You Ought To Do a Story About Me: Addiction, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Endless Quest for Redemption

While on assignment in 1990, photojournalist Jackson came across a man living under a bridge in New Orleans. That man, Jackie Wallace, was a former NFL star who had gone all the way to the Super Bowl. Struggling with substance abuse and homelessness, he was now at rock bottom. Jackson befriended Wallace, and learned how he had achieved success and then lost everything. This memoir traces their personal bond over three decades. Jackson refuses to give up on his friend, while Wallace constantly walks the delicate balance between safety and tragedy. The impact of race, the realities of addiction, and the aftermath of concussions from Wallace’s playing days are expertly interwoven throughout a narrative that also touches on how Wallace navigated the impact of his mother’s death. How these two men met and changed each other’s lives is an enduring testimony to the power of human connection.