Cigar-smoking firefighter

Bill w-cigar

The footage of the cigar-smoking Fire Boss in the 1969 US Forest Service film “Man Against Fire” reminded of a couple of photos from 1972. Pictures of, uh, some guy who only smokes them occasionally these days.

I miss the aluminum hard hats.

Bill w-cigar

I’m not sure who took the photos, but it may have been Tom Sadowski.

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Author: Bill Gabbert

After working full time in wildland fire for 33 years, he continues to learn, and strives to be a Student of Fire.

4 thoughts on “Cigar-smoking firefighter”

  1. Bullard hard hats and Filson vests and we carried just about everything we needed. A far cry from what firefighters are packing around now days.

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  2. Back then line gear was a pipe dream so we all wore the Filson cruiser vests as our “line gear” I remember those days.

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  3. Hey Bill!

    Ages ago on a Wyoming fire I stuffed a 20 pack of cigarettes (ahh, remember those days when packs of cigs, Red Man and cigars were always available in fire camp?) in my mouth and lit them up with a book of matches… just for the hell of it. Anyway….

    Your first shot reveals the ruptured duck decal on the side of your helmet if I’m not mistaken. The 2nd shot might be from Carmen I or Carmen II up on the Plumas?

    And didn’t the photograher have a handlebar moustache? Such fading memories!!

    Lone Ranger

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