Cigarette Addiction

[fotografr]

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I came across the negative for this image last night while looking for something else. Back in 1990 this guy got repeated citations during the winter because he kept calling 911 when he ran out of cigarettes. When they arrived, he'd tell them he had a bad cigarette addiction and needed them to get some for him. A national publication found out about him and I got a call to see if I could get a shot. I was surprised that he consented, but of course when I arrived he asked me for cigarettes. I didn't smoke, but the only way he'd let me take the photo was if I went out and bought him a pack.

M6/50mm Summicron/Tri-X

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[stuny]

YIKES!  Fine photo, though

[visualdiary]

That’s an amazing story! And very intense look in his eyes

[fotografr]

On 12/8/2022 at 11:56 AM, visualdiary said:

That’s an amazing story! And very intense look in his eyes

Thank you. I think at the point where I started shooting he was likely aware that the story about him wasn't going to be positive, so he read kind of glaring at me. His addiction was so strong that it was more important to get a few cigarettes than to not be ridiculed. 

Yesterday I was having lunch with a friend and outside the window next to our table there were two guys smoking. We talked about how rare it is to see that now because smoking is becoming a thing of the past. 

Edited December 9, 2022 by fotografr

[jplomley]

Wonder if he is still alive? Perfect moment and pose to capture such a disheveled individual. 

[fotografr]

1 hour ago, jplomley said:

Wonder if he is still alive? Perfect moment and pose to capture such a disheveled individual. 

I'd be amazed if he's still living, but I recall reading about a woman who was celebrating her 100th birthday and she was pictured smoking a pipe. Life can be strange. 

[edwardpychan]

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Edited December 12, 2024 by edwardpychan

[fotografr]

On 12/15/2022 at 7:55 AM, fotografr said:

I'd be amazed if he's still living, but I recall reading about a woman who was celebrating her 100th birthday and she was pictured smoking a pipe. Life can be strange. 

I'd also be amazed but there are strange exceptions. The brother of my former next door neighbor smoked two packs a day since he was in his 20s. He quit "cold turkey" at the age of 93 and lived another five years. A heart attack did him in.

[stuny]

I too have seen the continuum of "impossible to stop - go cold turkey."  Additionally, some people are just not susceptible to certain diseases.

If I recall, I think the incidence of adult smokers in the US is now at 11%.  Before retiring, if I stepped outside our Manhattan workplace, it seemed all 11% were just outside our door.

[dkCambridgeshire]

Thirty three years ago I was a two packs a day smoker .... but on a busy work day with long hours could occasionally smoke three packs. I didn't think I'd be able to quit but I found a way and it worked. My finest achievement ever was to quit smoking. I'd been exposed to cigarette smoke from birth because my father was a smoker. In my father's more affluent times he smoked Perfectos oval cigarettes – and during the evenings he wore a 'smoking jacket' whist lounging in a large leather Chesterfield chair with glass of whisky. His smoking habit killed him and it inspired me to find a way to quit.   

EDIT: And both my father's brothers died from smoking related diseases .... exacerbated by excess whisky consumption.  

Edited December 15, 2024 by dkCambridgeshire

[pedaes]

On 12/12/2024 at 7:08 PM, edwardpychan said:

Have you tried

Who are you addressing in this year old thread?

[fotografr]

19 hours ago, dkCambridgeshire said:

Thirty three years ago I was a two packs a day smoker ....My finest achievement ever was to quit smoking. 

I was also a smoker until my mid-30s. I'd say quitting was my second finest achievement ever. My first was manipulating my wife into asking me to marry her.