Vale Dave Morgan

http://www.888dag.com/

Today I went to the funeral of a very dear man - a witty, kind man who loved his job as a paparazzi and was so good at it. Dave Morgan. David Morgan. "Darlin'" as I liked to call him (well, he started it).
Andrew Urban has written so beautifully about him on Urban Cinephile: http://www.urbancinefile.com.au/home/view.asp?a=15115&s=Features
Last month I was flying back to Sydney from Melbourne on a Saturday evening. Derby Day as it turned out. I was well down the plane on the aisle and feeling a bit sad (not 'sad' from Derby Day I hasten to add). I looked vacantly down the plane to see a name tag "David Morgan" swinging from a lanyard and coming my way. It was David - larger than life and straight from the racetrack ("didn't see a single horse, Darlin'"). He'd been snapping.
By chance we were sitting a seat away from each other, so the chap in the middle kindly swapped seats and Dave and I settled in for one of the greatest chats we'd had in years. No work to distract us - and he knew I needed chirping up. He shouted a couple of rounds and talked about everything from what had happened the day before (fascinating) to his favourite photographer Nuri Ceylan - a Turkish photographer and filmmaker he put me on to when I returned from Turkey in June.
http://www.nuribilgeceylan.com/
We talked motorbikes, shared memories, about him nursing his parents - all sorts.
We parted when the plane landed. Dave took off to arrange for his girlfriend to come and pick him up and I headed for the cab rank.
It was the last time I saw him and it was unforgettable.
This morning I found a postcard he sent me from the Cannes Film Festival. We had both been at the festival three years running for work, then in 2002 I wasn't there. "Dear Kym: Where Are You? Dave Morgan xx" read my postcard from Cannes.
I reckon I get to ask the question back now.
"Dear Dave: Where Are You? Kym xx"