Life at Fenway (1985-1996)
It was the bottom of the 10th inning in game 6 of the 1986 World Series. With the Boston Red Sox holding a 3–2 series lead over the New York Mets, and just one strike away from securing the championship, the Sox would lose the game on a ground-ball error through the legs of Boston first baseman Bill Buckner. Two days later the Sox would go on to lose the Series, and it was just another brick in the wall of frustration for lifelong Red Sox fans allowing for the continuation of “The Curse of the Bambino”, the superstition that was used to explain the Red Sox's championship drought following their last World Series championship in 1918.
The New England region was living under this cloud of disappointment when I moved to Boston in the fall of 1986. I needed photography work, so with portfolio in hand, I found my way to a small Red Sox fan publication catering to the Sox faithful, Diehard: The Magazine with Sox Appeal. Publisher Rick Dunfey and managing editor Bruce Herman were impressed with my portfolio, and hired me on the spot. It was a freelance gig, and didn't pay much, but it got me in the door allowing me photo access to any Fenway Park game that I wanted to shoot. Along with sports photographer extraordinaire Bruce Schwartzman, who concentrated primarily on the action while I filled in with the color, we were the two primary photographers for the publication.
Built in 1912 Fenway Park was a magnificent old ball park. The light and atmosphere there were the complete opposite of Dodger Stadium, where I had spent the last three years shooting, but the change of scenery was inspiring, and I loved everything about photographing at that old Red Sox ball park; the history of the place, it's intimate size, the rabid fans, and the seriousness with which everyone took their baseball. Being inside Fenway was a deep dive into Boston and Red Sox culture although it wasn't always a pretty sight. Listening to conversations after the game in the staff and press bar, and seeing the lack of diversity in the stands, I was often appalled by the deep seated racism that I had only just heard about. Over time the Red Sox organization was sold to a more enlightened group of owners, and the City of Boston moved forward into the modern world, but in those years of shooting at Fenway Park, I learned a tad more than I ever really wanted to know about my new hometown.
(For image data, click thumbnail and hover cursor over enlarged photographs)
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Batting Cage inside the Green Monster,Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Charlie Hough in Visitors Bullpen, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Don Baylor inside the Green Monster, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Don Baylor, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Angel Pitcher Don Sutton, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Ted Williams Day, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Ted Williams Tipping His Hat to the Crowd for the First Time Ever, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Date: May 12, 1991
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Reggie Jackson, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: National Anthem, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: CA Angel Manager Gene Mauch, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Rain Delay, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Bruce Hurst, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Play at 2nd, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Red Sox Win, Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Silver Gelatin Print from 35mm B&W Negative
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster
Title: Boston Red Sox, Fenway Park, Boston MA
Medium: Scan from 35mm Color Slide
Copyright © 2022 Joshua Touster