While making the CPTV original documentary, "The 60s in Connecticut," producers spent over a hundred hours interviewing subjects for the film. Charles Vendetti, photo journalist and fashion photographer, was one of them. His photographs can be seen in the documentary along with his commentary. His full length interview is now available online.
Interview Synopsis
Charles Vendetti, photo journalist and fashion photographer, chronicled the 1960s in Hartford through his camera’s lens. He witnessed much of the city’s social unrest as well as the cultural changes throughout the decade. In this interview, he shares his experiences living and working during the 1960s in Hartford.
Mr. Vendetti started working for the Hartford Times as a copy boy and worked his way up to staff photographer. In this interview he shares his experiences photographing major events of the times including strikes and riots. He photographed local Nike sites, part of the defense department’s anti aircraft missile system, and their use to promote charities. Vendetti also recalls with gravity the poverity that plagued many of the city neighborhoods. He photographed the terrible living conditions and published them to call attention to the severity of the problem. “That’s one of the things I am very proud of.”
In addition to taking photos for The Hartford Times, Charles Vendetti took photos chronicling the culture and fashion of the 1960s. He recalls “there was a comfort zone in Hartford.” He would walk the city and snap photos of anything from activities in Bushnell Park, kids playing with hula hoops, swimming lessons at Colt Park Swimming Pool and Hartford at Christmas time. “When there was nothing to do I walked around the city looking for things to do, and it was neat.” As a fashion photographer for G. Foxx in the late 1960s he captured the changing fashion trends of the times.
Charles Vendetti remembers the 1960s with nostalgia and personal insight. Through his work he told the story of the 60s in Hartford.
See Charles Vendetti and many others in the documentary “The 60’s in Connecticut” on CPTV.