Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 2/23 - Rain-out Theater

Last night PBS aired another interesting music documentary. Sister Rosetta Tharpe is called the Godmother of Rock n Roll. I’m embarrassed to say I’d never heard of her, although she was a ground-breaking artist. She was also dubbed Gospel’s first superstar, although traditionalists bristled at this, as they do whenever an art form is taken in another direction, i.e. Bob Dylan's 1965 electric guitar set at the Newport Folk Festival. I remember how disappointed I was at a Talking Heads concert in Central Park when they brought out background singers that moved their music from its rock roots to a sort of R & B. I eventually saw the error of my ways and love the Remain in Light (1980) concert DVD that features a similar if not the exact same lineup. Anyway, Tharpe influenced the likes of Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Johnny Cash. And she made a lot of money too, despite the racial attitudes that prevailed throughout most of her career. There was commentary throughout the hour from people she knew and worked with, including one of the Jordanaires. She was a good guitar player. She had several husbands, many lovers, including women, in her short life. She died of a stroke at 58 in 1978, probably brought on by diabetes. The most interesting music clip of the profile, although the sound isn’t very good, is of her at a concert at a railroad station in England, where the artists performed on one platform and the audience sat on the opposite. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find that clip. Here is another: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeaBNAXfHfQ

Later, searching with the remote, I landed at the National Evangelical Channel (30 on Cablevision in NY), which was running Dick Tracy’s Dilemma (1947). I’d never seen any of the series, which starred Ralph Byrd, who also played the iconic figure in 48 episodes of the TV series from 1950-’52. I’ve seen and enjoyed Warren Beatty’s colorful take (1990), highlighted by Al Pacino's over the top performance as the crime lord. And of course there were the cartoons. I chuckle whenever I recall Joe Jitsu saying: "Excuse, please, so sahry," as he thrashed criminals. A friend of mine who traded Silver Futures was nicknamed Jits because of his fighting prowess. In fact, he makes a couple of brief appearances in my forthcoming novel, Exchanges. Anyway, despite its low budget, Dick Tracy's Dilemma has a gritty film noir feel, creepy atmosphere. It was directed by John Rawlins, who amassed 46 credits, apparently all at the B level. Its only real drawback is that some of the humor is lame. It runs a tidy 60 minutes. It is rated only 5.1 out of ten at IMDb, but I thought it was fun. Tragically, Byrd succumbed to a heart attack at 43. The flick’s best aspect is the casting of Jack Lambert as the murderous villain, The Claw. Movie and TV buffs will recognize, if not his name, his sinister look. Here’s a pic:

The floating book shop was rained-out today.
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