Rocco
Morabito, premiered photographer with a Pulitzer in 1968, passed away
at the age of 88, in 2009 in his native home Jacksonville, Florida. His
most dramatic instant shot 'Kiss of Life' went around every corner of
the world bringing him the well deserved acknowledgement of a photographer that has dedicated his life to journalism of the street.
As early as at the age of 9, he was a newspaper delivery boy of the local paper Jacksonville Journal, leading to him working for that same paper for the next 42 years, 33 of which as a photographer. He served in the Air Force during the Second World War, as artillery man in the bomber B-17.
'Kiss of life' was the explicit name with which the graphic editor of his paper, Bob Pate, titled the image, one of the most known in the world of journalism. The scene was the cover of the Jacksonville Journal, but no one had expected the repercussion that it had until it was selected by a national news agency, that distributed it all over the country. Within a couple of days it was reproduced in all papers in most part of the world. The following year, 1968, it won the Pulitzer prize in the category of Spot News Photography.
The image showed the exact moment in which J.D. Thompson gave the mouth to mouth to his coworker, Randall Champion, who had just suffered a strong electric shock, while working on the upper part of an electric pole. Morabito had just returned from covering information on the train strike for his paper and witnessed the accident. He radioed from his car to alert the emergency, and immediately photographed the heroic intent of rescue.
The Historic Society of Jacksonville rendered homage to Rocco Morabito with a documentary of his famous photography, including his many other notable work. His family and friends remember him as an amiable and caring man, very modest, to the extent that he felt a bit uncomfortable when people are forever talking about his Pulitzer prize.
Over the years, that special image has served as example in the study courses of the electric companies, including the Red Cross. To him, the only important message about that photo was that 'someone is helping someone'.
Morabito with his famous photo
Current Mood: 
Accomplished
Accomplished
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