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Scene Through the Lens | July 13, 2020

Inquirer staff photographer Tom Gralish’s weekly visual exploration of our region.

The shadows of supporters of President Trump and the police are cast in the street separating them from protesters in Northeast Philadelphia July 9, 2020 as Vice President Mike Pence appears at the nearby Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 5 for a "Back the Blue" rally
The shadows of supporters of President Trump and the police are cast in the street separating them from protesters in Northeast Philadelphia July 9, 2020 as Vice President Mike Pence appears at the nearby Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 5 for a "Back the Blue" rallyRead moreTOM GRALISH / Staff Photographer

I had a birthday this past week, and also marked the anniversary of my first day of work at the newspaper. I won’t give the numbers for either event, but I will say I was on stage at Philadelphia’s JFK Stadium for the multi-continent Live Aid concert 35 years ago today.

We tag-team covered it, and I photographed the morning activity and all the fans arriving. Then I was in the photo pit for the first performer, Joan Baez, who greeted the crowd, saying, “Children of the ’80s, this is your Woodstock, and it’s long overdue.” I stayed for the local band the Hooters, then left for downtown to process my film. Other photographers covered the rest of the concert, and after turning in my B&W prints, I went home to watch it on TV. (I remember being disappointed that neither Bruce Springsteen nor Prince was there.)

Except for the coronavirus, I would have been in Milwaukee this week as the Democratic National Convention was scheduled to get under way. I did get a taste of politics last week though, covering a New Jersey member of the Kennedy family winning a U.S. congressional primary election, and a visit by Vice President Mike Pence to Philadelphia.

Since 1998, a black-and-white photo has appeared every Monday in staff photographer Tom Gralish’s photo column in The Inquirer’s local news section. Here are the most recent, in color:

» SEE MORE: Previous blogs and Twenty years of a photo column