Another anniversary...
The date - November 22 - brings sad memories of President John F. Kennedy.
My actual vivid recollection was in downtown San Diego when Senator Kennedy came to California, campaigning for the highest office.
It was 1960 and I was a 21-year old former Marine Corps photographer who had just started as an older freshman at the University of San Diego.
Some buddies and I skipped classes and went downtown to see this young candidate.
Of course, I had a camera with me and stood at the back of the large crowd that had turned out in this basically Republican city.
A few months before, I was at Camp Lejeune, N.C. as a Corporal E-4, trying on my new civvies before my discharge and heading home to Charleston.
USD had offered me a photography scholarship and I jumped at the chance to be the first one in my family to attend college!
As a designated Marine Combat Photographer, I was not shy about moving up through the crowd to get closer to the candidate.
I've told this story before that I looked up at a policeman on the raised platform and held up my camera.
I told him I was the official photographer from the University of San Diego and wanted to be up there for better photos.
He had no problem with that and gave me a hand up.
I was now standing on the end of the platform with a great view of the crowd, the dignitaries, and the candidate himself.
Waited until he stretched out his left arm to make a point and turned his body and face in my direction.
"Click."
As he finished his speech, Senator Kennedy was applauded and I hopped down to street level to photograph him coming down the steps, shaking hands. Got a few more photos as someone threw confetti.
As I said, I was a newcomer to San Diego, trying to adjust my military mind to civilian activities.
I recall I was wearing my USD windbreaker that day which no doubt helped the police officer decide I was not a threat.
Back on campus, I watched the candidate's debate and generally was in tune with supporting the Catholic candidate.
I mean, it was an 11-year old Catholic University and I was an eligible voter. There was a separate College For Men and a College for Women with the beautiful Immaculata Chapel situated between the two.
The year after I graduated, the colleges combined and it was a true University, also with a School of Law, and a large seminary.
With my photography background, I started to visit the downtown newspaper, the Union-Tribune and made sure to stop in the Photo Lab to chat with the staffers there. And the boss.
About a year later, I was hired to be a lab tech and wire photo operator.
After six months working inside the lab, I was sent out on assignments and became a staff photographer.
In 1963 I was part of a team dispersed around San Diego to cover the arrival of President Kennedy.
He was to receive an honorary degree from San Diego State and be the commencement speaker.
With Secret Service approval and our newspaper credentials, we photographers and reporters swarmed all over State's campus and along the route of the Presidential motorcade in and out of the city.
I had a plum assignment.
Here I was again, on the left side of JFK, using a long lens to capture the moment and the happy June graduation crowd.
The President flew to Dallas five months later.
As I said, I have posted my photos of the candidate and, later, the President on my blog before.
I'll probably share them again in the future.
(Click on the photos for more details.)
Thanks for sharing these memories.
Labels: Democratic Party candidate Kennedy, JFK, Marine Corps combat photographer, President John F. Kennedy, USD
I was 21 ....an older college freshman
The University of San Diego was founded in 1949 and, 11 years later, I found it in 1960.
Had just finished my 3.5 years as a U.S.Marine combat photographer and was still getting used to wearing civvies.
I gratefully had accepted a scholarship at the young University as the school's first "official" photographer. The 1961 yearbook was the first for the school.
One of the first people I photographed was Senator John F. Kennedy, who had come to San Diego in 1960, campaigning to become President of the United States of America.
Just a few weeks before, I had packed up all my darkroom gear, movie camera, and Rolleiflex, left Charleston, South Carolina and headed West.
A few fellow freshmen joined me when I suggested, "
let's go see the next U.S.President."
Of course, I had my camera with me as we pushed through the crowd downtown to get closer to the platform set up on Broadway.
I recall that 56 years ago, I looked up at a policeman on the platform, told him I was the official photographer at the University, and asked if he could give me a hand getting up on the stage. The officer did.
Today is the 53rd anniversary of the assassination of the President and I have used my photo of the young man often in this blog.
Three years later, I was assigned to take his picture - as President Kennedy - when he accepted an honorary degree from San Diego State University and gave the Commencement address.
Then I was a staff photographer for the San Diego Union-Tribune newspaper and really had actual credentials to be there with my camera.
He made his fateful trip to Dallas five months later.
I went back to USD on the 45th anniversary of my graduation.
One of the fellows who had gone downtown with me to "see the Presidental candidate" was at the reunion and we talked about that afternoon.
That was a joyful day in 1960 and one to remember.
Thanks for reading this and sharing my memory of seeing the President - twice.
Labels: downtown San Diego, JFK, President Kennedy, Sen Kennedy, USD
45 Years Ago.....
I was going through my photo files and came across this photo I took in 1963.
President Kennedy flew into our seaside city to speak at graduation and receive an honorary degree at San Diego State. This was about 5 months before he went to Dallas.
As I recall, we had to go through lengthy procedures and it took several weeks for the
Union-Tribune newspapers to obtain clearance and credentials to cover the event.
In the 1960 Presidential campaign, when I was a college student on a photography scholarship at the University of San Diego, I asked a policeman if I could climb up on the platform while Senator Kennedy spoke before a huge downtown crowd.
He said
"Sure, let me give you a hand."
Labels: 1963, Dallas, JFK, November 22, President Kennedy, San Diego State, USD
VERY Little Known Fact About Me...
OK, you're right. I never was on the cover of TIME magazine (nor any other national publication).
But, the picture of my 1968 college graduation is appropriate because it represents my best kept secret.
Recently Jared, one of my fellow bloggers, tagged me to do a meme listing
" 7 things people did not know about you.".
As I thought about it, I remembered 1985 when the State of Florida routinely asked for "proof" that I was a college graduate - as stated on my resume - when I was appointed to the staff of the
Florida Division of Tourism in Tallahassee.
I realized I had none. I had no framed diploma. No transcript. All I had was this doctored magazine cover and a picture of me on stage wearing cap and gown with the Bishop in San Diego, being handed something.
Then it all came back: I had been allowed to go up and receive a BLANK piece of paper with my class, on the condition that I attend summer school and earn the final 3 credits I needed. Which I did.
But that was 17 summers ago. I needed to call USD in California and get something in writing or I could be fired for falsifying my academic credentials. Missouri government had not asked for any documents. Wow.
The Registrar's Office was skeptical at best. "We get calls like this from people who had attended but never graduated," I was told. "Can't remember it ever being 17 years later though." Any names I remembered had died or retired.
Finally a sympathetic young priest said I sounded sincere and panicky so he agreed to search through hard copies of very old records stored in boxes in the basement and would call me back on Monday.
That was a LONG weekend.
He called and said he had found the missing document and my record was being updated to show I HAD graduated. He was sending a copy of my updated transcript and added "for $10 we'll send you that diploma you've been waiting for."
Bless you Father.
Labels: cap and gown, graduation, hippies, TIME magazine, USD
USMC : Photography = College Scholarship
Being a Marine Corps photog paid off big time! Toting around a camera during my military "career" for 4 years enabled me to be the first in the family to attend college.
In 1959 I had flown to MCRD in San Diego for a week with the Camp Lejeune, N.C. Marine varsity football team. I traveled as the team photographer, NOT as a player! The late 1950s were peaceful and many very good college athletes had enlisted as reservists meaning there were lots of young, talented players in the various services then. And rivalries developed.
As my East Coast team prepared to play against the Marine Corps Recruit Depot varsity team, they had to practice each day but I was free to roam around this pretty, laid-back southern California town that was similar to my seaside Charleston.
Eventually I looked up a priest who had taught me in high school and now was a History Professor at the young (11-year old) Catholic university. He introduced me to some of the senior faculty and he suggested that since they had no photographer maybe I would be a good candidate. I was experienced, had my own equipment, was now very interested in starting college and was about to end my enlistment in the Corps.
I accepted an offer of a photography scholarship to the University of San Diego and, as soon as I was discharged in 1960, I packed up my cameras and darkroom equipment and flew west. The sun-bleached blonde young man who met my plane and drove me up to the campus in his vintage "woody" asked if I were a surfer. I said I had body surfed at Folly Beach in South Carolina. He smirked.
So now I was a former Marine and a freshman in college, slightly older than my peers.
I started this photography blog two months ago and several people commented on the picture I posted of John F. Kennedy. Like me, they appreciated the crisp combination of the large, excited crowd and the speaker with his familiar face turned toward me. This was Senator Kennedy in the 1960 campaign and he had drawn a huge audience downtown in this supposedly Republican city.
With a few pals from the University, I pushed my way toward the platform and showing my USD student ID card, said I was the school's photographer and could I come up on the platform. Times were REALLY more simple then and I was given a quick ok by the policeman and I found myself in a great photo location.
A few years later, several months before he was shot in Dallas, I was a staff photographer with the daily newspaper and photographed President Kennedy again in San Diego. It took two weeks to obtain credentials this time through the Secret Service and the President's Press office. Times weren't as simple then.
Labels: body surfer, Camp Lejeune, Folly Beach, JFK, Marine Corps photographer, MCRD, President Kennedy, USD, woody wagon Washout Area
