In 1982, 5 good friends took a seemingly ordinary photo. Decades later they have recreated the same photo every 5 years despite trials and tribulations.

On July 4th, 1982 5 friends gathered to take a photo near the border of Oregon and California. The group of 5 was made up of John Dickson, John Wardlaw, Mark Rumer-Cleary, John Molony, and Dallas Burney.

That first picture was taken when the boys had just graduated from high school. They had no idea what kind of tradition they were starting on that day when they snapped a seemingly ordinary shot.

The squad of boys had known each other long before the first photo was taken. In fact, they had been buddies since before 1977! That year, John Wardlaw (also known as Wedge) had the tragic misfortune of his family home burning down.

Wedge and JD bonded over their love for the Super 8 Movies and they spent lots of time together when they were young since their homes were right next to each other. 

When the boys were lounging around at home watching movies, they were spending time in the cabin on Copco Lake which had been built by Wedge’s grandpa. This is where that first photo was taken.

After one summer spent at the cabin, the boys were hooked! It became an annual tradition that they would go there for the Fourth of July. JD was the one that whipped out his camera on that first trip.

Exactly 5 years after the first photo, the boys arranged themselves into the same exact positions and retook the picture. The year was 1987 and it looked like almost nothing had changed. 

Many people who have followed this story had wondered what the purpose of that seemingly random empty jar was. Why had they included it in the photo each year? Apparently, the boys had put a cockroach in the jar that first year. It was to be something of a mascot for the friend group.

While they had fun recreating their iconic picture the second time, none of the boys had really planned on doing it for the third time. They had returned to Copco Lake all gown up as it had now been a decade since the first photo was taken.

The unplanned third photo was a little different than the first 2; however, the jar still made an appearance. The pose is the same, but the jar was empty and the Johns had decided to keep their shirts on.

Many people have questioned why the boys have such sullen expressions in the photos. Surely they are happy to be together! So, why do they look so unamused?

Now, the year is 1977 and the boys gather at the lake for the fourth time in 15 years. This year, the picture starts to look pretty different. Dallas sports a smile instead of the familiar sullen expression.

What was even more impressive than the boys recreating the photo every five years was that they had remained close friends for this long! Kram explained that they never really had any major falling outs.

This is the photo that would have been the fifth in line, but as you can see, they are down a member. What had happened is that the boys wanted to start taking the photos more frequently, but Kram refused to join!

The boys had other traditions that they have stuck to throughout the years as well. When Wedge’s grandfather passed away, the cabin became his home and so it made it possible for the boys to meet up and keep the traditions alive. 

That aged whiskey was the only alcohol the boys ever indulged in at the cabin. It was kept in 1969 Ezra Brooks decanters that were shaped like boars. Wedge now collects those bottles and even has the very first one they drank from.

The boys didn’t count the photo they took without Kram, so this is technically the fifth photo in the collection. The jar is back, and they’re all lined up accurately, but there are a few differences here.

By the time the 2000s rolled around, film cameras were falling way out of style. Digital was in! So, for the foreseeable future, they would be using a digital camera to capture their special photo every five years.

The sixth photo was taken in 2007 with a D70 camera. This year, they wanted to make it as close to the original as possible. The sunglasses were on, the usual jar made a comeback, and the smiles were put away. 

This was when the project started to become popular. The boys were even on the news for their little photo project. People love the photos and loved the friendship even more.

The friends had now spread out across the states and had lives of their own. Only JD stayed in Santa Barbara and ran the city’s tourism site. Sallad moved to Antioch, California to teach, and Kram and Wedge moved to Oregon.

Despite the distance, all five of the members managed to make it to the lake and pose for the seventh photo at the lake. By 2012, it had been 3 entire decades since the first photo was taken. 

The 2012 picture of the five friends really took off on the internet. People were obsessed with the story and the five-year photos. Belves reported, “I couldn’t believe the amount of reactions to our picture”.

Now that the world was interested, they began making some television appearances. None of them could believe that a simple photo had landed them in this position. They appeared on The Today Show as well as many other programs.

The five friends even had the privilege of meeting the Fierce Five! The talented gymnasts were at the height of their fame as they had won the second gold team medal from the U.S. in the 2012 Summer Olympics.

After all the television appearances and internet fame, the group gathered once again for their 8th photo at Copco Lake in 2017. This was their 35th anniversary and they even made a little call out to Matt Lauer who had interviewed them for their Today Show appearance. 

In any case of internet fame, there are adoring fans and people who can’t help but bring the negativity. There’s no escaping it! Belves explained that “about 75% of the responses were glowing and loving… but some of it was visceral hate”. 

While the spouses are not pictured in the five-year photos, they are always behind the scenes. Since the 2017 picture was taken, all five of the members had been married.

The ninth photo came in 2022 and featured all the usual suspects. The jar contains a plastic roach as an homage to the original as well as a butterscotch candy. This was the first year that people other than the friends were present for the iconic photo. 

The friends have a website where they have shared their photos as well as the story behind them. An artist created this image of them and the friends joked that this is what their photo will look like in 3017!