r/OldSchoolCool Jul 26 '26

1990s "Hydration" break for a German footballer in 1994

Post image
27.7k Upvotes

396 comments sorted by

2.4k

u/eppic123 Jul 26 '26

Walter Frosch, the legend himself.

451

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

131

u/Effective_Guava2971 Jul 26 '26

Go to youtube.

198

u/ForeverShiny Jul 26 '26

The interview with the cigarette package in his socks is pure cinema

61

u/IamDinamarca Jul 26 '26

Other players reportedly did the same. There were also rumors that Brazil's Sócrates hid a pack of cigarettes in his sock.

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84

u/TheMarslMcFly Jul 26 '26

He's actually the reason the 5 yellow cards = 1 game suspension rule was invented

32

u/Cyclopentadien Jul 26 '26

He may have missed a ball in his time, but never a player.

80

u/Snoo_98156 Jul 26 '26

Plus yellow mustache and fingers

44

u/DragonArchaeologist Jul 26 '26

If this man could play professional soccer while smoking that much, he might just have had the GOAT of all genetics.

34

u/alles_en_niets Jul 26 '26

He died at the age of 62, so I wouldn’t trust those genes too much

13

u/BetterProphet5585 Jul 26 '26

Yeah but people were people you know, now they're all products

21

u/AeneasVII Jul 26 '26

Unsurprisingly, lung cancer

3

u/BlindlyCoherent Jul 26 '26

I hear smoking may be a contributing factor.

4

u/Parking_Car7589 Jul 26 '26

I mean no matter genetics smoking lowers expected lifespan in the us from around 80 to 60

5

u/bob_from_teamspeak Jul 26 '26

Mario Basler is a legendary german superstar kicker from the 90s. he won multiple german championships, won the european championship with germany in 1996 and is known as a heavy smoker till this day. he is also known for the "basler ecke", scoring multiple goals directly from the corner. a true german legend

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13

u/MassiveBomboclat1818 Jul 26 '26

Watch his legendary interview.

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5

u/Mutajin Jul 26 '26

...and red cards. And of course his smoking breaks, as seen above.

4

u/JackieDaytona77 Jul 26 '26

Guy smoking a cigarette on the sideline if you told me this fact I wouldn’t even dispute it.

405

u/Dry-Hearing-1926 Jul 26 '26

When he was asked who his toughest opponent was, he simply replied, “The bar.”

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204

u/Ill-Term7334 Jul 26 '26

He looks way older than 44 here.

181

u/WeAreAllFooked Jul 26 '26

Sun, alcohol, cigarettes, and hard drugs age your face

52

u/[deleted] Jul 27 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

5

u/98462Doopa Jul 27 '26

Ah yes professionals certainly don’t take drugs

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35

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '26

[deleted]

24

u/gugeldischwup Jul 26 '26

He nevery played for the National team

3

u/angry_forester Jul 27 '26

He could have played for the B-Nationalteam, but said he would only play for the A-Nationalteam

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199

u/regeya Jul 26 '26

I'm from the Midwest US and you know how a huge percentage of the population has German ancestors? I feel like I saw this dude when I was a kid.

I also used to joke that one of my uncles looked like Gerhard Schroeder. They don't, at least not anymore, it was just in the eyes. But the family has a fairly recent German ancestry.

12

u/JOMO_Kenyatta Jul 26 '26

He kinda looks like an ernhardt

1

u/doctorcaligari Jul 26 '26

Raise Hell, Praise Dale!

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28

u/reguk32 Jul 26 '26

Fairly recent. 1840s

5

u/imisstheyoop Jul 26 '26

Hey now, for some of us this is the most recent European ancestry that we have to hang on to. Let us have this!

10

u/DoobKiller Jul 26 '26

I mean unless you have native ancestry, likely all you have is European immigrant ancestry

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6

u/reguk32 Jul 26 '26

Germany wasn't a country until 1870 🤣

12

u/matycauthon Jul 26 '26

now you're just being pedantic, they meant germanic clearly

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71

u/Machette_Machette Jul 26 '26

You know, German ancestry, right?

33

u/IancuRastaboulle Jul 26 '26

Germaner than the Germans!

5

u/GraceMcClellans Jul 26 '26

Not as bad as Italian Americans being "Italian". Lol

3

u/FewTea8637 Jul 26 '26

It’s funny you say just in the eyes, my step dad looks like Cody Rhodes but only in the eyes, never heard anyone else say it like that

2

u/randoengdude Jul 27 '26

He looks exactly like my German father in law, north american immigrants Germans.

2

u/kyle_kafsky Jul 28 '26

Wow, your ties to Germany are so recent that you knew to use “oe” when “ö” umlaut wasn’t available. I technically have two surnames because, for whatever reason, the state of Oregon doesn’t like umlauts and my dad is German with an o umlaut in his surname.

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6

u/PlentyBoot5135 Jul 26 '26

Almost like Paul Breitner with moustaches 😃

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7

u/shnuffle98 Jul 26 '26

He has always tried to play clean and fair.

6

u/Soul__Samurai Jul 26 '26

What’s that in your sock?

5

u/mienudel Jul 27 '26

Cigaretts

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6

u/QualityDime Jul 26 '26

Er hat immer fair versucht zu spielen

5

u/Substantial_Event302 Jul 26 '26

only 19yo in that photo

4

u/Smaranzky Jul 26 '26

Jetzt noch eine reinziehn?
Naaaachr!

2

u/Q_Quirrell Jul 28 '26

Zijarettn

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848

u/Ebmat Jul 26 '26

Doesn’t look a day past 60.

238

u/s_mey3r Jul 26 '26

This was in early 2000s. So he was already 50+ Way after he ended his career it was a legends game or something like that

154

u/Sparktank1 Jul 26 '26

The post says 1994. He was 44 in this picture.

The way his skin sinks in, especially his neck, when he's smoking, is exactly how I picture ads that are designed to help reduce smoking. "I'm only 19 years old and I can't stop smoking" type of deal. He's got no body fat, no water weight. Just tobacco.

19

u/kokibolta Jul 26 '26

The post is a World Cup joke because 1994 was also in the USA. This photo is from a farewell match for another player in the early 2ks

26

u/SchteveSchpalpatine Jul 26 '26

My name is Hans. Alcohol has ruined my life. I’m 31 years old!

3

u/Apprehensive-Ask9492 Jul 26 '26

I’m so thankful Congress passed that bill making it illegal to post Reddit titles with faulty information

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22

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

5

u/BeeGuyBob13901 Jul 26 '26

Walter Frosch going strong

19

u/electriclala Jul 26 '26

He was actually 22 in this picture, believe it or not.

8

u/Mimical Jul 26 '26

Just turned 22 a week before the photo was taken.
He's actually the youngest player on the entire team.

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141

u/Reg_Cliff Jul 26 '26

October 6, 2001, Walter Frosch - former St. Pauli player - takes a deep breath. Football, 1st Bundesliga Men's Team, Klaus Thomforde's farewell match, 2001/2002 season, farewell, FC St. Pauli Group, Millerntor Stadium, Hamburg.

It was an exhibition game and he's 50 years old.

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453

u/Accomplished_Tip3597 Jul 26 '26

Was haben Sie denn da im Stutzen?

358

u/realmaier Jul 26 '26

Zijareddn

146

u/SecurityOdd4861 Jul 26 '26

Bidde?

156

u/imdibene Jul 26 '26

Zigarreddn

108

u/Marvster96 Jul 26 '26

Jetzt erstmal eine durchziehen?

104

u/Annual-Interest-9015 Jul 26 '26

nachher

77

u/k4rmachameleon Jul 26 '26

Warum haben Sie es dann mit auf dem Spielfeld?

61

u/shnuffle98 Jul 26 '26

Ich bin schnell einjewechseld worden, da hab ich sie noch dabei jehabt

72

u/das_Moppi Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26

„Er hat immer sauber und fair versucht zu Spielen“

18

u/Dangerous-Day-2943 Jul 26 '26

Falsch, „versucht“ kommt später im Satz, sonst macht der Witz auch weniger Sinn

6

u/das_Moppi Jul 26 '26

Jo hab geändert 🙃

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218

u/DivinusDeus Jul 26 '26

Er hat immer versucht fair zu spielen!

13

u/xxBellum Jul 26 '26

Was haben sie da in den Socken?

11

u/drdoom2k Jul 26 '26

Zigaretten!

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47

u/sacodebasura Jul 26 '26

Die Kneipe war sein schwerster Gegner.

5

u/Deni_Z_Plays Jul 26 '26

Bringt mich immer noch ez zum lachen.

229

u/TapeDeckSlick Jul 26 '26

Looks like he's in his 60s lmao

285

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '26

[deleted]

209

u/-Citizen_Zero_ Jul 26 '26

Did they ever find out what caused the cardiac arrest?

129

u/InterestingQuoteBird Jul 26 '26

one of his quotes is: my hardest opponent was always the pub

he smoked and drank a lot

122

u/Dxsterlxnd Jul 26 '26

Zijaredden

14

u/ifelldownthestairs Jul 26 '26

Micro plastics

22

u/Any-Eye6299 Jul 26 '26

Covid vaccine

7

u/Wemorg Jul 26 '26

he died 7 years before covid.

22

u/SerLaron Jul 26 '26

That's how dangerous it was.

12

u/ALLCAPS-ONLY Jul 26 '26

A true pioneer.

29

u/Any-Eye6299 Jul 26 '26

He was a time traveler

12

u/Asteroth6 Jul 26 '26

Covid vaccine’s population control protocol can travel up through your DNA and hit your ancestors. Everyone knows that.

7

u/Attainted Jul 26 '26

qanon loves you for the idea

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3

u/Chesra Jul 26 '26

You sheeple.

Obviously, the Covid vaccine is to blame for the death of every footballer.

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23

u/Gloomy-Statement-193 Jul 26 '26

I'm a smoker and would vomit if I had to smoke third of that.

Most of people probably can't imagine what 60 (SIXTY!) cigarettes a day feels like

14

u/YimmyGhey Jul 26 '26

I feel like when cigs were cheaper a lot of smokers wouldn't go all the way down to the filter like today, old school smokers would often have a few puffs to get their fix and flick it.

5

u/UnholyDemigod Jul 26 '26

60 darts a day is one every 15 minutes. If you need a smoke that often, you aren't doing what you said, because the cravings are coming on too fast. Why throw away 3/4s if you're just gonna start up again in a few minutes when you could just keep smoking?

11

u/_Rohrschach Jul 26 '26

I've managed that maybe one or two days in over decade of smoking and that was after my first major break up. Stopped after the headaches got too bad.

12

u/Gloomy-Statement-193 Jul 26 '26

Glad you got off in time. I've been smoker for around 17 years for now, and I have no idea why, I don't smoke much (5-10 cigs a day) but I would rather not smoke at all.

Smoking is bad. Never start smoking. Never put yourself in a situation you can get addicted. Just say no, and save yourself health and money.

7

u/_Rohrschach Jul 26 '26

I stopped at 60 during those two days because of the headaches, I'm still smoking 15 years later

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u/Cpt_Morningwood Jul 26 '26

When I smoked, I smoked less than 10 cigs a day and still felt very bad about it. I smoked about 20 cigs a day if I drank. I could've never smoked 60 cigarettes a day without vomiting and feeling bad.

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5

u/ShotandBotched Jul 26 '26

Wow, that's a ripe old age for a chainsmoker!

3

u/Ataraxia-Is-Bliss Jul 26 '26

Between the cigarettes and all that soccer cardio, his heart must have been the size of an ox's.

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34

u/theothersideofit1 Jul 26 '26

20 yo me after the required semi-annual 1.5 mile run in the military back in the 90s

14

u/Drinkdrankdonk Jul 26 '26

At my first duty station we had a guy who smoked a cig while stretching, ran barefoot, immediately lit up after. He was doing 9 minute mile and a half.

5

u/OnTheEveOfWar Jul 26 '26

Some people are insane athletes. There’s a guy on instagram that does Ironmans and finishes at the top. He smokes cigs.

4

u/mr_ji Jul 26 '26

We still had the bike test in the 1990s. Smokers had an advantage because their heart rate was high to begin with and the test measured how it changed.

2

u/Brother_J_La_la Jul 26 '26

You could also hold your breath for a few seconds right before each minute mark, when it would actually record your heart rate. It would go down by about 10 bpm.

61

u/jwern01 Jul 26 '26

When I competed against the Russian rowing team in 1993, I remember one of their athletes smoking a cigarette between rows. Such a wild (ridiculous?) habit for an aerobic athlete competing at the international level when all the damage was well known in the 90’s.

47

u/Fun-Agent-7667 Jul 26 '26

"Sportler ist, wer raucht und trinkt, und trotzdem seine Leistung bringt" German proverb meaning your only an athlete if your drinking and Smoking, and still performing

10

u/illepic Jul 26 '26

git gud, basically

8

u/ace260 Jul 26 '26

imagine getting rekt by the other team to find out theyre all functional alcoholics and downed half a bottle of vodka before the game to lock in

3

u/illepic Jul 26 '26

Sounds like golf

5

u/funelite Jul 26 '26

To bad current german athletes are all pussies and do not adhere to this standard.

4

u/seroshua Jul 26 '26

I’ve smoked at least half a pack a day since 1998 and have not only got excellent cardio but am still actively involved in golf, swimming, basketball, and tennis.

I don’t have any issues keeping up with my kid, other youngsters, and take generally good care of myself in regards to diet / sleep / stress etc.

I have good thick hair / a healthy hairline, no greys, no wrinkles, teeth are white etc.

Surely they’ve done a ton of damage - but nothing noticeable yet!

I guess my point is that I’m not shocked that so many high level athletes were/are smokers.

15

u/SlurmzMckinley Jul 26 '26

Smoking is a terrible addiction and it’s extremely bad for you, but with proper training you can still compete athletically. I’m sure people who never started would have an upper hand, but it’s not as debilitating as people think, at least not until later on in life usually.

I’m one year smoke free and I could run 5Ks and 10Ks no problem. But it’s something I wish I never started. Quitting wasn’t easy and I feel sorry for anyone who starts that awful habit.

14

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

5

u/Bulthuis Jul 26 '26

Im Gespräch mit "Zeit"-Chefredakteur Giovanni di Lorenzo sagte Schmidt weiter, er sei vermutlich annähernd 100 Mal bewusstlos geworden, manchmal auch nur sekundenweise. Das habe ihn aber nicht davon abgehalten, "seine politische Pflicht zu tun". Inzwischen habe er den fünften Herzschrittmacher, und der sei "viel brauchbarer" als der erste.

3

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

3

u/Bulthuis Jul 26 '26

Jo, viele meinen, Schmidt wäre ein tolles Beispiel für "starker Raucher, aber trotzdem gesund", stimmt aber halt einfach nicht.

5

u/jwern01 Jul 26 '26

If you’re familiar with rowing at the elite level, athletes are putting in a lot of painfully hard work to achieve gains of less than 1%… quitting smoking seems like a much easier way to make those gains!

6

u/Alternative-Park-841 Jul 26 '26

rowing at the elite level [...] gains of less than 1%

That's not something that's special to rowing. It's true for all sports at elite levels.

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10

u/ShamDissemble Jul 26 '26

The Marlboro Mann

6

u/pitshands Jul 26 '26

Weissbier und Zigaretten in der Umkleide!

7

u/StumblingBlockson Jul 26 '26

"Mein schwerster Gegner war die Kneipe"

6

u/Sad_Brick_2079 Jul 26 '26

"My toughest opponent was always the pub" - The legend Walter Frosch

11

u/Stonerdoom888 Jul 26 '26

Frank Zappa? The goat?

7

u/Vonneguts_Ghost Jul 26 '26

He does look like the central scrutinizer

9

u/Uromegax Jul 26 '26

that guy was probably 18

4

u/Drachwill Jul 26 '26

50 in this picture, Walter Frosch

3

u/modern_milkman Jul 26 '26

He was 43 here. So still a lot younger than he looks. (Assuming the picture is from 1994)

2

u/Confuseacat92 Jul 26 '26

The picture is from Tag der Legenden in 2007, he was 56.

6

u/_ohne_dich_ Jul 26 '26

Johan Cruyff was another legend who lit up during halftime breaks and on the bench

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u/CROguys Jul 26 '26

That's the guy with a cigarette pack in his socks, and the voice to boot?

9

u/icchansan Jul 26 '26

He is 19 year old in that photo

3

u/AppropriateWing4719 Jul 26 '26

Not a clean lung in sight, beautiful scenes

4

u/Fisch0557 Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26

That dude is basically the reason the Bundesliga introduced a rule that you get a Game Ban after 5 yellow cards.

5

u/Tacitio Jul 26 '26

German national treasure

4

u/Nope159 Jul 27 '26

Zijaredden

6

u/KaiToyao Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26

Wer hat Angst vor Walter Frosch?

Also Funfact. Because of Walter a rule wad made, that you will be banned from the next game ot only when receiving a red card, but also with 5 yellow cards. Walter Frosch got 32 yellow cards in one season (34 matches).

Or as a referee said in a famous interview "He [Walter Frosch] always tried to play fair."

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u/Cpt_Knochen Jul 26 '26

Größter deutscher Fußballer

3

u/Cloud2110 Jul 26 '26

Er hat das was die Kinder von heute "Aura" nennen

3

u/VerifiedVoidGirl Jul 26 '26

That's what 22 looked like in 1994

3

u/SheriffBartholomew Jul 26 '26

What a fabulous mustache and hair! And to be rocking it 14 years after the 70's ended? Applause! Applause!

2

u/azmus Jul 26 '26

Timeless honestly.

3

u/Jerang Jul 26 '26

ZIJARETTEN

2

u/Confuseacat92 Jul 26 '26

Jetzt erstmal eine durchziehen?

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3

u/Cute_Quarter_2118 Jul 26 '26

He is 23 in this photo…

7

u/TrumpFucksKids_ Jul 26 '26

Except this guy never played past 1979 and didn’t even make it to his 63rd birthday 

2

u/pompeysam1234 Jul 26 '26

Damn running those Chicago restaurants sure takes its toll

2

u/justpuddingonhairs Jul 26 '26

Grunge soccer.

2

u/Glittering-Coyote140 Jul 26 '26

That moustache though. Gawd damn!

2

u/AlrightCunts Jul 26 '26

Sat next to Petr Cech

2

u/imdibene Jul 26 '26

Herr Frosch, was für ein legendärer Fußballer

2

u/flanaganapuss Jul 26 '26

He’s 27 (I have no clue how old he is)

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u/Friendly_Piece7385 Jul 26 '26

Er macht den Wojciech Szczęsny :D

2

u/Czar1987 Jul 26 '26

bro was prob 27 here....

2

u/muteen Jul 26 '26

Dehydration break

2

u/Clank_8-7 Jul 26 '26

With Cristopher Eccleston (the 9th Doctor) sitting beside him.

2

u/Xianfox Jul 26 '26

For a moment there I thought I was looking at Aaron Rodgers.

2

u/NightKnight_CZ Jul 26 '26

He is 27y old here

2

u/Basic_Ent Jul 26 '26

That's the kind of guy who would play a high school student in 1970s movies.

2

u/TxM_2404 Jul 26 '26

He's the reason that Players get suspended after a certain amount of yellow cards in German professional football. In the 1976/77 season of the second Bundesliga he collected a record breaking 18 to 27 yellow cards (the exact number can't be proven anymore).

"My toughest opponent has always been the pub"
~Walter Frosch

2

u/MessAggravating7175 Jul 26 '26

Looks like a classic German porn actor. Das is nicht ventilatoor, das ist meine kleine!

2

u/Fleischhauf Jul 26 '26

dat Jute lungenbrödsche

2

u/ScubaTal_Surrealism Jul 26 '26

20 year olds were built different back then.

2

u/SirCrustyMcRusty Jul 26 '26

Ziareddn 🚬🚬🚬

2

u/EconomyCorgi727 Jul 26 '26

Bro was probably 25 years old when this photo was taken.

2

u/Brilliant-Muffin-879 Jul 26 '26

He was great in True Detective season one

2

u/apocalyptustree Jul 26 '26

Die-hydration break

2

u/TheNomad777 Jul 26 '26

A different time, a different world, and honestly I think it was much better (from a cultural standpoint)

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u/terntsinceday1 Jul 26 '26

The guy is probably 26 in this pic

2

u/StarscreamOne Jul 26 '26

Back then cigarettes were good for you

2

u/Th3DarKn1ghtt Jul 26 '26

23 year old young man in his prime!!!

2

u/koassde Jul 26 '26

legend Walter Frosch, played with a pack of cigarettes in his socks.

2

u/Fun-Wrongdoer1316 Jul 26 '26

Dude is 19, looks 62 lol

2

u/Mountain_Humor1295 Jul 26 '26

Believe it or not, he was only 16 in this picture.

2

u/Despoiling40k Jul 26 '26

Just warming the lungs up

2

u/Deni_Z_Plays Jul 26 '26

Walter Frosch was such a legend.

Words can't describe the number of crazy things he has done. Especially when he said output that he wanted to sleep with the manager's wife rather than work with him (if I remember correctly).

He even opened a bar once and called his own bar his "greatest foe", which cracks me up today.

2

u/Gamebobbel Jul 26 '26

Ich kenn' den Jungen schon seit Jahren, er hat immer sauber und fair versucht zu spielen.

2

u/DetectiveExisting803 Jul 26 '26

Sorry I prefer water

2

u/dolokhov_reclaimed Jul 26 '26

Only 23 years of age in this photo

2

u/DaddlerTheDalek Jul 26 '26

The great late Walter Frosch.

2

u/JM062696 Jul 26 '26

That guys 22 years old

2

u/mstraveller Jul 26 '26

Plot twist, that man was 19 at the time.

2

u/BadIllustrious8291 Jul 27 '26

That dude is only 24 in that pic

2

u/varingian Jul 27 '26

I bet he's 22yo.

3

u/ImTooSaxy Jul 26 '26

I went to a James Taylor concert and they take several 10-minute breaks during the show and during one of them he came out and said "I don't know why we take these breaks anymore. It's not like we're doing cocaine in the back like we used to."

4

u/motorcycleman57 Jul 26 '26

Back before the country was ruined 😕