Through the years, I have had an unofficial policy to hold a unique story of mine to run on my birthday, February 2, at SlamWrestling.net. It hasn’t always been the case, but here are a few:
- Terry Justice, Briefly, King of Newsletters
- Tom Drake was Greatest of all Wrestlers Turned Politicians
- The French Angel was More Man than Monster
- Missing Hollywood Blond Jerry Brown is Found
- The Recent Rough Road of April Hunter
- The Tragic End of Freddie Sweetan
Recently, I have found myself working a lot with photos. It’s been a long process, but I have digitized (and culled) much of the collection of the late, great Terry Dart of London, Ontario, for one. I’ve also acted as Photo Editor on two magazines published under the SPORT magazine imprint — one on the World Series champion Houston Astros and another celebrating the amazing legacy of Pelé.
With photos on my mind, I thought it would be fun to mark my 52nd birthday with 25 of my favorite photos. These are photos that I took, not photos of me.
By no means do I consider myself a photographer. In my youth, as I published my Canadian Wrestling Report newsletter, any attempt to use a “real” camera with F-stops and shutter speeds was a disaster, money wasted as I got the film developed. I was a point and click guy. The arrival of digital cameras sure made things easier for me.
A lot of the photos here are more about the right place at the right time, like Darling Dagmar running into the arms of Jake “The Snake” Roberts at the Cauliflower Alley Club reunion, which is the top photo. Magic.
Now, as for a birthday present? Share the gallery and your memories. And maybe buy one of my books too, eh?
Enjoy!
GREG OLIVER’S 52 FOR 52 PHOTO GALLERY
TOP PHOTO: Darling Dagmar is overjoyed to see Jake “The Snake” Roberts again after so many years at the 2011 Cauliflower Alley Club reunion in Las Vegas, as Al Burke, left, Bill White, seated center, and Ted DiBiase, far right, enjoy the moment. Photo by Greg Oliver
