HOT SAUCE ON THE ROAD

One day long ago, not too far away, on a balmy afternoon Mr. Bob Weir walked into my studio. I recognized him immediately because I had shot him and The Grateful Dead for TIME, and later, LIFE magazine. He didn’t remember me but said “Hi I hear you can make me a case for my Apple Newton. I need to have room for my hot sauce. Like when I’m in the Amazon.”

My head spun a bit as I processed why he would think that I made cases and wondered who sent him my way. I thought the Newton part was explained by my recent long-term documentary project about Apple struggling to invent this doomed technology. I did not yet mention how important hot sauce was to me as well, and I was taken with the idea of taking my sauce with me too. He was clearly onto something—

I mean, it’s really hard to get good hot sauce on the road, am I right?

I am also obsessed with cases for my stuff. I have closets full of all kinds of cases and shoulder bags. I have in fact custom designed portfolio cases and realized I kind of knew something about doing this. Not actually crazy that he showed up at my place. Bobby and I quickly hit it off and started sketching out designs. He invited me for breakfast the next morning at his house up the hill and I promised to bring someone who could make it happen.

By 8:30 AM I had found a very cool bag maker ( I kinda want to think it was Timbuk2 when they were starting out?) willing to do it and brought him to Bobby’s house for breakfast, just up the hill from my place. I loved the hot sauce part of his request as I’m just as addicted and have to have it every meal. He had tons of different kinds all around his kitchen. That’s what really got me and made me begin to see past the legend and celebrity to the person.

Later, he asked me to shoot him with his beloved Corvette and we did this portrait up on Mt. Tam in Mill Valley and he married my son’s talented pre-school teacher Natasha and we all got to be good friends. We shared some incredible dinners at our house and theirs and had some adventures.

Back in the day.