PHOTOS From Time Magazine - Obama: The College Years

[Jackeens]

http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1866765,00.html

Chance Encounter

In 1980, when Obama was a freshman at Occidental College in Los Angeles, he was approached by an aspiring photographer named Lisa Jack, who asked him if he would be willing to pose for some black and white photographs that she could use in her portfolio. Of her first meeting (in a campus eatery) with Obama, Jack remembers only that "He was really cute. But what else does a 20-year-old girl remember? "In the photos, Jack says, "You can see he is just posing, initially, but as the shoot goes on, he starts to come out," Jack said. "He was very charismatic even then." Jack never realized her dream of becoming a photographer and is now a psychologist. Jack and Obama would see each other only a few more times while students. But in 2005, while on a tour, she spotted Obama on Capitol Hill and yelled hello. "He knew exactly who I was after all this time," Jack says. "I was amazed." On a dare from a skeptical friend, Jack decided to track down her negatives from the shoot. Initially, before she dug the film out from her basement, Jack never thought her pictures would have much life beyond her own darkroom. When she found them, the images of Obama "blew me away," she says. "I had no idea I'd taken a whole roll of film." For a while, Jack put the negatives in a safety-deposit box, so that they could not be used until after the election, when there would be no chance they could be used for a political purpose. Today, Jack says, she hopes the photos reveal a "spirit of fun and thoughtfulness." "I'm not political," Jack says, "(But) these are historic photos and they should be shared."

[babylonsister]

1. Wow! Some men age gracefully.

:spray: And that hat...cool for a college kid, I guess.

[roguevalley]

33. so, this proves it. he's been cute his whole life. :) What a great set

of pictures from someone who can't be photographed badly.

[YOY]

2. President Cool.

n.t.

[GarbagemanLB]

3. Smart of her to put the photos away until after the election. No telling what the GOP would do with

him smoking.

[AspenRose]

9. Drudge is already on it.

:eyes:

[Tatiana]

4. He looks even better now. And on the hat.... ***fans self***

Very handsome man, with lots of personality as you can see, but also a serious side.

[Cha]

18. I think so, too..even better

now.

[Tatiana]

28. Some men just age well. Look at that silver fox Joe Biden. n/t

[Clio the Leo]

5. Isn't it funny how in your brain.....

.... when you imagine him in college you think of him looking pretty much like he does now.

He looks like he's 12 in that picture.

(and that's saying something because I thought he looked 12 in 2004 lol)

[Dennis Donovan]

6. I LOVE these pics!

:thumbsup:

He looks like someone I could've partied with back in '81.:smoke:

Gotta love the GenX-era hat.:D

[hileeopnyn8d]

23. LOL

That's the exact same thought I had!

I seem to recall him using one of my favorite responses - "It was the 80s..." or maybe I'm projecting. ;)

[AspenRose]

7. I like the last one.

[proud patriot]

37. me too

that one really struck me

[graywarrior]

8. He is so my type

I would have had such a crush.

[Tatiana]

10. Am I the only one that thinks he looks like pre- plastic surgery Michael Jackson?

Especially in the third photo.

I always thought Mike was really handsome before he went and ruined his face.

[Jackeens]

14. Well......

??

[Jackeens]

16. Wait! Have you ever seen Obama and Jackson in the same room?

[Merlot]

25. Me too. When I see a pic of MJ pre surgery, I'm always amazed and saddened

Obama looks so fun in these pics. And the hat, yes that was the 80's!

[Diamonique]

39. Yes! The time I saw those pics I thought of MJ!

[Schema Thing]

11. Obviously, Lisa Jack = Jackeens

:-D

[Jackeens]

12. Oh God how I wish!!!!!!!!

[ErinBerin84]

13. oh my god, these are hilarious!

And there were worse things that could have come out of this college-aged photoshoot, heh. I wonder if she kept any of the other pictures to herself.

[WeDidIt]

15. Wow, he wore ring on his left hand ring finger

Looks almost like he's wearing a wedding band.

I knew womenb who wore a ring on that finger back then to scare away men.

[lumpy]

17. I'd say a typical young college freshman.

With little hangups.

[The_Casual_Observer]

19. I feel so bad for him that he got addicted to smoking.

[Jennicut]

20. I love these pictures, Barack was a natural..the last one is very cool.

[skeewee08]

21. Not only do we have the Coolest President but the Sexiest!!!:-)

I want that hat!!!!

[WeDidIt]

22. YAY! I was the fifth rec! n/t

[CaliforniaPeggy]

24. These are wonderful!

How lucky for her...

And for us!

Fantastic pictures!

Thank you for sharing them...


K&R

[Froward69]

26. That Hat is Fly Jack!!!

Love the fro too.:thumbsup:

[whistler162]

27. I knew it he is a poser!!!

look at all those different poses!

[No Elephants]

29. Can't help but wonder: Was the friend who dared her to track down the negatives a Pub or a Dem?

[tblue37]

30. He had a pudgy little baby face! nt

[brianna69]

31. Awesome pics.

[Triana]

32. I don't care for the smoking - but he's beautiful!

Handsome, cute, .... oh my.


PeeEss: He's a DOLL. Could have easily been a model. Still could. He's GQ duJour.

[Phx_Dem]

34. Those are pretty funny.

In the first group of photos, he really looks different because he face is so much fuller although he's clearly not overweight judging by the last photo with the tight jeans. Ahh the 70s . . .

[ellisonz]

35. Smoking is so cool.

[McFadden]

40. I agree! Was going to give them up on Jan 1, but I've changed my mind!

[Number23]

36. Hey, you came back!

[tilsammans]

38. Jackeens, welcome back!

And thanks for the HAWT pics of BHO. Especially hatless #3.

:yourock: :hug: