Another one gone -- Dirck Halstead, RIP.

[Carl Robinson]

Thanks to Jon Swain for posting first notice of the passing of Dirck Halstead, as it's become clear now from a cerebral hemorrhage in Panama where he'd been living in recent years.  He was 85. 

I knew Dirck -- and his then-wife Betsy and in UPI's Saigon Bureau -- in my earliest days in South Vietnam (1964-65) whilst working with USOM (later USAID) in the northern Mekong Delta.  I'd catch up regularly with them on my trips up and often tag along to a Chinese feed at the Eskimo in Cholon with Mike Malloy & his wife Ruth.  (Mike too passed away not long ago.)   But we didn't really keep in touch over the years as he moved on to Time magazine and a raft of assignments as I later joined the AP Bureau when the old wire service rivalries kept us in different circles.

By the Fall of Saigon in April '75, Dirck was back shooting for Time and my most memorable memory of him -- as in my memoir -- was in a hallway at  DAO (earlier MACV) at TSN as he walked back down the line and said to everyone, "I hope you've filed your tax return for the year.  Someone from the IRS is checking people at the exit."  I hadn't filed a return for year and for a frightening moment thought Dirck was serious ! 

As it turned out, we were on the same US Marine CH-53 helicopter out of TSN (see picture in NYT story below) and, along with a dozen or so other foreign correspondents landed on the USS Mobile, a smaller barge-carrying ship, not far off the coast.   We'd end up stuck there for almost aw week but damn if gung-ho Dirck didn't con himself a flight over to the Operation Frequent Wind's Command Ship, the USS Blue Ridge, and from there an onward flight to still far-away Subic Bay to get his film off to NY.  Talk about a Scoop !   

We met again at the 2005 Reunion in Saigon and kept in touch over the years.  At one point not long ago and by now living in Panama, Dirck was in touch about moving back to Saigon and I put him in touch with expats there.  He was planning a return in 2020 but COVID cancelled that.  

So, farewell, to another early Saigoner.  

Carl 

  https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/25/business/media/dirck-halstead-dead.html.     

       

[Carl Robinson]

And via Facebook, here is a report on Dirck's death from a friend and followed by a very touching memory of Dirck's last days from a friend in Boquete, Panama, Kathleen Piowaty Fredrik. 

This is Beth BT Corwin, in Panama with Dirck.

I just got the phone call from the ICU doctor that Dirck has passed away.

He suffered a cerebral hemorrhage on March 23, had surgery to remove a large blood clot, but never regained consciousness and passed away peacefully about 2:30am this morning.

His cousin, Welthy Soni-Myers and I visited him yesterday, and told him all the love you are sending to him. I hope he felt it.

Welthy will be arranging a family memorial in late summer.

Sad news to wake up to.

I’m tagging a few of his friends here, who’ve recently posted, though I hope all will see this.

My friend Dirck Halstead died today. All his friends and family in Boquete knew it was coming. He’s been in decline for a while. But, knowing something is coming really doesn’t make you feel less sad when it happens.

I haven’t known Dirck all that long. We weren’t childhood friends or colleagues. I met him about 4 1/2 years ago when he came to take my landlord’s dog for his daily walk. I had just moved to Boquete and was wrapped up in myself and getting settled in.

When I met him, Dirck looked a bit disheveled. Actually, he looked a lot disheveled. In the beginning, I didn’t really pay him much attention, and perhaps, if I’m honest, I avoided him. But over time ( he walked the dog every day) we talked, and I learned about him and his amazing life.

When we meet someone when they are at the end of their life, it is easy to miss who they were for their whole life. Dirck was a sleeper. He was quiet, shy and spoke very little. His appearance and demeanor at the end bore no clue to his past. But if you could get him talking, the stories he could tell.

Overtime, Dirck and I became friends. I met his cousin, Welthy Soni-Myers and her husband Paul,, who also live in Boquete. We all became friends and then we became family. Their love and friendship has enriched my life immeasurably, and I hope I have enriched their’s.

On Christmas Eve last year, Dirck was at a party at my house. It was his birthday, so we had cake and candles and bad singing. I thought then that it would be his last. Sadly, I was right. Damn, I hate to be right.

Dirck Halstead led a charmed, storied life. His adventures and encounters, all captured on film as part of a stellar career as a photojournalist, are the stuff of movies. The Things he saw. The History he lived. The Places he travelled. The People he met. What a story! He told his story in a book titled “Moments In Time.” It is quite a fun read. You might want to check it out.

About a year ago I had Dirck and some friends over for barbecue. I knew Dirck was a barbecue aficionado, so I was a little nervous. In addition to the traditional sides, I made spareribs, chicken and a homemade tamarind barbecue sauce. Dirck just went on and on about the sauce, so I sent him home with a jar to enjoy later. About a month after the BBQ, he sent me an email telling me how much he loved that barbecue sauce. He said that whenever he was feeling depressed or lonely he just dipped a spoon into that sauce, licked it off, and it made him feel better. I was over the moon. I’ve never received a more meaningful compliment to my cooking prowess.

I’m going to miss my friend Dirck.

An article about him in today’s New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/.../dirck-halstead-dead.html...

Some of Dirck’s photographs. https://www.gettyimages.com/.../RuThTPsIBkK9lAVkRy0UJw...

[Carl Robinson]

Sorry, I'd forgot about Dirck's last trip back to Vietnam in 2020 -- more or less around that 45th Anniversary in Hue that never got off the ground -- and which he & his travelling companion BT (Beth) barely escaped as the dreaded COVID lockdowns began.  

Bless her and her friendship with Dirck!   

And here's her report.  

Hi Carl,

I’m Beth (BT) Corwin, Dirck’s friend in Boquete, Panama. 

I was with him in the hospital, and posted the health and death updates. 

I read your lovely obit, I’d just like to correct the last graf about returning to Vietnam. 

We did go in March of 2020

We had planned to stay 6 weeks to attend the 50th anniversary gathering in Hue. 

We got as far as Hoi Ann, but had to dash back to HCMC on March 15th as the country closed down due to covid. 

Classic Dirck, we arrived back at TSN airport and caught a 9pm flight out. At midnight, Vietnam closed it’s borders in or out. 

He did get to spend time in HCMC, reminiscing about the familiar locations, and we took a side trip to the Cu Chi tunnels. 

In Hoi An I took him to one of the custom tailors, and he had a “correspondent” jacket made up. 

And of course we ate wonderful Vietnamese food everywhere. 

It was the last long trip he took, and it gave him a sense of placing the final bookend on that part of his life. 

All the best,

Beth

 

 some airport, somewhere...

On Mar 26, 2022, at 7:36 PM, Carl Robinson <robinso...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Dan Southerland]

Dear Carl, 

What a lovely tribute regarding Dirck from Beth.

Thanks for passing it along to old colleagues.

Dan Southerland

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[elizabeth h doucet]

Carl
Thank you for the information about Dirck's passing and to Beth for her lovely tribute.
Betsy Doucet  

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