. Between 1965 and 1970, he photographed numerous covers for Saturday Review magazine. Di Gesu was the official portrait photographer for Scripps Clinic in La Jolla and the director of exhibitions for United States International University in San Diego. He also hosted a San Diego television show, “The Artists.” In La Jolla, on Monday of the complications of pneumonia.