Kim Peek

Kim Peek was the man who inspired the character which Dustin Hoffman played, and won an Academy Award for, in the movie 'Rain Man'.

"In 1988, the film “Rain Man,” about an autistic savant played by Dustin Hoffman, shed a humane light on the travails of autism while revealing the extraordinary powers of memory that a small number of otherwise mentally disabled people possess, ostensibly as a side effect of their disability.


 The film won four Oscars, including best picture, best actor and, for Barry Morrow and Ronald Bass, best original screenplay. But it never would have been made if Mr. Morrow had not had a chance meeting with Kim Peek, who inspired him to write the film."

The complete obituary in the New York Times: http://tinyurl.com/ybobs4r

C.D.B. Bryan

Courtlandt Dixon Barnes Bryan, was an accomplished man who lived here in Guilford, and while I knew him,  I wish that I had spent more time with him. Courty was an interesting and engaging person, as you can see from the last paragraph of his obit in todays NYTimes:

"Mr. Bryan was a smoker, a drinker and an avid and gifted conversationalist who effortlessly commanded the attention of people around a dinner table, his son said. He will be cremated in advance of a memorial service early next year, St. George Bryan added; until then, his remains are to be stored in martini shakers."

The full obituary is here: http://tinyurl.com/yhvzgla

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Dairy Farm Signs Redux

More images from my ongoing Dairy farm Signs Project. These were all made in Connecticut.

"My Dairy Farm Signs" Project

Years ago, when I was growing up on Leyden Road in Greenfield, Mass., I worked on the dairy farm next door, owned by the Wright family. For as long as I can remember, there was a beautiful sign out front with the name "Wright View Farm", and an illustration of a beautiful Jersey cow.

I've recently heard that the sign was stolen, but it has been replaced.

Recently, with the Wright farm on my mind, I have begun a personal project to photograph as many Dairy Farm signs (with a cow illustration), that I can find in all of the New England States. Yesterday I returned from a four-day trip through western Vermont, and some of the signs which I photographed can be seen here:

"Dairy Farm Signs" Project

Once I feel that I have enough variety, I will pitch the story to a few New England Magazines, and then..we'll see.

Your help in finding any signs which you may come across in your travel's, would be greatly appreciated. 

Please remember that it must contain a cow illustration and must be located in one of the New England States.

Charis Wilson, Model and Muse, Dies at 95

Ever since my "History of Photography" classes in college, when I discovered the work of Edward Weston, I have had a bit of a "crush" on Charis Wilson.

From the New York Times:
"Charis Wilson, who was lover, muse, model, amanuensis and wife of the photographer Edward Weston and the subject of many of his best-known nude portraits, died on Friday in Santa Cruz, Calif. She was 95."
 http://tiny.cc/6aQu5