Kevin

[Jeff]

From here




Riding my bicycle along
Hollywood Boulevard today
I saw him in the crowd - noticed
him instantly. When we reached
each other, I said hi and asked
if he would mind if I took his
photo.
"You want my photo?"
Yeah, I said. There's nobody
like you.
"I know." And he smiled for me
-although his face was
evidently destroyed by something-
and his mouth reconstructed.

I asked him what happened.
"Shot," he said. "Shot in the
face." He motioned a gun
at close range being shot
directly into his face.

Andyou survived that? I asked.
"No," he said with a smile.
"I'm dead."
I apologized for what was
a stupid question, but it
was hard to fathom - gun shot-
close range - into his face. And
he lived.

So what happened? I asked.
Was it an accident, or did
someone mean to shoot you?

"I did it myself. Tried to kill
myself."

You did?
"Yeah."

Where?
"Arizona."

Phoenix?
"Tucson."

So tell me, how did it feel,
after you shot yourself in the
face - and you came to -
and realized you were not
dead?

"Agony. The worst agony
ever."

Man.
"Yeah."

What kind of gun?
"30-aught-six."

I was thunderstruck. I have
met and photographed many
people - who are featured in this
stream - humans who have
overcome amazing
adversity. Lydia, who was
burnt almost to death.
Ray, whose eye was gone.
Margaret, who weighed over
500 pounds.

But this. Man. And yet he
was smiling. I told him what
I thought:

God gives everyone a different
life - and some people get really
really hard lives.

"That's me. Doesn't get
much worse."

Told me he's on the street.
Homeless.

I asked him how bad it was
that he wanted to die.
"Bad. Really bad. The worse
kind."

Are you gonna try again?
"No. I tried once. That's enough."

Man.
Sometimes our lives
seem hard - unbearable even -
but then we meet Kevin.
Or Lydia. Or Ray. And realize
again how lucky we are.
How hard some humans
have it.
Man.

And yet
he smiled. He smiled
for me. This man with his
face blown off - by his own
hand. And here he is -
in the sunshine, listening
to music, smiling.

Don't even know what else
to say about this. Guess
I've already said it.

[Joe Hillshoist]

Wow.

That guy has a great smile.

[psynapz]

I think I've seen this guy before, not in person but on a documentary about heavy metal suicide which involved Judas Priest, who were interviewed. I remember Rob Halford saying "you don't necessarily have to sing about LOVE..." or something like that.

Anyway, this kid supposedly shot his face off because of heavy metal, and in a video interview he finished his description of the failed suicide with "and... I shot myself" and a shrug.

Anybody have any clue to the title of this film, the identity of the guy who shot his face off, and whether this is the guy?

I mean, the statistics for blowing your face off and surviving outside of a cartoon have to be extremely, extremely low, right?

[Joe Hillshoist]

I though the other guy you are referring to killed himself not long after.

Here we go, from Judas Priests wikipedia page:

In the summer of 1990, the band was involved in a civil action that alleged they were responsible for the suicide attempts in 1985 of 20-year old James Vance and 19-year old Ray Belknap in Reno, Nevada, USA.[11] The trial lasted from July 16 to August 24. On December 23, 1985 Vance and Belknap got intoxicated then went to a playground at a Lutheran church in Reno. Belknap shot a 12 gauge shotgun under his chin, dying instantly, and Vance followed, but survived with a severely disfigured face. He died three years later after a suicidal overdose of painkillers.

[mentalgongfu2]

I wish I knew a way of photographing souls . . .

would be a great comparison tool.

Faces of aesthetic beauty with ugly souls, and disfigured faces with beautiful souls.

[compared2what?]

I mean, the statistics for blowing your face off and surviving outside of a cartoon have to be extremely, extremely low, right?

Not unless you use a gun that blows off the back of your head as well as your face. Which not every gun is well-suited to do just by virtue of being a gun, necessarily.

[Cosmic Cowbell]

"I sometimes think my head is so large because it is so full of dreams" — Joseph (John) Merrick

“I first saw the light on the 5th of August, 1860, I was born in Lee Street, Wharf Street, Leicester. The deformity which I am now exhibiting was caused by my mother being frightened by an Elephant; my mother was going along the street when a procession of Animals were passing by, there was a terrible crush of people to see them, and unfortunately she was pushed under the Elephant's feet, which frightened her very much; this occurring during a time of pregnancy was the cause of my deformity.

The measurement around my head is 36 inches, there is a large substance of flesh at the back as large as a breakfast cup, the other part in a manner of speaking is like hills and valleys, all lumped together, while the face is such a sight that no one could describe it. The right hand is almost the size and shape of an Elephant's foreleg, measuring 12 inches round the wrist and 5 inches round one of the fingers; the other hand and arm is no larger than that of a girl ten years of age, although it is well proportioned. My feet and legs are covered with thick lumpy skin, also my body, like that of an Elephant, and almost the same colour, in fact, no one would believe until they saw it, that such a thing could exist.

It was not perceived much at birth, but began to develop itself when at the age of 5 years. I went to school like other children until I was about 11 or 12 years of age, when the greatest misfortune of my life occurred, namely - the death of my mother, peace to her, she was a good mother to me; after she died my father broke up his home and went to lodgings; unfortunately for me he married his landlady; henceforth I never had one moment's comfort, she having children of her own, and I not being so handsome as they, together with my deformity, she was the means of making my life a perfect misery; lame and deformed as I was, I ran, or rather walked away from home two or three times, but suppose father had some spark of parental feeling left, so he induced me to return home again.

The best friend I had in those days was my father's brother, Mr. Merrick, hair Dresser, Church Gate, Leicester. When about 13 years old, nothing would satisfy my step-mother until she got me out to work; I obtained employment at Messrs. Freeman's Cigar Manufacturers, and worked there about two years, but my right hand got too heavy for making cigars, so I had to leave them. I was sent about the town to see if I could procure work, but being lame and deformed no one would employ me; when I went home for my meals, my step-mother used to say I had not been to seek for work. I was taunted and sneered at so that I would not go home for my meals, and used to stay in the streets with an hungry belly rather than return for anything to eat, what few half-meals I did have, I was taunted with the remark -- "That's more than you have earned."

Being unable to get employment my father got me a pedlar's license to hawk the town, but being deformed, people would not come to the door to buy my wares. In consequence of my ill luck my life was again made a misery to me, so that I again ran away and went hawking on my own account, but my deformity had grown to such an extent, so that I could not move about the town without having a crowd of people gather around me.

I then went into the infirmary at Leicester, where I remained for two or three years, when I had to undergo an operation on my face, having three or four ounces of flesh cut away; so thought I, I'll get my living by being exhibited about the country. Knowing Mr. Sam Torr, Gladstone Vaults, Wharf Street, Leicester, went in for Novelties, I wrote to him, he came to see me, and soon arranged matters, recommending me to Mr. Ellis, Bee-hive Inn, Nottingham, from whom I received the greatest kindness and attention. In making my first appearance before the public, who have treated me well -- in fact I may say I am as comfortable now as I was uncomfortable before.

I must now bid my kind readers adieu. “

[Jeff]

"I sometimes think my head is so large because it is so full of dreams" — Joseph (John) Merrick

"Never, no, never...nothing dies. The stream flows, the wind blows, cloud fleets, the heart beats. Nothing will die."

[Perelandra]

I saw David Bowie play the Elephant Man on Broadway when I was very young. He used no prosthetics. It was impressive.

[chiggerbit]

I think this must happen more often than people realize.

[marmot]

Merrick [the Elephant Man] tells Mrs. Kendal that before he met her he had no thoughts because he had no one to think them for. He finds himself because he finds himself in this other person.