[Tattoo 4 – Dr. Howard T. Bellin]

Interviews with plastic surgeon Howard T. Bellin about tattoos, focusing on tattoo removal. Produced for the documentary Tattoo, by Susan Milano.

00:45Copy video clip URL From behind the camera, videomaker Susan Milano asks Dr. Howard T. Bellin to define “tattoo.” Bellin distinguishes between a traumatic tattoo – such as a scar from an accident, a medical tattoo, and a decorative tattoo. 

02:49Copy video clip URL The removal of tattoos. The methods of removing them and the difficulties of doing so. Explaining the process of using skin grafts and removing partial epidermal layers. 

07:23Copy video clip URL What makes the tattooing process permanent. The injection of a metallic pigment into the skin that shines through the transparent outer layers of skin.

09:17Copy video clip URL The depth of injection for tattoos. Professional tattoo artists going much deeper into the skin than amateur or self-tattoos. 

11:15Copy video clip URL Other methods for removing tattoos. Including burning or acid, which leaves a scar but removes the specific design. The easiest and cheapest methods. 

13:00Copy video clip URL Removing tattoos through injection with tattoo needles – a method that Bellin had heard of but has no experience with. 

14:02Copy video clip URL Removing tattoos with a dermabrator, which is preferable for very shallow tattoos (mostly amateurs). 

15:00Copy video clip URL The reasons people have their tattoos removed. Many patients regret young or sudden decisions, Bellin says. 

16:57Copy video clip URL The most extensive tattoo removal Bellin had ever done, an elaborate back piece. 

18:35Copy video clip URL Medical tattoos, performed by a doctor. Including correcting “port wine stain”-type discolorations by tattooing a patient with pigment matching their skin color. 

22:27Copy video clip URL Treating vitiligo with tattoos, a practice that Bellin believes is rare and less successful than other medical tattoos. 

24:10Copy video clip URL Speculation about the capacity to use medical tattooing to cover up decorative tattoos. 

25:36Copy video clip URL The possibility for transmitting blood-born diseases through tattoo needles. Sanitary worries being the primary reason for New York City’s ban on tattoo parlors. 

27:44Copy video clip URL Street interviews. An elderly Jewish couple discuss tattoos. The husband is enthusiastic in his approval. The wife jokes about getting one herself but is ultimately negative about tattoos. 

28:42Copy video clip URL Jean Carroll, “The Tattoo Queen,” speaking briefly about a lack of regrets in her life. 

29:07Copy video clip URL Close-up of recently-applied tattoos, and to end credits, written on a man’s chest: “Our special appreciation to: Howard T. Bellin, M.D., plastic surgeon. Miss Jean Carroll, the Tattoo Queen. Peter Poulos, Tattoo Artist. Long Island Tattoo Studio. And also to Arnold Belkin, Stan Dennis, Robert James, Diane Poulos, Felicity Rainnie, David Saleem, Joe LaRusso.” The credits continue on his back. “Camera: Dan Hedges, Wayne Hyde, Gregory M. Lavdanski. Production Assistance: Pam Lavdanski. Produced and Edited by Susan Milano.”