Brownsville Weekly News

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FLINT BROWNSVILLE es FLINT, MICHIGAN

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John Kirby (he~s the man with the bass fiddle)

ym, ae
~
and his famous |

~biggest little bard in the world,~ who have been favorites wiih radios
Sunday matinee Jistexers, has worked up to a commercial program over
the Columbia Broadcasting air lanes. His will be the only Negro organization with a sponsored broadcast. The program series is to start

this Saturday, March 1, at 8:30 p.m, E.S.T. over CBS stations. Kirby~s
name was in the headlines several weeks back when Maxine Sullivan,
his vocalist and wife, announced her intention of securing a divorce.

The diminutive
the Kirby band.

singer has also severed her professional relations witia

Ink Spots Invade Hollywood For New
pote: $25, 000 Weekly Is Rated Tops

| RATING THE RECORDS

By FRANK MARSHALL DAVIS

ALL-STARS~ GREATEST STAR

Best of the records made in recent years by any of the annual
~Metronome All-Stars band is BUGLE CALL RAG and ONE
O~CLOCK JUMP, just-released by
Victor. In fact, this is easily the
best platter thus far in 1941. Recording is perfect and the musicians are in superb form, thus accounting for super bounce and performance.

On the fast ~Bugle,~ Harry James
takes an opening break. on trumpet followed by Tex Beneke on
~tenor. After emsemble work, the
boys ride. to glory on short choruses. Benn Goodman~s clainet, J. C.
Higginbotham~s trombone, Toots
Mondello~; alto, Count Basie~s piano and Coleman Hawkins~ tenor,
are heard in that order. And then
come three great trumpet. men trying to outdo~ each other, Cootie
Williams, Ziggy Elman and Harry
James As a finale, the boys ride
out together.

~Jump~ is another dream: ~olJowing.a drum break by Buddy
Rich, the Count takes over somewhat as ~he did on his Decca recording, Charlie Christian
follows on electric guitar and then
Higgy~s trombone. But the most
terrific solo on a terrific side is by
Hawk. Using only three or four
notes, Coleman gets almost incredible drive and jump into his chorus: Even ~brilliant work afterward
by Cootie, Benny Carter on alto,
James and Goodman is an anticlimax. Others at the session wer~
Bassist Artie Bernstein and Trom-:
bonist Tommy Dorsey.
récord no lover of hot:jazz can do
without.

oS. & ~

Another strong little band uncovered by Decca is that of Joe
Brown, who debuts with BEAUMONT STREET BLUES and REO
BOOK ROMP. The boys are obViously patterning after Basie and
jump like him. The piano and
trumpet on the second side are imitations-of the Count and Harry
Edison..This group also sports an

excellent alto, and both gides kick.

Artie Shaw~s
bounces: two for
Victor, DR. LIVINGSTONE I
PRESUME? and WHEN ~ THE
QUAIL COME BACK TO SAN
QUENTIN, the latter a take-off on
thot Capistrano hit. On the first.
Billv Butterfield thinks he~s MuggSy Spanier on trumpet and ~he
Yiddish ending is too fancy. The
second hag brilliant harpischord by
Guarnieri plug swell guitar. In
fact all the boys click but Shaw
esa retire some of the riffs an

Gramercy Five
the jiitbugs on

~ROXBOROUGH WINS SUIT

DETROIT~iANP) Mrs. Ida
"Paylor, who sued John Roxborough,
Manager of Joe Louis and several

sscciates. including Fred CampJohn Campbell and the CampConstruction Co, for damages,
st her suit in circuit court. Mrs.

ylor has asked $5,000 charging
iat during the construction of a
ne station at Elizabeth and
Antoine streets, trees and
shes on her property, had. been
stroyed and that the foundaof her home had been wenk-, Testimony in the case was

for two weeks by Judge A.

an who ig: org a verdict

tnent. All in all,. * *
This is a

pension.

Johnny Hodges~ Bluebird ot
DAY DREAM is almost an alto solo.
It~s sweet, slow and nostalgic,
Played a sonly Hodges can Ths
other side is called JUNIOR HOP
a rhythm number with Johnny on
sciprano and alto sax and a.few
bars of tasteful trombone by Lawrencé Brown.... Joe Daniels turns
in English jazz on the Decca of
MANHATTAN MAROOMBA, with
shuffle rhythm in Jan Savitt~s old.
style, and BUSKING AROUNL'.
~Busking~ is the British slang for
jamming. Daniels plays drums so
you can expect them to be proniiit~s good smali
band improvisation on both sides

Harvey Brooks Now
Writing For Crosby.

HOLLYWOOD~( ANP)~With a
heavy schedule. of new films
aWaiting~ his oppcrtunity to start in
on them Harvey Brvoks,~ famous
composer, is busy cn the music for
Bob Crosby~s band which starts in
@ new picture for Celumbia studiy
in a few days.

In spite of his long career in
coast musical cirtles, Brooks ajtracted great attention several
years ago as composer for. Mae
West~s pictures than ever _ before.
Writing the many songs and
musical backgrounds used in thes
likewise provéd to be some.of the
hardest work he had ever done.

Other: studios at. which he is w

demand are Fox, oe and
M-G-M.
HAIT{ GETS DELAY
NHW ~*ORK~(ANP)~It ~ was

learned here last wee that finan
ciers here and the state Department at Washington had effected
an understanding with Haiti whick
led~ to an agreement tu permit thic |
island republic ~to defer payment |
of interest on $8,700,000 of bonds |!
owned by American interests.

' theatre March 10.

| To Appear In ~The Great
American Broadcast~~

HOLLY WOOD.~(ANP }~Originally from a low-ceiling,

smoke-fogged mid-western city,

four. golden-voiced boys sang

their wav to the glittering heights of fame, opulence and international! populgrity. Not yet at the height of their career, he Ink

Spots, with weekly earnings of

$25,000, loom as potentially the

highest paid Negro performers the stage has ever produced.

Tney are now in ~Hollywood for
rolés in 20th Century's new flicker,
~The Great American Broadcast~

~Rehearsals for the picture began

Wednesday. The picture will take
aearly four weeks to compiete.

Under the management of Mce
Gale, the boys have proved their
lucrative effects upon the box office. Two vears ago they gripped
the whole country with their recording of ~if I Didn~t.Care~, which
will also be -sung in the picture.
Other numbers will be ~I~ve Go:
a Bond to Pick With Yow~,

~Cabin~ Goes On
Tour Qn March 8

NEW YORK~(A N: P)~*~Cabin

In The Sky,~ the musical show
starring Ethel Waters and _ featuring~ Katherine Dunham, Rex
Ingram and Todd Duncan among
others; will close its New York

engagement, March 8..It has been

running at the Martin Beck
theatre since October 25. It will
cpen in Boston at the Colonial

The booking is
planned so as to reach Chicago by
~summer where it is hoped it may
remain for he warm weather
period.:

ae

TOURNAMENT AT ROCK HILL
ROCK HILL, s. C.~(ANP)~The
second annual basketball] tournament sponsored by the South Atlantic Athletic conference, will be
held. at Rock Hill, S C:, February
28 tc March 1, with Clinten college here, as host to the schools thai
are mémbers of this conference.
Edward: Warner Grice. iz president
of Clinton and:C. H. une2r is dean.

Cab Booked For Long
Run At Topsy~s Roast

By HARRY LEVETTE

HOLLYWOOD~(A N P)~wWith
patrons of the famous and unique
night spot preparing to give the
~King of Hi De Ho~ a royal welcome; Topsy~s Roost has booked
Cab Calloway and his band starting February 28. It will be the ~first
engagement for Cab on: the-coast in
several years and the first time
Topsy~s, which caters to white
patronage. has booked an_ eastern
colored name band~ for such a
long engagement. The Calloway organization is scheduled to remain
until well into spring.

Topsy~s Roost is arranged in the
interior like a huge barn with
stalls opening to the dance floor
fevel, and. corresponding - stalls
superimposed in a Wer all around
three sides of the, building.:

The other side is fitted-with a
slide~ upon which the funmakers sit
and slide: with breath-taking.speed

oe a

to the floor below. Figures of
pt mea cattle, horses, and other

farm animals peep from every
nook and cranny.
Cab is very popular: here,- and

packed them in at the Paramount
daily all during his last engagement there. Upon his trip here
several years ago he was~ treated
like a member of royalty, a lon~
cavalvade of cars bearing admirers
meeting him at the Union~ station
and escorting him to the office of
Frank L. SKaW, then the mayor.
He was taKen from there ~ by
city officials to the @ouncil chamber. then in session: On a motion
by one of the councilmen al!~ busi -
ness was discontinued for the time
being, and Calloway asked to entertain them. Not having instru
~wment of the- band unpacked he {

could only sing his famed ~Minnie
the Moocher~ unaccompanied, but
whith brought wn the house.

~You Can~t Take
It With You~ At
Hampton Institute

HAMPTON INSTITUTE, Va~
(S N S)~~~You Can~t Take It With
You,~ the sensational farce comedy by Moss Hart and George S.
Kaufman, will be presented in Ogden Hall, Hampton Institute, Friday evening: February 28, by the
players of Virginia State College
in en exchange play with the
Little. Theatre of Hampton Institute.

In the three-act play the principal part will b takn by Arabella
Woolfolk, James. Cooley, James
Wynder, Evelyn Glass, Wilbur
Wyatt, Marjorie Tyree, Constance
Johnson, Norma Robinson, Clyde
Jones, James Carroll, John ~ Williams and Audrey Treherne.

Singers Shy At
Airing Songs By
Hughes And Russ

NEW YORK~*ANP)~Although
singers like the song and it~ has
been enthusiastically -received
concerts where it has been used,

vocalists thus far have shieqg at
using ~Cross,~ with lyrics by
Langston Hughes and music by
Elmo Russ, on.the radio.
Broadcasting artists are afraid
4 the words will not set well with
many listeners because they treat
of sicegnation.. The lyrics are

actually one of Hughes~ best known
poems which also was the theme of
his stage play ~ ~Mulatto,~ and tell
of the problem confronting a son
of a white man and a_ colored
woman.

The song was published by U. S.
Music, Inc. all of whose compositions are now released by. B.M.F.

Southernaires To
Appear At Famcee

TALLAHAS3EE Fla~(S N S)~
| The Southernaires will appear _ at
the Florida A. and M. e

College is making ~this one of the
features of its entertainment series,

The Southernaires are
with the greatest vocal groups that
are heard today on the air or on
the concert stage; and they have
thrilled great audiences all over

the country.

at | aughs. ~T was suddenly raised~ from

Tuesday evening, March 18, at 8.)
fo'clock in the Auditorium. The

ranked

= - o ras

John

To Be ~Sole
Race Artist
Drawing Pay

~

NEW YORK CITY~(SNS)
John Kirby and his versatile subtle
swing orchestra take on a commercial raklio series vig CBS this
coming Saturday, March 1 at 8:30
P. M.~the only cotimerciai held
down currently by a face group.
Following is a biography of this
clever maestro.

Kirby made his first personal appearance on New Year~s Eve in
Baltimore, Md. It Was on December
31, 1908, that the farmhous orchestra
leader was born, only son of Fred
and Dolly Kirby.

John~s father died when he was
four, and within a few years he
was doing what he could to sup
~por himself by washing cars and

cutting lawns. By the time he
was ten, John had saved $4 and
bought a second-hand, nickelplateqd trombone. Then he got a
book of lessons, and taught himself how to play. going out in the
country to practice~out where no
one could hear him but the birds.
His mother died when he was 12.
FORM LITTLE BAND

Between earning a living and laying the foundation for his future
career, young Kirby found time to
go to school and to play football with
the local high school team. After
he got to be pretty good on the
trombone, John and four cther boys
formed a little band that played
for neighborhood dances. They
made $250 each~besides getting
supper at the party~and felt that
was fair enough.

When John was 16 years: old he
was doing odd jobs for the president of John Hopkins University.

In the summer -when his employe:

was ready to leave town the
family gave John $5 tip and he
decided to leave town, too. With
his tip and savings. he came to New
York and by the time -he landed,
had only $6 in his pocket. For thé
moment, at least there was no
chance of getting back to Baltimore
the fare being about $8.

In New York Kirby didn~t know
just where to go first. "The train
conductor suggested that he take
the subway to 135th street, so John
did. Then he picked out an empty
distillery and slept there his first
night in the nig city. The next day
his trombone was gone.

WASHED DISHES

Kirby decided that he~d better
find some safer place or he might
wake up and find his few remaining dollars gone. He looked up a
relative who took him in, then went
down and got ia job washing dishes
on a dining car of the Pennsylvania
Railroad. In two weeks, young
Kirby had risen to the position of
hus boy and a little later became
a waiter on the traim running from
New York to Harrisburg. Pa: Tips
were good. John saved his money
and at the end of a year paid $500
for g tuba--Figured it would be
tough for anybody to steal such a
tig instrument.

John sper all his -
studying the tuba and

spare time
now and

then picked up a job playing with]:
~bands in Harlem. Whenever

he
was broke, he went back to work
for the railroad.

In 1928 he had become so profi- }
cient on the tuba that he was able
to devote all of his timne.to music,
playing in Bill Brown~s orchestra.
Then he switched from the tuba to
at the Star Ballrcom on 42nd Street.
string bass. His reputation grew
and Fletcher- Henderson at the
height of his fame. offered Kirby a
contract.

~The money scared me,~ Kirby
$25 a week to $85.
COULDN~T KEEP UP |

That was in 1929. Kirby learned
later that he ~had reason to be

~seared. Henderson broke the new
comer in with a band in Providertice.
They played so fast that John just J
couldn~t keep up with the -rest of
boys. Henderson telephoned to New
York for another bass player, but
couldn~t get any. So Kirby was
saved and within three weeks had
caught on to the Hendersom pace
to sueh an extent that he became
a featured~ attraction

~ake Commerc

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la

rchestra Te

&
md wt

Pr Dr.

Worth Kramer (left), choral
Rev. Glenn T. Settles (center), narrator, both of
~Wings Over Jordan,~ congratulate Dr. L. D. Red- |
dick (right), of the New York Public Library upon the ai:nouncement of the Honor Roll in Race
This program was: carried by 108 sta- |

Relations.

director and

casting System.

Reddick Read Honor~ Roll
s. j

tions of the Columbia Hroadesstiig Syste and
rebroadcast in England through the British Broad
It drew comment in Mrs. Roose
velt~s column ~My Day~ and an editorial, Saturday,
February 15, in the NEW YORK TIMES entitled,
~Americans All.~ i

First Showing Of ~Native
Son~ Sponsored By NAA CP

FOOTLITE FLICKERS

By ALYIN MOSES

NEW... YORK.~~(A.N,PO-.
MERCEDES GILBERT writes me
a lengthy letter in which she talks
about her new art contribution.
~ONE WOMAN THEATRE~~Maybe you know Mercedes personally
(everyone should), and as for
those who reside in the Metropolitan area of. the world~s greatest city we suggest you attend
~941 premier, Sunday, March 16, a
St. Martins~ Community theatre.

One df ithe star4players in
~Green Pastures~, the. kind who remain in your memory long after
the song has been sung, she also

~skyrocketed to dizzy heights in

Langston - Hughes~ ~~Mulatto~.~
Miss Gilbert states further along
in her letter.we quote ~. sk
have written a onesie sats of the

s

Ballroom in: New York.

Kirby remained with Henderson
for five years. ~It was like spending five years in g musical institution.~ says Kirby. In 1934 he
jomed Chick Webb~s band at the
voy Ballroom. But two years
later Kirby was back with Pletcher
Heriderson, this time playing at the
Grand Terrace in Chicago.

After a couple of months in the
Windy City, John Kirby returned
to New York and formed his own
bend. In April, 1937 the band
opened at the Inyx Club on West
52nd street. From here on in Kirpy climbed high of the road to
engagement; at Chi~aigo~s swanky
succes with a highly (successful
Pump Room followed by his now
famous CBS sustaining feature
Flew Gently, Sweet Rhythm which
eventually led way to the band~s
new commercial. Combined with
their radio fame were their numerous oufstanding ~recordiligs for
Okeh by the crew.

WILSON. IN KIRBY SPOT

Teddy Wilson, famous pianist
formerly with Benny Goodman and
now a maéstro in his own right, Has
a 7-man combination in Kirby~s old
Chicagd stand. the swanky Pump
Room. Good news for radio fans is
that Wilson~s outfit broadcast over
WMAQ nitely at 12 midnite~Chicago time: ~They may also be heard
or~ Cohtnbfa4Okeh disés. ~

ed: the winner. There were 1,690
girls of all races and nationalities
in the contest which started the
previous Sutiduy and in which
Spitalfiy, farhous leader of thé alleitT orchestra, and B. arid K. talefit, scouts took~ an active part.

A 1940 graduate of Senn High
School, she has been study
musi~ on a schdlarship in a

music school and hopes eventually

- Negro~, I call it~CAVALCADE OF
NEGRO.. peg rr age oy

be recorded on records, in~ fact
made into an album of. four) recofds in the very near future:

It is My peiicf that it will prove
entertaining for high, college and.
university students, as well as~ home
fireside circles~~all we can add
to this Mercedes is... if it came
from your brain.. the world at
large could ill afford not to have
it near them.

aot ane

A CARD WITH A STREAMLINED TRAIN.. tells, us that
JOHNNY HUDGINS, king of the
pantomimists, is back in Harlem.\. after being away for close to |
a year, chiefly in Georgia.. the

~funny-mans~ and originator of the |

wah-wah-trumpet song feature. -
claims his heaith was never better
anc expects to see us anyday now,
backstage at the Apollo theetre.
LES HITES, the California musical genius who this column has
always plugged,,and will continue
to. brotght a distinctiveness. in
conducting and arrangements few
Negro bands employ... JULIA
GARDNER, on same Dill with Les
at Frank Schiffman~s wel, patronized Apollo theatre, wresteles: sweet
notes out of an accordion after
the fashion ~that Jacob, wrestled 2

blessing out of the angel... she~s
really an exceptionally clever
artist.

Wonder if that commons friend
Hudgins received, calling for him

to appear as a witness in the
Keystone, W. Va., slaying of
Dolores for killing her. partner -

(Dolores-Pedro) had anything tO
do with the speed he raced back
to Harlem?.. ALBERT McCOY,
basso, who thrilled recently at St.
Martins~ Community theatre, is to
receive ai bid from Wesley Hawkins, for featured role in Little
Theatre movement starting in Eas:
Orange, N. J.

JACK CARTERS~ BARBECUE
PIT way graced by a swelegant
honey-haired lovely who looked
very much like move-star JACKIE)
COOGAN~S ex. -she could pass
for Betty Grable~s double, anytime, and was she.. -~sir-weet~
and~ sociable:.... ROLAND
HAYES, one of thie great voices of
all time, was heard Tuesday evening a week ago (Pebruary 18) at..
TOWN HALL, to an overflow crowd
oor omg

TEDDY HILL: sent the wife
(Lillian) and me the nicest St.

Valentine day card. of the half,

cozen so we received. many thanks
Theodore, old ~scout, and success

with a _ coptal ~S with your new.

KINNEY, were the big tiames in
that Negro musical extravaganza
~Tan Manhattan~; but. our letter
box tells us that oe ae
Thin dea tae
Vigal, Avon~ 1
ang Louise

j

i

To Open On
Broadway On
March 13th

is ii

~ NEW YORK poe ee::

Thomas,~ the most-talked-about
character in Richard Wright~s in
+

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ternationally famous novel~ will _

walk out on a Broadway stage for
the first time in his life, when the
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People sponsors the first preview jperformancs.
of ~Native Son,* at the St, James
Hcatns West 44th Street, Thursday evening. March 13 at 8:40.
The novel was adapted for the
stage by Paul Green, Pulitzer
pre author, in collaboration with
tion of the Mercury Theatre, will
be staged and produced by Orson
Welles and John Hovwsiman.
Canada Lee, who did important
\work in the> Federal theatre, and

Wright. The play, a produc
~\starred in Theodore Ward~s ~Big i:

White Fog,~ earlier this year. will
tlay the rolé of ~Bigger Thomas.~
He will be supported by a cast. of
experience actors, many of them
members of Orson Welles~ Mercury Theatre group:

~Others who will play featured
roles are: Evelyn Ellis, as Bigger~s
mother; Anne Burr, as Mary Dalton; and Rena Mitchell who has
the| most important female rolé in
the play, that of Bigger~s
Helen Martin plays the part of
Bigger~s sister, Vera. J. Flash Riley, the Broadway night club dancér; Wardéll Saunders and Rodéscer Timmons play the part of Biggers companions in delinquency.
An injportant addition to the ~ast
will be 12-yer-old Lloyd. Warren,
who will play the role of Bigger
Thomas~s younger brother.:

Officials of NAACP said~ funds
raised from the benefit perform
ance will be used for the organ
ization~s; educational ~work. Tickets will| go on sale from the association~s national office at 69
Fifth Avenue, Tuesday, February
24. Prices\range from 50 cents for
seats. in the balcony, to $2.50 for
orchestra and box seats.

CHEYENNE TO GET
DRAFTEES 6
CHEYENNE,.Wyeming~(ANP). -
This far western city is to serve
as host to a \Isrge number of drafteés who aré to be sent to Fort
Warren, near this city Four thotisand colored draftees are expected
within the next month. The recruits will eo;je chiefly from Iowa)
Wisconsin, North and~ South Dakota and oe midwestern states.

ATLANTA, tia(6x8) ~
and,
members of Clark College comes the

or