“He never let reality get in the way of a good yarn.”
1977
"Star Wars," is released in theaters and becomes a cultural phenomenon, changing the landscape of cinema forever.
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Elvis Presley performs his final live concert at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis, Indiana, marking the end of an era in music.
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At a respectable 7 lb 8 oz, Curtis Raymond Jones bounces into the rain, drizzle, and fog of the North Atlantic. Legend says, Newfoundland wouldn’t see the sun again in June for decades.
1985
400 nautical miles off the coast of Newfoundland, the wreck of the RMS Titanic is located by a Franco-American expedition led by Dr. Robert Ballard.
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Calvin and Hobbes, a popular comic strip by Bill Watterson, debuts in newspapers.
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At eight years of age, Curtis plans and executes his first expedition. With a party of three, including his beagle Spike and iron deficient younger brother, the junior adventurer sets his sights on exploration of the far side of a local bog. A boot is lost, supper is missed.
2001
Silly Putty and Tonka trucks are inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.
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The Lord of The Rings film franchise launches with The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. Hobbits will never be cooler.
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Curtis graduates with a Bachelor's degree in pharmacy and stumbles into a world of full-time employment, having no idea how to work a cash register.
2007
Bob Barker encourages contestants to "come on down" for the last time, hosting his final episode of The Price is Right.
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Apple introduces the first generation iPhone.
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While helping feed a team of sled dogs during a lunch break from a small Arctic pharmacy, Curtis is asked if he’d like to ski across the Greenland Ice Sheet with two friends. They need a photographer and it just so happens he recently bought a gently used Canon Rebel kit lens on Kijiji.
Epilogue
Having survived Greenland his life would be forever changed. No longer employed, Curtis wanders the streets mid-week, shoelaces undone, no clear plan but a fire lit deep in his belly. For the next decade and a half, Curtis sets his sights on travelling the world, collecting interesting stories, and committing as much as possible to memory and image.
Of course, this is just the beginning of the story. If you really want to peel back the layers on this onion, check out this article originally published in Photo Life magazine, in April 2020 - “The Switch Up”