There are about twenty seconds of film in my archive of Ted Williams at the plate at Fenway. Number 9. The stance, the swing, the follow-through, and Jim Tabor somewhere off to the side. No sound. My grandfather’s camera didn’t record any.
Ted Williams at the Plate, sometime between 1939 and 1942
Home again by Tim Cooney from The Journeyman Soundtrack
I had that reel dated 1938 for a while. Then I did the arithmetic. Williams was still in the minors in 1938 — he didn’t come up to Boston until ‘39. So it’s 1939 at the earliest, and 1942 at the latest, because after that he went off to fly for the Navy and didn’t come back for three years. I think it was 1941.
That’s the thing nobody tells you about an archive. It corrects you. You go in to confirm what you already believe, and it hands you back something slightly different, and the slightly different version is always more interesting.
My grandfather filmed everything. Not just ball games — weddings, the street, the family in the yard, people who had no idea a camera was even a thing you could point at them. He did it in the thirties, when almost nobody did. I’ve been digitizing that film for three years now, and I still don’t know what’s on all of it.
He’s the reason I do this. My family recorded and kept things. Letters, photographs, home movies, a manuscript my mother wrote and never published. In 2023, all of it came into my keeping, and I’ve spent the time since trying to be worth it — sorting, dating, correcting, and putting each piece somewhere it can be found. Sixty years of my own work went into the same pile: the songs, the paintings, the photographs, the logs I kept at sea.
For the first time, it's all getting one home. Five rooms — The Vault for the family archive, The Reading Room for the books and the essays, The Basement Studio for the music, Behind the Lens for the film and photographs, and Valley of the Moon for the paintings and Nature Films. Every room now has something in it. The doors open October 1 — five years to the day since I started SunTurtle Studios. You’ll get the tour here first. More on that to come so stay tuned.
Before that, though, I’d like to see you in person.
Sunday, September 6 I’m one of four featured songwriters at the RoJo n SoJo Sunday Songwriter Showcase & Sing-Along Service — The Lost Church, 545 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa. Doors at 1:30, music 2:00 to 4:00, ten dollars. Me, the Ramblers, Dave Hamilton, and Katie & Dean. It’s a sing-along, so bring your voice and don’t worry about how good it is. Mine isn’t either, most Sundays.
If you’re anywhere in Sonoma County, come. I’d rather meet you than have you read about me.
Sweet Caroline - Neil Diamond cover by Tim Cooney - Let’s Go Red Sox!
So — a question, and I actually want the answer. What’s the oldest picture in your house, and do you know who took it? Half the time nobody does, and that’s the part that gets me. Hit reply and tell me.
Thanks for being here. It means more than you know.
If someone you love keeps old photographs, old songs, or old letters, send this their way. They’ll understand what we’re building, but may want insight on how to archive their own collection.
☀️🐢 SunTurtle Studios® · Valley of the Moon 🌙 · 1 Archive – 100 Years