5 comments about Stepin Fetchit: The Life and Times of Lincoln Perry.

1. The first maybe six or seven chapters of this book were really tedious for me as they really didn't seem to delve into the life of Mr. Perry as much as they explored the "times" of Mr. Perry. It wasn't until around chapter 8 or so that I was able to enjoy the book as it went into more detail about Mr. Perry's life in and out of show-biz. Mr. Perry was a character, to say the least. Flamboyant with his riches and fame, but seemingly not so smart about his future. I just don't understand why some don't see just how much of a contribution Mr. Perry made to the world of Black cinema. Yes, he perfected the character of a slow-footed, shuffling, mealy mouth, but had he not made those enroads in film, would there be the Poitiers and Washingtons of today? I wish that there was some way to actually view In Old Kentucky and Hearts in Dixie so I can actually see the character Mr. Perry created and watch as his talents were displayed. Given the times that Mr. Perry and others of his generation had to work within, I'd say that he did what he had to do. Watkins does a fine job of providing us with a fact-based and well-documented glimpse into the life and times of Mr. Perry.



2. Lincoln Perry, the man the world came to know as Stepin Fetchit, was a complex man. After reading this book, I realize I have childhood memories of seeing Fetchit in films on television. I also remember some of his imitators. Mel Watkins brought to mind cartoons like "Who Killed Cock Robin?" where a Stepin Fetchit type character was being beaten by the police. I asked my sister to quote our deceased mother using the title of this book. She said, "Stop acting like Stepin Fetchit." That made us laugh. But I also remember being taught by my elders who were the great grandchildren of ex-slaves, the subtle form of "playing dumb" to avoid being oppressed by the oppressor. Unfortunately, when "the oppressor" saw Stepin Fetchit movies, he didn't get the joke because it was at his expense. Therefore, forward thinking black people had to cringe watching some of movies movies in mixed company because they knew that this comedians "act" was being accepted as typical black man behavior. Mel Watkins did a fantastic job of explaining Lincoln Perry and the time in which he lived.



3. This book was well researched, and provides an entertaining and enlightening insight into an era that could not exist since the civil rights movement of the 60's. It speaks to social justice and inclusion, bias and the ability to transcend existing norms to earn a living at a time when, for black America, second class citizenship and economic hardship were the norm. Mr. Watkins is the professor and we are his students.



4. A Fascinating Character"
   
   I'd heard the term "Stepin Fetchit," but I didn't know that there was a real person (Lincoln Perry) or movie star who used the name. So when a friend suggested I read this book I was leery. But after a few pages I was caught up in the times and in Perry's struggle to break into films and establish himself as a star. What surprised me most is that he was apparently an intelligent, gifted performer who was nothing like our picture of the "Uncle Tom" that the name is associated with. Who knew that Perry wrote for the Chicago Defender, fought for higher pay and better roles for black actors, hung out with the heavyweight champ Jack Johnson as well as Muhammad Ali, and, for years, lived such a lavish life in Hollywood. Watkins gives us a rich, detailed account of this complex, talented black comic actor. And when one reads about the racial restrictions and circumstances of black actors in the 1920s and 30s, the reasons for his being cast in the cartoonish movie roles he played become clear. He was a man before his time. I finished the book thinking that Perry, with his ambition and outrageous knack for publicity and self-promotion, could have been a star today. It seems that Perry had more flair and attitude than many of today's biggest stars.
   This is an entertaining, eye-opening book - a great read. I recommend it for anyone interested in entertainment history or the bumpy road that black actors had to travel to become accepted in Hollywood, and for everyone who wants to be introduced to one of the most fascinating characters I've ever read about. Lincoln Perry's achievements need to be reevaluated and "Stepin Fetchit" definitely deserves * * * * * Five Stars.



5. Chances are you don't know who Lincoln Perry is, and chances are you do know who Stepin Fetchit is, even though you may never have seen any of Fetchit's movies. Fetchit was Perry's stage persona, famous for playing the "shiftless darky," the slow-talking, drowsy shuffler that was the comic bane of his white masters. Perry was as full of contradictions as the character he portrayed, and both get a full biography in _Stepin Fetchit: The Life & Times of Lincoln Perry_ (Pantheon) by Mel Watkins. Watkins has previously written a history of African American comedy, and so is well acquainted with Fetchit, his fellow performers, and the social changes of the twentieth century that led to the changes in feeling about Fetchit's screen character. This biography is not just about the man and character, but about a particular aspect of twentieth century American race relations.
   
   Perry was born in 1902 in Key West, Florida, and followed his father into performing, working tent shows, carnivals, and eventually vaudeville. Movies were not a career that black performers considered at the time, because if depicted, blacks were played by whites in blackface. Perry may have taken a job as a porter at MGM, and in 1927 he acted in _In Old Kentucky_, his first film appearance, one which got him some critical notice. Perry did not invent Fetchit's "torpid physical presence and halting, meandering speech," but he performed the role with meticulous attention and timing. When onstage before an audience, a key part of his act (it sounds like the sort of transformation for which Andy Kaufman was famous) was to come meandering out, looking lost and confused, and start a whining, incoherent monologue. He would then suddenly burst into a spirited dance that showed that the sloth and stupidity were nothing but pretense. Watkins makes the point that on the screen, there was no such transformation; Perry's sluggard, always performed with skillful languor, was the only role he got to play. He became the first true black movie star, and one of the first to have a studio contract. Like so many actors of his time, he spent lavishly and foolishly. Throughout his movie career, he would irritate studio executives so much that he would get fired from a movie or from his contract, whereupon he would go back to the road for work on the stage. He was criticized by the civil rights movement in the 1940s, and was unemployable because of it, although he could have made a comeback in drama in the sixties. He died in a home for Hollywood actors in 1985.
   
   Watkins has provided a full picture of a complex man of real talent who used it in a timely way, a way that simply became unfashionable as times changed. Perry's aggressive demands to be treated (and paid) like white stars branded him a troublemaker. His fame opened doors for other black actors in less controversial roles, but his name stands for a now-regrettable image. This entertaining biography shows that there was more to him than the image.

1 comments about A Strange Freedom.

1. I first became acquainted with the work of Howard Thurman when I found a leather-bound copy of Disciplines of the Spirit at an antique store. I was struck first by the practicality of his work, and then by the universality of his vision of spirituality and brotherhood. I am very excited to find this volume of his essays published. I hope it brings to many in 1999 and the millenium the practical, down-to-earth theology of this man who was a mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King

No comments about Free Some Day: The African-American Families of Monticello.

4 comments about Repossessing Ernestine: A Granddaughter Uncovers the Secret History of Her American Family.

1. I read this book some years ago. I even called a friend who now lives once more in her home town of Memphis, TN. She assured me of the accuracy of events and names. Reading this book was equivalent to eating and enjoying a good multi-course meal. However, before I could finish the dessert, the table was cleared. As with many, if not all readers of this book, I hope that there will be a follow up book delving further for explanations. We are left hanging in mid air over quite a few issues. Does Marsha Hunt feel she gave all that she felt we needed to know, or did she grow weary and/or scared of finding more answers? Truly she cannot be content with the finality she offered to us. Still, bravo to her for her determination.



2. Repossessing Ernestine is a very interesting, compelling novel, however, Marsha Hunt should have given the reader more history of the "Talented Tenth". I am sure there some readers were lost and confused with many points in the book. More information about the "light skinned" elite in America and their history would better explain how Ernestine's world evolved, thus, lending credence to the idealism that was her true captor. Ernestine Hunt was a victim of social mores, beliefs and practices more so than alleged "mental illness".

   Marsha Hunt did not explain how it came to be that her mother and father met, married then divorced. The reader is not given an explanation of why her father was not present in your life and how she truly felt about that. These facts would speak to the evloution of the "Talented Tenth" tradition up to 1956.

   Repossessing Ernstine is a fabulous outline of an interesing memoir/biography. Marsha Hunt should follow up on this novel with another, giving more depth and insight into important historical incidences of Ernestine's early life. The reader needs to be re-introuduced to Ernestine Hunt - this time, instead of offering participant observation facts, invite the reader into Ernestine's world.




3. I must firstly disagree with the review that I have read. This book was capturing, and I was unable to put it down, I was reading in ques, while travelling and staying awake late into the night to finish it. I am a Mental Health nurse, and can understand the chain of events in Ernestine's life, especially in the era which she lived. Ms Hunt did an exceptional job of locating her 'lost and forgotten' grandmother, and whatever her motivation was, she appeared to increase the quality of Ernestine's life. I would be interested to learn how she spent the following years. Again Ms Hunt is to be commended. I have recommended the book to many friends,who have all enjoyed it, and after four years, I recommended it to another friend only last week.



4. Yes, I know that Marhsa Hunt had a child with Mick Jagger (how many times does she remind us?), but aside from that, her story is compelling although her reasons for searching out Ernestine seem to end once Hunt has enough Material for her book. I was left wondering about this cold, distant family and the children who wanted nothing to do with their mother until cousin Marsha takes an interest for whatever reason. None of the proposed questions are ever answered: Was Ernestine insane (unlikely)? Why did they lie about her educational background? Why did her children take so little interest in her? How did this family come to so callously turn their back on a "ill" mother especially when they became psychologists themselves? And, what role, if any, did race play? A sad story and wholly unsatifying, if you are looking for answers other than who is the father of Marsha Hunts daughter...you will not find them here. Ernestine Exploited is a better title.

5 comments about All Things Censored (Book & CD).

1. 
   Abu-Jamal is an intelligent and insighful man, and the book is thought-provoking at times, but do people really know the details of the murder case that made him a celebrity? To me it does matter who the author of a work is. Please, look into the primary sources as I have since drinking the Abu-Jamal Cool-Aid along with many others. Racism, classism, and punishment for being outspoken all may be issues our society must work to eliminate from our criminal justice system, but they're not the reason Abu-Jamal was convicted. I am sick that I was duped and will not read more by Abu-Jamal.



2. It is a very well written and thought provoking work. I truly admire what he is doing in such limited circumstances, further more appreciate his courage and strength. I was always against death penalty but after reading "all things censored" I was more aware why death penalty is such cruel and in human form of punishment. Must be abolished just like slavery!



3. Mumia Abu Jamal is undoubtedly correct with regard to his opinions about the American Judicial System, and many of the essays in this book, on everything from rap music to jail suicides, are heart rending and angering. But with regard to Jamal himself, the claims his supporters make of his innocence get more and more tenuous the harder one looks at the case. And his silence on the matter is also a bit disturbing. If an innocent man were rotting in a jail cell on death row in one of the worst prisons in the country, he would not be reminiscing about the past and the significant flaws of the system--he would write ceaselessly about the circumstances of his case, why he is innocent, what really happened that night between him and Officer Faulkner, and perhaps give us a little insight into why even his own brother would not testify on his behalf. A lucid, unsparing mind, an amazing talent, a true political activist and revolutionary, yes, all this and a vicious murderer to boot. When the smoke clears and a fair trial finally happens, some of these young kids who worship him are going to be mighty disappointed. All the lefty lawyers and goofball celebrities in the world can't cloud the actual truth, as romantic as Jamal's background may be.

   I'd still recommend the book. Just remember what kind of a human being wrote it.




4. All Things Censored

   Mumia Abu-Jamal has not only a good oratory style, but also writes vividly and convincingly. Mumia has a rare perspective, as his background as a reporter and his long and unjust incarceration give him an understanding of the political economy of the media, which serves to silence dissent, and the prejudice of the trial and punishment system. This book is essential for anyone who has an interest in US politics, justice, the issue of the death penalty and Mumia's case in particular. It is also an excellent insight into modern American society - the aspect that we are discouraged from seeing by politicians and the media. Any person who has a grasp of America's recent history knows all about police brutality, the oppression of minorities and the choking conformity of censorship, but rarely has a writer conveyed all of this so clearly. If this book is inflammatory, it is only because that is the rightful response to an injustice of the magnitude Mumia has been subjected to. His case encapsulates the blatant and ruthless prejudice of the police and the courts, and their highly pervasive and authoritarian grip on mainstream media discourse. His case echoes that of Nigeria's Ken Saro-Wiwa, and it would be to America's shame if he were to pay the same price for his dissent. Don't believe the corporate-controlled mass media - reject censorship. Find out the facts of Mumia's case and then decide.




5. The wisdom of Mumia Abu-Jamal has transcended the grim sentence our system handed him. Whether or not he murdered a man is not as important as the fact that our penal system dehumanizes its inmates. Not only that, our justice and law enforcement systems are profoundly discriminatory, especially against minorities in the lower economic classes. The death penalty merely tortures these inmates until their execution, at a much greater cost than keeping them incarcerated. Why does the system kill to teach our children that killing is wrong? Until we abolish the death penalty, our society can not hope to be truly humane, and the blood of Mumia will be on our hands.

No comments about Memoirs of an Arabian Princess of Oman and Zanzibar - the extraordinary life of a muslim princess between east and west.

5 comments about Straight, No Chaser: How I Became a Grown-Up Black Woman.

1. Jill Nelson is just another angry, bitter, whiny black woman with an axe to grind. This book is filled with the same old whining and cliches which have grown really old and tired. Almost everything she touches on is so predictable whether it's accusing black men who date outside the race as being sellouts (while saying nothing of black women who do the same thing of course), demonizing the Million Man March, whining about the light skin/dark skin thing and basically ranting about how the black woman is a pathetic victim. If it were a black man writing this foolishness, he'd be written off as an angry old coot in a minute. Well that's exactly what Jill Nelson is as far as I'm concerned.



2. Jill Nelson has a unique stlye that captivates readers. I have been inspired by her unique expression towards our community, so called leaders and BLACK WOMEN!! Although, it has been some time sense I have read her books; I am often reminded of her experiences towards self-empowerment.

   Any woman that is seeking external and internal fulfillment with a sassy approach; This is the book for you!!

   Jill Nelson you are a strong Black Woman!! Keep up the good work!!




3. Go Jill! I recently saw you on BET with Tavis Smiley and 3 or 4 Black female ministers.

   Nearly every feeling you expressed in your book was something I felt in the past or in some way still do today. What hit home was something significant that most Black people miss, especially the younger ones. As we approach the 21st century, American history is being rewritten to exclude the civil rights movement! And yes, you put it succintly, Black women are becoming invisible, erased!

   Why I didn't give this book five stars -- the book ended with no recommendations to resolve the anger and bitterness issues expressed throughout the book. Also, too many open-ended inuendos about other Black leaders such as Al Sharpton, Maya Angelou, etc.

   Still, Jill, keep writing.




4. I LOVE JILL NELSON!!! I have been a loyal fan and devoted follower of her writings since her days as a writer for ESSENCE magazine and the Village Voice. I even remember reading some of her articles when she was a writer for the Washington Post. Her latest literary effort, "Straight, No Chaser," is written in the same, no-nonsense, subtle yet direct, with just a twinge of sarcasm writing style that made her first book, "Volunteer Slavery," a bestseller and became a Bible of sorts to just about every African-American journalist in America..myself included! In her new book, I was especially touched by Nelson's periodic reference to the Deletha Word tragedy that occurred on a dark bridge in Detroit 4 years ago this month. Nelson writes about the awful event and describes how a minor incident escalated into a terrible tragedy and the loss of a life. I also enjoyed the chapter about violence toward women and how her ex-husband once "slapped me upside my head with his open palm so hard I see red, white and blue stars and my ear rings for twenty-four hours." I also enjoyed how she accurately points out that many of the so-called "black leaders," of today are usually loud-mouthed ministers who ALWAYS want to put race at the forefront of everything and blame all of African-Americans problems on the white man. Finally, while her latest book is very good, "Volunteer Slavery ," is better and still remains one of my all-time favorite books. Few writers are able to reveal so much about others yet, still be able to put themselves and their own faults and foibles on public display as skillfully and as well as Nelson does in each book. Keep up the good work Jill!! You have a legion of fans out here who love you and your work!!!!



5. Ms. Nelson writes compellingly about many issues facing the Black woman. I found the book illuminating, enlightening and difficult to put down as each sentence demanded my attention. It validated some of my own personal concerns and illuminated other issues I need to be concerned about.

No comments about What I Hope to Leave Behind: The Essential Essays of Eleanor Roosevelt.

5 comments about The Courting of Marcus Dupree.

1. This book is about the South and northern places in the mid 60's-80's. To be sure it is about a gifted black athlete having to survive a white society that wants somehow to be with him in his quest for greatness. Much more than that, this book is about racism at its core, promise, insecurity, and reluctant goodness, and we should hope that Morris's honest and understandable "sorta" autobiographical dissertation on his homeland Mississippi will compel us to take another look at where we are as a society. We should not let Pete, Willie's mid-life dog, be the best of what we can be.



2. This is a must read-especially for the young athletes of today. This man was a legend! Hands down the best running back in the country during his era!
   Having met him, he's a modest, humble man who loves football and loves his hometown. Would love to see this made into a movie!
   Get it, you won't be disappointed!



3. I recently read "The Courting of Marcus Dupree" and found it to be exciting and spell binding. My entire family was caught up in it. The book is an excellent tale of the birth of a young Black male in a troubling time for the South. The way Willie Morris related Marcus' birth and powerful strength to the struggle of his town and state was awesome, he should be the Mayor of Philadelphia or the Governor of Mississippi. I expected the book to be totally about football but it proved to be much more. It made you laugh and cry at times because of the tremendous pressure on Marcus Dupree, the 17 year old athlete that was blessed with such miraculous skills. The book made you feel like you were at the games when he made some of the beautiful plays. It was so intense that you wanted to get to the next page, but never wanted the book to end. I wish it was reprinted.



4. I read this book again recently and it was better than I remembered. It was so interesting to see how one 17 year old boy could dominate one small town's conversations. I expected this book to be a tale of a high school football star and his recruitment, but I got more, much more. Willie Morris examines the importance of football in Mississippi and how Marcus brought blacks and whites together with his play. He had insight in to Marcus that nobody outside of his family and high school coach could have had. Overall, a great read.



5. As an OU fan and a person who remember Marcus Dupree light up Norman during his brief time, I was very excited to have a little bit more background on this fascinating person.

   The book hits several different topics. Obviously his recruitment of many football schools at times take center stage. But much of the book also discusses the effect of a black athlete becoming a state hero in Mississippi and gaining fans of all races. The foil of Dupree's time to that of two decades earlier when three cival rights activists were brutally murdered by the Klan. And the author, Willie Morris, contrasting and comparing his life with what he sees around him while following Dupree.

   I recommend this book to anyone looking for a great personal account that takes you back to 1981 Mississippi, civil rights, and the power of football.

5 comments about Ever Is a Long Time: A Journey Into Mississippi's Dark Past A Memoir.

1. This book deserved much more notice than it received when it came out. Ralph Eubanks left Mississippi many years ago, but Mississippi never left him. For decades, he harbored the desire to understand his home state's strange fascination, and the release in 1998 of the records of the state's Sovereignty Commission, which was designed to keep segregation in effect, gave him an opportunity to look back at his past.
   
   Eubanks always knew that his parents intentionally shielded him from the ugliness and the violence of Mississippi in the 1950s and 1960s, but until he began to delve into the commission's records, he did not know how much shielding had actually gone on. He and his three sisters enjoyed a close family life and nurtured a sense of pride, even superiority, to the white people around him -- even while Klansmen and their supporters were targeting "outside agitators" and "communists," their names for whites and blacks who wanted to end segregation.
   
   Eubanks writes in a clear, straightforward style, mixing memory with present reality. He avoids cliches and brings to life a time long past.



2. Rarely one reads a book that causes the reader to feel love for its author. I had that experience reading "Ever Is a Long Time." W. Ralph Eubanks' memoir depicts the struggles white supremacy thrust upon him and his family, from his white grandfather, who married a black woman, on down to his own children, whom he must introduce to their father's Mississippi.
   
   Mississippi in the 1950s and 60s -- one imagines lynchings, injustice, heroism, sacrifice, history writ in blood.
   
   Eubanks' memoir, though, is suprising in its quite and restraint. Eubanks's childhood was, in many ways, "idyllic," he reports. His parents were pillars of the community. He grew up on an eighty acre farm. He went fishing and climbed trees.
   
   White supremacy, though, was an unavoidable evil. His father, a college educated professional, was denied simple toilet facilities at his work place. The family did not pave their driveway, so that if an uninvited guest brought trouble, the crunch of gravel would announce his presence. Eubanks' white grandfather's photograph was kept in the closet, lest it rouse questions, and trouble.
   
   Eubanks grew up, and moved away. His sons' questions about Mississippi caused him to go back. In going back, he investigated the Mississippi Sovereignty Commission, a state-sponsored spying agency that kept records of 87,000 of Mississippi's just over two million citizens. Its goal was to thwart civil rights workers and federal integration efforts. Eubanks' parents were included on that list of names.
   
   Eubanks meets with a former Klan member, so torn by his own membership in that evil society that he breaks into tears after their meeting. Eubanks also meets with an unrepetent member of the MSC. Eubanks discovers that people he knew, liked, and trusted, including African Americans, were informants.
   
   It was Eubanks' voice that was most attractive for me in this work. I never thought I'd read a memoir of life in the Jim Crow South, written by a black man, that was so affectionate, and so forgiving, of that South, while expressing appropriate rage and grief.
   
   Eubanks comes through strongly as a very decent man. His book caused me to feel great respect and affection for his father.
   
   It was a very worthy experience to encounter simple human goodness in a memoir of such terrible wrong.
   
   Eubanks is to be thanked for this work.



3. Eubank's autobiography is fascinating. The segues between his childhood, his investigation into the Mississippi Sovereignty Commission, his trip back to Mount Olive and the historical pieces about the Civil Rights movement in Mississippi are sometimes missing or confusing. I also caught a couple editorial mistakes (duplicate words or funny gramatical stuff) that should have been caught by the editor.

   Nonetheless, I enjoyed reading the book and feel I am coming away from it having learned a great deal about a time and place in history I am personally quite removed from. I read it just after having heard the NPR All Things Considered 5 part piece on the Brown vs. Board of Education decission so Eubank's memoir provided an interesting counterpoint.




4. This is an excellent memoir. It combines memories of a childhood in Mount Olive, Mississippi, with current historical research concerning the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. Mr. Eubanks is now Director of Publications for the Library of Congress. His account of three years spent trying to reconcile his recollections of growing up in Mississippi with the stark reality of the history of that era makes for great reading. Mr. Eubanks final synthesis is both positive and compassionate. This is a book that every Mississippian who lived through that era should enjoy.



5. First, I am a native Mississippian who has lived out of the South for about 10 years. Coincidently, I went to Ole Miss and lived in the same dorm as the author but a year earlier. I did not know Mr. Eubanks but may have had classes with him. Ever is a Long Time is a great look back on activities of both sides of the civil rights movement. The Mississippi Sovereignty Commission spied on all citizens of the state and had 87,000 names in its files including Mr. Eubanks' parents. I have found the names of parents of several very good friends; Parents who were on both sides of the segregation question. It is a troubling story for a Mississippian to read and has led to phone calls and extended discussions with old friends. It has also increased my awareness of the times, our abilities to do mindless things, and to find the better way. There are some poignant interviews with past Sovereignty officials, a past member of the KKK, as well as leaders of the civil rights movement. These wonderfully display the frailty of humans, the need to cope, the darker side of man, and the ability to change. The passages about his children that open and close the work are among my favorites. The book is an honest, worthwhile read about cultural changes and the history of yesterday. (My copy did not have any pictures beyond the cover). Mississippi carries a brutal stigma regarding racial history. My time in other parts of the country have convinced me that the emotions of the 50's and 60's were not limited to Mississippi but rather widely held across the country. Mississippi, like other southern states, got the label and historical coverage and will always carry the stigma. It is a fading stigma that should have been widely shared across our healing nation. My heart gives it 5 stars, but objectivity demands 4 stars.