Summer of '81 Photo Earns Malvernite Award

Malvernite Dave Paone was only 17-years-old when he snapped this photo while hanging out with friends around the village one summer night.

The year was 1981 and Paone, a student at Malverne High School, had only picked up photography a few years earlier.

"At least I think it was 1981...I wasn't so good at labeling things back then so I'm coming up with that year from memory," recalled Paone, now 47.

For the next 26 years, Paone forgot all about the photo until one day he stumbled upon his old contact sheets.

"I found many 'lost' pictures to include in my portfolio," he said, including this shot ,which he titled "Teenage Nights."

Paone was pretty close to the girl in the photo.

"We used to ride the Long Island Rail Road from Malverne into the city together each morning," he said, although he hasn't seen her since 1990.

Although he didn't identify the boy until recently.

"After I resurrected the picture in 2007 I was able to track him down with the help of my mother," said Paone, who learned that she worked with the boy's mother at the the Our Lady of Lourdes Church thrift shop. 

As proof that the best things were created in the 80s though, Paone recently learned that the North Shore Art Guild selected his 30-year-old photo for an award.

It will be on display at the Phoenix Gallery in Bellport from July 21 to Aug. 13 as part of an exhibit titled, "Images of Summer." The guild will present Paone with a third place award at a reception Sunday.

"As my mother used to say, 'It pays to clean.' She was right!"

Exhibit display times: Sun. Noon-4 p.m.; Thu. 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Fri. 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sat. 11 a.m.-5 p.m..

You can also learn more about Dave Paone, his photos and the stories behind the images by reading his blog, t, on Patch.