Victor Spinetti Up Front...: His Strictly Confidential Autobiography

Victor Spinetti Up Front...: His Strictly Confidential Autobiography
Antonio G. Pereira © 2012 Antonio G. Pereira
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Victor Spinetti, after a very successful run of one man performances of his show, 'A Very Private Diary!' http://www.walesonline.co.uk/showbiz-and-lifestyle/news/2008/10/31/why-i-turned-hollywood-down-by-victor-spinetti-91466-22156166/ http://www.walesonline.co.uk/showbiz-and-lifestyle/news/2008/10/29/victor-spinetti-s-theatrical-tales-91466-22137051/ , does a free and open to the public performance on the stage of The Bruno Walter Auditorium at Lincoln Center, on Saturday Jan. 10th, 2009 at 3:00 P.M. in the afternoon. The place is packed to the rafters with Theatre People, Beatle Fans, the Press, and Victor puts on one hell of a performance! Funny, witty, poignant, thought provoking, every word you can think of to describe a thoughtful, creative artist; who with effortless, easy command of the stage, has the entire audience in the palm of his hand, from beginning to end. He stays afterward to sign autographs for everyone who would like one, despite having come down with a cold, and despite the fact that an already forecasted oncoming horrendous, punishing blizzard will hit New York by early evening. All true and experienced by yours truly, who was one of those fans in the audience that glorious, magical day http://observer1984.blogspot.com/2009/01/victor-spinetti-very-private-diary.html . Well, let me tell you, 'Victor Spinetti Up Front,,,: His Strictly Confidential Autobiography' http://www.dramabookshop.com/book/9781861059437 http://www.dramabookshop.com/book/9781905798254  , is the next best thing to having seen Victor live in performance. A very good writer, the premier portions of his autobiography cover his early life. As his one man show's main focus was on his career in theatre and films, and the people he knew connected therein, his childhood in Wales and subsequent experiences in the Army (which are related in detail in the book) are quite startling (and at times disturbing) to read. His father Joe, who in the early 20th century left an already Fascist leaning pre-Mussolini/Hitler/Franco-Nazi Axis Italy, to go to Wales, was a driven, hard working but very distant, callous and ultimately insecure individual. At the outbreak of World War II, Joe along with other Italians who had settled in Scotland and Wales, were sent off to what amounted to, 'Internment Camps'. It was up to Victor Spinetti's mother Lily, who was Welsh, to run things until her husband was released. Although always close to his mother, Victor relates that there was always a certain coldness between his mother and father, which we learn, he eventually finds out the reason for, when he gets older. On advice from a good friend (actually two) on his return from the Internment Camp, Victor's father enrolls him in the Monmouth School For Boys (located in Monmouthshire, SouthEast Wales, County of Gwent, near the Monnow and Rye Rivers, where both English and Welsh are spoken), and his life begins to change as he discovers his true calling there; which is the Arts. After a near fatal experience in the Army a few years later, due to Spartan and dangerously unhealthy living conditions in the barracks, which leads to Pleurisy and a Collapsed Lung, followed by blatant Military Medical Incompetence, which ends with a full Army Disability Pension (to cover up the Medical Incompetence), Victor gets a Grant to attend The Cardiff College of Music and Drama; and his fate is sealed. And from here on, Victor Spinetti's life comes in line with his one man show, 'A Very Private Diary'. His breakthrough into acting in both theatre and films in London. Early friendships with a young actor named Sean Connery (this was before Connery made his breakthrough film, 'Another Time, Another Place', with Lana Turner), Director Joan Littlewood (in whose Theatre Workshop he starred in many productions), his late partner {and actor in his own right} Graham Curnow (in whose memory he dedicated his autobiography), his subsequent friendships with The Beatles (especially with John Lennon, with whom he developed a deep friendship bond that culminated with their co-authorship of and Spinetti directing The London National Theatre's production of Lennon's two books, 'In His Own Write' and 'A Spaniard In The Works', as 'The John Lennon Play: In His Own Write' {Lennon seems to have always clicked with very creative artist types, e.g. Stuart Sutcliffe, his first wife Cynthia, Peter Cook, Eleanor Bron, Victor, Alma Cogan, Yoko, May Pang}) Some of the stories Victor tells about people he casually meets, like the old couple in The Colony Room (a private drinking club in Soho in London) and 'The Swedish Shipping Millionaire', in Winston's Nightclub (also in London) and what eventually transpires when they 'invite him home', leave you dumbfounded with your jaw slowly dropping open. And there are the stories of kindnesses that people have shown him. Once during the filming of, 'A Hard Days Night', which was a breathtaking spontaneous gift from The Beatles for his sister Gianina when she was getting engaged, and again from Elizabeth Taylor during the filming of 'The Taming of The Shrew', when his sister was getting married. His relationships with Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Peter Sellers and Marlene Dietrich, provide many additionally entertaining stories (his description of the meeting he had with Laurence Olivier and John Lennon {who came with Yoko} to initially discuss the possibility of mounting the play based on Lennon's two books, at The Old Vic Theatre, is priceless!), as well as his work with Orson Welles. Victor Spinetti (who has a very good memory my friend), keeps you glued to his autobiography; as page after page he has fascinating stories to tell. This book is a rare treasure, written by someone who was there when it all happened. Well worth reading.

We were so very lucky to have him: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2161526/Actor-Victor-Spinetti-star-Beatles-films-died-aged-82-cancer-battle.html

I remember reading somewhere that John Lennon once said that we never actually die until the last person who has a memory of us dies. And there you have it, some wise words from Sage Lennon.

Oh and by the way, the cover of 'Victor Spinetti Up Front', sports a comical photograph of Messers Spinetti and Lennon cutting up for the camera, on what looks like the set of the film, 'Help'.

And today as I publish this posting dear reader, John Lennon has a birthday.

And a Very Happy Birthday To You John Lennon.

A Quaker Speaks From The Black Experience: The Life and Selected Writings of Barrington Dunbar

A Quaker Speaks From The Black Experience: The Life and Selected Writings of Barrington Dunbar
Antonio G. Pereira © 2012 Antonio G. Pereira
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Barrington Dunbar was quite a gifted and remarkable person. He lived his life as we can all only hope to. That is to make a difference in other people's lives to such an extent, that he left a lasting influence. The book, 'A Quaker Speaks From The Black Experience: The Life and Selected Writings of Barrington Dunbar' (Edited by James A. Fletcher and Carleton Mabee. Published by New York Yearly Meeting of the Religeous Society of Friends, 15 Rutherford Place, New York, N.Y. 10003), covers his whole life. By the time he passed on, in October of 1978 in Toronto, Canada at the age of 77, his legacy was astounding. Just to briefly go through highlights in his life, is to marvel. From his support and raising funds for the American Relief Ship For Spain, while attending Columbia University in the 1930s (there is a photo of Barrington with other supporters in the book, 'Mississippi To Madrid: Memories of a Black American In The Spanish Civil War 1936-1938 by James Yates. Published by Shamal Books, GPO Box 16 New York City 10116 USA), to his work with young people at the Urban League, during the same time period, Riverside Church, and an interracial cooperative in Greenwich Village. When drafted during World War II, he worked with Black Migrant Farm Workers for the War Food Administration. As a Major in the United States Army after the war, in the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Agency in Europe, he worked to help Polish, Estonian, German and French families rebuild their lives (as well as with Formerly - Nazi German youth); and arranged for Black Churches and a community center in Harlem, to send needed food, clothing and Christmas gifts to displaced refugees. Needless to say, his building of bridges between cultures was immense. His subsequent work with Unicef in Haiti, led to his interest in Quakerism, and through this, expanded his travels to Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Greece, Israel, Italy, England, Russia, Scandinavia and Brazil, in the 1950s. During the 1960s he settled in New York and continued his work there, where he created and developed 'The Adventure Corps', on the Lower East Side; an experimental program aimed at helping the diverse youth population which included Black, Latino, Chinese and Jewish. As the events of this decade unfolded, America changed forever, and Barrington (now a Quaker) spoke widely and clearly about what was happening. Many of his articles and essays, which were published in the Quaker periodical, 'Friends Journal', are gathered together in the second half of this book; and his unflinching truths about 'overt violence' (the riots which were exploding all over the country) and 'covert violence' ( the institutionalized racism that had been quietly allowed to function as the law of the land, while those who had been comfortable with it, looked the other way and did nothing) are very powerful to read, even now. I was lucky enough to have known him personally, and back when I was a college student, spent many hours talking with him at his apartment on the Lower East Side. Among the many stories of his life that he spoke of with warm memories, one of my favourites was his recollection of Bobby Kennedy visiting Grosvenor Hospital during the Christmas/New Years holidays in the 1960s; where Bobby sat on the floor with the children in the Children's Ward, and played with them with their toys. In my own travels as a college student, no matter what continent I was on, I always ran into someone whose life he had touched and changed for the better. A truly rare person, indeed!

12 Angry Men - 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition DVD

12 Angry Men - 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition DVD
Antonio G. Pereira © 2012 Antonio G. Pereira
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12 Angry Men http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=7581281 A very powerful film, directed by Sidney Lumet (The Pawnbroker, The Wiz, Q&A), and starring Henry Fonda (who also co-produced). From a story by playwright Reginald Rose (who also wrote the screenplay). 12 Angry Men, set in 1950s post McCarthy America, is about a murder trial and the twelve jurors who must decide the ultimate life or death fate of the defendant. Well written and directed, with superb acting by the cast, it is explosive cinema at it's best.
Strangely, no mention is made in the two otherwise fine 'Making of Twelve Angry Men' documentaries in Special Features, about another reason that Henry Fonda might also have wanted so badly to make this film and co-produce; The Los Angeles Zoot Suit Riots, that took place during World War 2. The late History Professor, Ronald Takaki, wrote at length about this in his book, Double Victory. (There is a link to his book within an earlier posting http://friendfeed.com/rooms/lauradern/dbbe7905/observer1984-focus-film-adaption-of-novel-by.html )
From Double Victory: On October 4th, 1944, the District Court of Appeals found that the trial judge in the Sleepy Lagoon case was biased against the defendants and overturned the convictions. Leading the appeal struggle was a defense committee whose membership included Bert Corona, Rita Hayworth, Anthony Quinn, Orson Welles, Henry Fonda and Carey McWilliams. "It wasn't only seventeen boys who were on trial", the committee declared. "It was the whole of the Mexican people, and their children and grandchildren." In their conclusion, they issued a call to arms against the ideology of white superiority on the home front: "Nazi logic guided the judge and jury and dictated the verdict and sentence. We are at war not only with the armies of the Axis powers, but with the poison gas of their doctrine, with the 'biological basis' of Hitler and with his theories of race supremacy."
{For related and quite illuminating scholarship:
(1) Upside Your Head! Rhythm and Blues on Central Avenue by Johnny Otis - Published by Wesleyan University Press
(2) Why I Left America and Other Essays by Oliver W. Harrington - Published by University Press of Mississippi
(3) Dark Laughter: The Satiric Art of Oliver W. Harrington - Published by University Press of Mississippi
(4) Frank Zappa: The Negative Dialectics of Poodle Play by Ben Watson - Published by St. Martin's Griffin (An Imprint of St. Martin's Press)}
And: {A1} Miracle At St. Anna http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-at-St-Anna-Widescreen/dp/B001LLH8SO
{A2} Black History: A Retrospective http://www.amazon.com/Black-History-Retrospective-Barack-Obama/dp/B002WBYDLC
Additionally, another book by Ronald Takaki makes sobering reading, 'A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America' http://ghostdance.webs.com/A%20different%20Mirror.pdf

Happy Xmas (War Is Over)

Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Antonio G. Pereira © 2011 Antonio G. Pereira
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http://beatlesource.com/bs/mains/audio/xmas/xmas.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF59w_7mKMM

Lennon NYC - DVD

Lennon NYC - DVD
Antonio G. Pereira © 2011 Antonio G. Pereira
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Lennon NYC http://www.amazon.com/Lennon-NYC-John/dp/B003YGC7VM A chronological and detailed documentary of John Lennon's life in New York, with wonderful footage from the Ann Arbor John Sinclair Benefit, and what appears to be, footage from the Attica Families Benefit at the Apollo Theatre. Also included is the period he spent out in Los Angeles. Great interviews with musicians and producers who knew him, as well as Yoko Ono, May Pang, Bob Gruen, Dick Cavett and others. John and Yoko's deep love for each other is very evident, all throughout this entire documentary. The Dick Cavett Show footage of John reading Democratic Representative Ron Dellums' letter concerning his song, 'Woman Is The Nigger Of The World', from the album, Sometime In New York City, is as daring and brave now, as it was then; and really upset some folks' comfort level. (I also remember that during this same period, Peter Cook {who at the time, was appearing with Dudley Moore in the long running Broadway production, Good Evening http://www.lunaestas.com/petercook } made some daring statements about the subject of racism on The Dick Cavett Show.) It's very good to see some of the beautiful photographs from May Pang's book, Instamatic Karma, which has been reviewed in an earlier posting on this blog http://observer1984.blogspot.com/2010/10/us-vs-john-lennon-instamatic-karma.html Additionally, here is a very rare interview with her http://michaelaventrella.wordpress.com/2010/02/26/interview-with-author-may-pang . The photographs of John with a baby Sean (some of which I remember from The John Lennon Exhibition in London in 1988), are very moving. The music in the documentary consists of a lot of outtakes of songs that were on albums. And they are fascinating to hear. Several of them are acoustic versions with just John accompanying himself on guitar, where you get to hear his in-the-process structuring of a song he is composing. (Akin to what was captured in The Beatles Anthology recordings). The hard rock recordings of Yoko, from the period when she was appearing solo at Kenny's Castaways in the 1970s, are very good too. It puts a smile on your face, to hear everyone who was there during the recording of Double Fantasy, talk about what an enjoyable album it was for them to make. As this posting reaches you on John's birthday, this is a documentary that will remind you of not only how much John Lennon contributed, but how much he is a part of everything around us even now, and why. And as for all the women he loved and who loved him, so it will be. It's a good lesson in feeling human. And so...

Thank You to one John Lennon, who was consistently John Lennon.

And remains Forever In Our Hearts.

A Very Happy Birthday To You.

http://www.myspace.com/johnwinstononolennon9

http://www.myspace.com/johnlennon7

And the Candle Shall Pass to the Children of Heart and Conscience who will Seek Justice....

And the Candle Shall Pass to the Children of Heart and Conscience who will Seek Justice....
Antonio G. Pereira © 2011 Antonio G. Pereira
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http://occupywallst.org

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tracey-e-vitchers/occupyingnot-riotingwall-_b_980003.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qbvg48jB2RY

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xq1q9k_bob-dylan-a-hard-rain-s-a-gonna-fall-1964_music


http://rebuildthedream.com

Let It Bleed: The Rolling Stones, Altamont, and the End of the Sixties & Exile On Main Street.: A Season in Hell with The Rolling Stones

Let It Bleed: The Rolling Stones, Altamont, and the End of the Sixties & Exile On Main St.: A Season in Hell with The Rolling Stones
Antonio G. Pereira © 2011 Antonio G. Pereira
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Let It Bleed by Ethan A. Russell (Published by Springboard Press N.Y.) is a collection of photographs Ethan Russell took of The Rolling Stones, from 1968 (when Brian Jones was still in the band) through 1969 (with a few photos from the 1972 tour of America). Most of the book is taken up with the 1969 North American Tour. The photographs are quite good, and there are candid shots of Tommy Smothers meeting with the Stones about appearing on The Smothers Brothers Show, Bill Graham at the Oakland concert he promoted, Jimi Hendrix jammimg with Mick Taylor backstage at Madison Square Garden, (There are more photos of Hendrix backstage with the Stones that Thanksgiving night in 1969, in a rather chaotic 2nd Guitar World Jimi Hendrix Tribute Issue from March 1988. {The first was the Sept. 1985 Issue} Mick Taylor gave a very gracious and informative interview to Experience Hendrix Magazine, which was published in their Nov/Dec 1999 Issue. Here is a very lengthy related article http://www.micktaylor.net/MT_re-examinedp1.htm)  Bukka White meeting the Stones, Chuck Berry talking with Keith Richards and Mick Jagger etc... The stories Ethan Russell tells in this book about the circumstances under which he started photographing the Stones and what Brian Jones was like, are quite interesting (although I wonder if his 'vacation' in London had more to do with the draft and the Vietnam War). Additionally, his detailed descriptions of the Hyde Park Concert after Jones' passing, and Mick Taylor joining the band after leaving John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, and finally the 1969 tour, are very good. (It's interesting to note that The Rolling Stones two transitional group performances occurred on The David Frost Television Show. Brian Jones final performance with the Stones after Beggars Banquet was released, near the end of 1968 performing 'Sympathy For The Devil' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N52_8Ukuvcg     and 'You Can't Always Get What You Want', which has never been screened in the U.S., and Mick Taylor's first performance with the Stones in 1969, when the 45 'Honky Tonk Women' was released, https://www.rollingstonesdata.com/video/honky-tonk-women-three-tv-appearances-1969/   with Jagger so stoned he mumbled his way through the song; was screened in the U.S. {Interestingly, during the mid-1970s a 2LP bootleg appeared in some 'specialist' record shops that sported a cover parodying a T.V. Guide; containing a chronological listing of The Rolling Stones t.v. appearances on live television from 1964-1972. The David Frost Show appearance of the Stones playing 'Honky Tonk Women', is on that bootleg}) One thing that should be understood is that the photographs of the tour are not from every single date, but offer a wide variety of in concert and backstage photos (some very well known). The stories told by (and about) different people that were associated with the tour, are also quite interesting to hear. Some people apparently (for this book) are speaking for the first time. When we get to Altamont, it becomes quickly obvious that this is a disaster in the making; and nobody comes out looking very good when it's over. In the Epilouge to this book, I find it rather strange that Ethan Russell tells half a story about the aftermath of the murder at Altamont and subsequent trial; as you can find the rest of the facts in detail, in History Professor Jon Weiner's book, 'Come Together: John Lennon In His Time' (Published by Random House New York) in Chapter 11 'Altamont and Toronto' pages 124-130.
Exile On Main St.: A Season in Hell with The Rolling Stones by Robert Greenfield (Published by Da Capo Press) Frankly, I don't know why the guy decided to turn this into a book, as he could just as easily have written this as a series of articles for News Of The World; which would have suited it well. Robert Greenfield has done some good work before. e.g. His book about the Rolling Stones 1972 North American Tour https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ic7BmZuk3cs   (an excellent piece of work, although a little heavy on assumptions about some of the people who were involved in and around the tour), and his masterpiece, 'Bill Graham Presents: My Life Inside Rock and Out' (which he co-wrote with Bill Graham, and for which he won a well deserved Ralph J. Gleason Award {unlike another Ralph J. Gleason awardee named Electric Gypsy (a questionable Jimi Hendrix biography) which among other things, placed Jimi Hendrix stage-rear at the Altamont Festival, witnessing the murder}). The book, 'Exile On Main St.', which covers the period the Stones lived in Tax Exile in France in 1971, and recorded most of what became their patchy two LP set Exile On Main St. , is more of an expose' than anything else; and is not that much different from the book, 'Up and Down With The Rolling Stones' by Tony Sanchez, which it continually makes reference to (and which had a better selection of photographs). Written in an odd Shakespearean style, Exile On Main St. is interesting in places, like the formation of Rolling Stones Records on Atlantic with Ahmet Ertegun, the back and forth between the Stones and Allen Klein concerning their back catalog at London/Decca and ABKCO, the raw deal given to Mick Taylor (strangely, there is no mention of the subsequent raw deal that Billy Preston {with whom Mick Taylor appeared on a great live album that was only available as an Import} received) who replaced a once very versatile and talented, but by then worn out Brian Jones, http://www.rockontour.net/bj67.html http://www.rocksoff.org/greece-april-17-1967.htm {Jones, who after years of heavy drinking and drug use, had the additional problem of a broken wrist that never healed properly; which resulted from a fall during rock climbing on a Moroccan holiday in 1966. He had however, developed a deep interest in Moroccan Folk Music, which he continued to pursue for the remainder of his life.} and who added a completely new and different dimension to The Rolling Stones, (Go to The Internet Archive http://www.archive.org type http://home.att.net/~onvenus/stones.html into The Wayback Machine and click Take Me Back, for an engrossing, detailed and informative review of the Stones history) as he was a genuinely talented and exceptional musician; and of course the constant drug use around Nellcote, where the recording of the album took place. There are a handful of photographs from the period, not all that well focused. The final chapter, 'Aftermath', was mostly unnecessary and really added nothing to the book, other than an update on some of the players involved.