Totally uncool
These pictures were taken the same afternoon in mid-July, 1967, in London's West End, during my mother's and my first vacation to England.
I have always hated them.
I hated these pictures because, in them, at the time, I was consciously trying so hard to look "cool," and quite obviously lacking anything even remotely resembling poise here, I failed completely.
The top one was taken by Mother in a clothing store on then-famous-and-trendy Carnaby Street, where I desperately hoped to find some "mod" clothes that would make me "in" at school. All I found was the silly hat you see in the second photo (which I now recognize was a ladies hat) and a silky, shiny somewhat green paisley shirt that I never wore again.
The second photo was taken by my mother's friend, Florence, as we were walking on Regent Street towards Piccadilly Circus, on our way back to the hotel. The reason I'm posing by a travel agent's window is because the concentric circles centered around London on the globe there were throbbing and pulsing and looked very psychedelic, so I wanted my picture taken with it. Rather sad, really...
A bit of trivia: about 15 minutes before the top one was taken, I had heard The Beatles "A Day In The Life" for the first time, playing in another clothing store. (I would get Sgt. Pepper's for Xmas later that year.)
I have always hated them.
I hated these pictures because, in them, at the time, I was consciously trying so hard to look "cool," and quite obviously lacking anything even remotely resembling poise here, I failed completely.
The top one was taken by Mother in a clothing store on then-famous-and-trendy Carnaby Street, where I desperately hoped to find some "mod" clothes that would make me "in" at school. All I found was the silly hat you see in the second photo (which I now recognize was a ladies hat) and a silky, shiny somewhat green paisley shirt that I never wore again.
The second photo was taken by my mother's friend, Florence, as we were walking on Regent Street towards Piccadilly Circus, on our way back to the hotel. The reason I'm posing by a travel agent's window is because the concentric circles centered around London on the globe there were throbbing and pulsing and looked very psychedelic, so I wanted my picture taken with it. Rather sad, really...
A bit of trivia: about 15 minutes before the top one was taken, I had heard The Beatles "A Day In The Life" for the first time, playing in another clothing store. (I would get Sgt. Pepper's for Xmas later that year.)