She Had a Great Walk

She Had a Great Walk by F.T. Rea

She never looked better than she did that day,
When she told me, she was made to walk away.
No doubt, she had a great walk. 

Was it a smooth glide?

She had a natural sway.

An eye-catchin' stride?

Can't even look away.

Was it bona fide?
It was a loose-walkin' way.

She never looked better than she did that day. 

When she showed me, she was made to walk away.
Hey now, she had a great walk.

She had a loose-walkin' way.

-- 30 --

Death Calls for Piggy

 

Note: Carl W. Hutchins (1924-2006) was a professional boxer in his youth. He claimed to have been a contender in his day. Most people called him “Piggy.” The piece that follows was written shortly after his 2006 death (references to dates have been updated).

*

Piggy Hutchins was known by three generations of Richmonders. They were mostly locals of a certain stride -- folks who ate, drank and shared their lives in his restaurants. Piggy’s most loyal patrons tended to use his dives/eateries as a clubhouse … except when a feud kept one of them away for a while.

A corner restaurant called “Piggy’s,” located at Mulberry and Cary (where the Cary St. Cafe is now), began the series of places he would own. The Attaché, at 5816 W. Broad St., was the last of them; it closed down in 2002.

Twenty-eight years ago for a short stint I was associated with the legendary Attaché (although for some reason Piggy was calling it William Henry’s that year). For my part, needing money pushed me across the Henrico County line, inquiring after a bartender position listed in the daily newspaper's want ads. That afternoon I met the one and only Piggy Hutchins. Prior to that I had known him only by reputation.

After a pleasant chat with Piggy, Pete (Piggy's older brother) gave me a tour of the decidedly suburban split-level facility. That entailed the restaurant itself, the after-hours club on the upper story and the basement tavern. Along the way Pete explained that Piggy was really looking for a fresh idea more than someone else to put on the payroll. He had advertised the job to attract someone who'd give him a new scheme.

Well, I needed money enough to jump-start my creative juices, which soon spawned a concept of how to use the basement space -- live music and comedy! So Pete, Bill (a nephew who had joined us) and I we went back upstairs. Like characters in a Damon Runyon story, we all sat at a round table to cut a deal over draft beer and coffee. 

Right away, Piggy liked it that I volunteered to take on the promotional costs and booking duties. He liked it even better that I wanted only a cut -- 20 percent -- of the bar receipts. No guarantees. Plus, of course, I would get tips as the bartender on duty.

Meanwhile, as I went on with my plan I could tell Piggy liked telling his colorful old stories to a writer. Piggy's other brother, Sonny -- a former stock car racer -- stopped by and joined us. As it happened, I left the place that afternoon nurturing an absurd notion that became the Underdog Room. For three nights a week, I presented stand-up comics and live music in the basement, which had a boxer's heavy bag hanging in it, leftover from the days when Piggy worked out and trained young boxers in that space.

To kick off the Underdog Room era, I booked the Vibra-Turks. Some of them were usually known as the Bop Cats. Others had been in Li'l Ronnie and the Bluebeats. Anyway, the Vibra-Turks were: Mike Moore (bass); Gary Fralin (keyboard); Lindy Fralin (guitar); Stuart Grimes (drums); Jim Wark (guitar). In one way of looking at it, we had a band with a fake name playing in a room with a fake name.

Nonetheless, a bunch of handbills on poles and good break, publicity-wise -- the RT-D featured a story about it -- helped to flush out enough barflies and aging scenesters to make for a good-sized opening weekend audience. When Piggy came downstairs to take check it out he liked the look of the room. He even seemed pleased with the Vibra-turks. However, some members of his staff remained skeptical about the direction of things.

On Thursdays it was comedy night. Usually seven or eight comics would show up. My old friend, John Porter, served as the emcee/recruiter. The performers split the cash from a cheap cover charge and drank beer for free. Hoping to establish to new venue for live comedy, several of the the area's comedians stopped by to do a few minutes on most Thursdays.

On Friday and Saturday nights a band played, usually the same band on both nights. The bands would take what came in at the door, but as the weeks wore on, getting my Fan District nightlife friends to venture into Henrico County grew more difficult. As the take at the door shriveled, from one week to the next, I gradually ran through the established acts I could easily persuade to give the Underdog Room a try.     

The Scariens, a local performance-art/rock 'n' roll act, stretched the culture clash aspect of my shaky gig to pieces. Piggy and his Attaché crowd of regulars were utterly baffled by the Scariens, who sometimes seemed to baffle themselves, too. They were led by another old friend, Ronnie Soffee.

To make matters more fractious, some of the comedians seemed to rub Piggy's confidants who ventured downstairs the wrong way; to say they didn't get the jokes is an understatement. After almost four months of it, I came to my senses and bailed out.

Leaving Palookaville on good terms, I limped back to the Fan. It had been fun working with the comedians and musicians. And, getting to know Piggy, to the extent that I did, was like living in a low-budget film noir picture from the late-1940s. 

-- Words and art by F.T. Rea.

-- 30 --

High on the Hog: The Gold Standard

Photo from the stage by Chuck Wrenn (2001).

Note: This piece, penned by yours truly, was first published in Style Weekly on Feb. 25, 2014.

*

The stage was a flatbed trailer parked in a cobblestone alley in Church Hill. It faced the back of Chuck Wrenn's house. The audience spilled into adjacent backyards and wherever else it could. With no licenses to legitimize it, the fourth annual High on the Hog had the edgy cachet of Richmond's freewheeling warehouse parties of the '70s.

On Oct. 11, 1980, Richmond didn't allow large outdoor events combining properly amplified rock 'n' roll music and alcohol consumption, especially on public property. When the Megatonz (Wrenn's band) opened the show, to think the cops would come eventually, made sense — which probably encouraged the crowd's collective desire to live in the moment.

Instead, a chilly rain came while the second band, Don' Ax Me ... Bitch, was performing. Rather than wait out the downpour, Wrenn, the irrepressible impresario, broke out large rolls of heavy-gauge transparent plastic. Armed with staple guns, he and volunteer assistants assembled an awning to keep the rain off the equipment and musicians. 

The audience followed suit by unrolling more plastic, to stand underneath while it was held overhead. Those dancing in the mud surely felt the power of rock 'n' roll to simultaneously express lamentation and celebration. With electric guitars wailing in defiance of the rainstorm, the sense of solidarity felt by those baby boomers was the stuff of legends.

The rain subsided. The Memphis Rockabilly Band finished the show. No real trouble from the cops appeared. It was a charmed afternoon.

*

The series of High on the Hog parties began in 1977 as a small, pork-themed gathering of neighborhood friends. No electric guitars. 

In the years that followed the event took on a life of its own. Along with Wrenn, those on the team organizing three decades of parties were Larry Ham, Bobby Long, Steve McKay, Dave O'Kelly, John Cochran and Randy Smith. In 1983 that group struck a deal with city authorities and went legit.

The transformation allowed the stage and festivities for High on the Hog 7 to move across the street into Libby Hill Park. On the bill were the Bop Cats, New Victims of Love, Evan Johns and the H-Bombs and Billy Price and the Keystone Rhythm Band. The turnout was huge, and the untainted success of the event paved the way for a new era in Richmond. It allowed for Jumpin' in July, Friday Cheers and the countless beer-truck-in-the-street and music festivals that followed.

In High on the Hog's peak years, it took some 350 volunteers to chop the pork, serve the beer, tend the stage. The Silver Stars, a beloved gospel group, set the record for most appearances with 10. While space doesn't allow for the complete list, here are some of the other acts that graced the stage in the park:

Barrence Whitfield and the Savages, Big City, Big Posse, Bill Blue and the Nervous Guys, Billy Hancock, Billy Ray Hatley and the Showdogs, Bio Ritmo, Car Bomb, Deanna Bogart, Dirtball, the Diversions, Evan Johns and the H-Bombs, Faded Rose Band, Glenn Pavone and the Cyclones, the Good Guys, Good Humor Band, Janet Martin Band, Marcia Ball, NRBQ, Page Wilson with Reckless Abandon, the Radiators, Steve Bassett, Suzy Saxon and the Anglos, Terry Garland, and the Wall-O-Matics. 

A Nor'easter drenched Richmond on Oct. 7, 2006. In the torrent the massive sound system couldn't be erected. Two of the scheduled acts couldn't perform in such conditions. Nonetheless, Lindy Fralin volunteered a scaled-down sound system. 

Tarps were lashed to the stage to block the wind-driven rain. Lindy's band, The Bop Cats, went on for a handful of dauntless regulars in front of the stage. 

Unfortunately, without the expected income from food and beer sales, the backers' rainy day fund was sopped up. Thus, High on the Hog 30 closed the book on a generation's gold standard for Woodstock-inspired parties. 

The Memphis Rockabilly Band, fronted by the late Jeff Spencer, finished the show. Its encore was Link Wray's "Run Chicken Run," with Bill Coover playing lead guitar for one last dance, with umbrellas, in the mud.

-- 30 --

Isn't It Time to Change?

With Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in D.C. to beg the USA for yet more billions in weapons aid, it seems to me there's a big-ass, two-part question looming that shouldn't be ignored much longer: Please, isn't it about time to change tactics? 

Behind Door Number One is the future a ratcheted up aggressive strategy will buy; short of nukes, support Ukraine in attacking Russia however Zelenskyy's generals see fit. Ukrainian forces try to make the price on continuing the war too great for Russia to bear. 

Behind Door Number Two is the future that calling for a negotiated end to the fighting, ASAP, will buy. Tell Zelenskyy that to bring about an armistice, new mutually agreed upon boundary lines -- based on current conditions -- need to be established. Yes, for peace, be willing to give up on some land claims. 

One way or another, isn't it time for some end-game thinking?    

Too Late for the 14th Amendment?

After the Civil War the Constitution's 14th Amendment was passed in 1868. Although I think the 14th Amendment, Section 3 was designed to prevent someone exactly like Donald Trump from running for president, timing is so important. 

Consequently, I'm starting to think now it's too late to launch a movement to block Trump from being on the 2024 ballot.

Note: The 14th Amendment, Section 3 says: 

No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.

If the movement to use the 14th Amendment's power to block insurrectionists had been launched in most of the 50 states right after Trump announced his candidacy, on Nov. 15, 2022, it would have framed it as a direct reaction to his campaign announcement. (Like Attorney General Merrick Garland's appointment of Jack Smith was.) 

So, it would already be making its way through the court systems in many states. And on its way to the Supremes.

It would also have latched onto the momentum established by the January 6th Select Committee's remarkable televised presentations, June 9 - Oct. 13, 2022. 

In that context, to many independents it may have seemed to have been less of a political ploy fashioned to provide what the Senate's impeachment trials didn't, and what the federal and Georgia indictments may not be able to deliver before the Republican convention, July 15-18, 2024.

Perhaps most importantly, by starting the process nine months ago, it might have seemed to have been more about adhering to the Constitution's 14th Amendment and less about not trusting the voters to reject Trumpism on election day. Appearance matters.

A Year of Trials

The upcoming year of trials will tell us much about the Donald Trump Mob and its self-absorbed boss. Evidence and testimony will amplify lots of familiar details and probably reveal new scandalous information. 

Although the stated overarching goal in each of the trials will be justice, let's face it -- that's only part of what this country's citizens need. Those of us who give a damn about truth surely need to get some satisfaction from this process. Satisfaction that tells more than just what happened; we need to better understand how the hell we got here. 

For instance, I don't just want to see Trump convicted of stealing and hiding secret files. Satisfaction will entail learning WHY those particular files were selected. Hey, I don't buy it that they were merely souvenirs of an outrageously vain man's days in power. 

Plus, the ordeal of this parade of trials will likely have an effect on 2024's national and statewide elections. Nonetheless, at this writing, who knows what shape that effect will take? 

Anyway, I've got high hopes that a year's worth of Trump-related trials and verdicts is going to be consequential. And, regardless of who the big winners or losers in each of the trials turn out to be, my guess is we're going to find out much about what kind of country the USA really is ... and isn't, anymore. 

One of the lessons we ought to learn in 2024 is that court system isn't going to swoop in and fix the nation's most vexing problems -- those to do with the environment, with abortion, with race, with democracy, with guns, with wealth disparity, and so forth. 

Along with helpful verdicts from courts, the culture needs to evolve its way out of the same ol' ruts. Snares that have been hobbling society's ability to make progress on several fronts.   

Bottom line: Next year is calling for we the people to take the Rooftop Singers advice and find, "a new way of walkin'."  

-- 30 --

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 9

Mugshot No. 9: 

Racketeering and trying 

to influence witnesses.

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 8

 

Mugshot No. 8: 

12 charges: Racketeering, solicitation of 

oath violation by a public officer 

and plenty more.

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 7

Mugshot No. 7: 

As a publicist, I know a damn good 

  book cover picture when I see one.  

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 6

Mugshot No. 6:

Legal advice from Hell. 

 

'The Harder They Come' Sneak Preview

Jimmy Cliff as Ivan.

One autumn day in 1973, some 18 months into my job as manager of Richmond's Biograph Theatre, one of my bosses in D.C., David Levy, asked me to look at a new movie to evaluate its potential. From time to time he did that for various reasons. In this case he had a new 35mm print of “The Harder They Come” (1972) shipped to me, via Clark Transfer.

Note: "The Harder They Come": Color. 120 minutes. Directed by Perry Henzell; Cast: Jimmy Cliff, Janet Bartley, Carl Bradshaw. In this Jamaican production, Cliff plays Ivan, a pop star/criminal on the lam. The music of Cliff, The Maytals, The Melodians and Desmond Dekker is featured.

In the after-hours we occasionally had screenings of films we came by, one way or another. For instance, being in the same city as three universities meant access to 16mm films that could be borrowed briefly. Usually on short notice, the word would go out to friends that we would be watching a particular movie at a certain time.

These gatherings were essentially impromptu movie parties. Once it was 1940s and '50s boxing films from a private collection. The Beatles' then out-of-release "Magical Mystery Tour" (1967) in 16mm was the centerpiece to another one of those parties. Such watch parties happened more often in the Biograph's early days

Although I don’t remember any moments, in particular, from that private screening of “The Harder They Come," I do recall the gist of my telephone conversation with Levy the next day. After telling him how much I liked the Jamaican movie and its music, he asked me how I would promote it.

Well, I was ready for that question, as I had smoked it over thoroughly with Dave DeWitt (my collaborator in making Biograph radio spots) and a few friends after the screening. Consequently, I told Levy we ought to have a free, open-to-the-public-on-short-notice, sneak preview of the movie. Most importantly, we should use WGOE exclusively to promote the screening, since its engaging music made this film a natural for radio.

Because Levy liked the comedic radio campaigns for the Biograph's midnight shows that DeWitt and I had produced over the last year, he went for the idea right away. DeWitt was easily the best radio production guy I have known.

Note: In the early-'70s, long before the era of giant corporations owning hundreds of stations, a locally-programmed daytime radio station with a weak signal played a significant role in what success was enjoyed at the Biograph. For a few years we had an especially good business arrangement with WGOE-AM, the station that then owned the hippie market in Richmond.

Subsequently, on a November Friday morning the DJs at WGOE began reading announcements of a free showing of “The Harder They Come” that would take place at the Biograph that afternoon at 3 p.m. Then they would play a soundtrack cut by Jimmy Cliff, the film’s star. This pattern was continued maybe three times per hour, leading up to the time of the event. Since we presented it as a "WGOE-presents sneak preview," the announcements cost the Biograph nothing.

Of course, reggae music was being heard in Richmond before our free screening, but it was still mostly on the periphery of popular culture on the East Coast. As I recall, some 300 people showed up that day and the movie was extremely well received.

In a couple of previous runs in other markets, “The Harder They Come” had been handled as an underground movie. As it was shot in 16mm and blown up to 35mm for its American distribution, it had a grainy, documentary look. Upon hearing about the test-audience's approval, Levy got excited and decided to book it to run as a first-run feature, rather than as a midnight only show.

Later on Levy became a sub-distributor for “The Harder They Come.” He told me that when he rented it to theaters in other cities within his region, he advised them to use the same radio-promoted, free-preview tactic.

While it didn’t set any records for attendance at the Biograph, “The Harder They Come” did fairly well and returned to play several more dates, both at regular hours and as a midnight show.

As it happened, in late-1973, watching a then-virtually unknown, low-budget Jamaican film -- after operating hours -- with a small group of co-workers and friends had seemed somewhat exotic that night. Of course, on that occasion, we had no idea how popular reggae music was about to become ... in some part because of that movie's influence.

-- 30 --

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 5

Mugshot No. 5:

The fake electors scheme 

architect wants swift justice.

 

Court Dates for Trump (so far)

Trump's RICO expression.

On Monday, Aug. 28, 2023, in Washington, D.C., it's expected that U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan will set the date for what many observers are calling the most significant criminal trial in American history. That trial will consider the Justice Department's case against Donald Trump, to do with alleged actions he deliberately took to overturn the last presidential election results in several states.

However, since the former president is also a defendant in other cases, both criminal and civil, Chutkan is going to have to find a hole in Trump's crowded calendar for court ordered appearances. 

Highlights of Trump's upcoming ordeals in various courts are listed below: 

• Trial date set in New York City: Oct. 2, 2023. This is the business fraud civil lawsuit filed by New York Attorney General Tish James. Financial mismanagement and malfeasance by Trump's company are alleged.
• Trial date set in Atlanta: Oct. 23, 2023. At this writing, this case, Kenneth Chesebro's, will be the first of the RICO cases Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis will present. Other members of the RICO 19 group that Willis charged on Aug. 14 may also try to separate their cases from Trump's request for a trial date in 2026. So there's no telling how many defendants will eventually follow Chesebro to ask for a swift trial. 

• Meanwhile, in D.C., Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked Chutkan for a Jan. 2, 2024, trial date. That, while Trump's attorneys filed a request to begin his D.C. trial sometime in April of 2026. (At this desk, it's not known whether Chutkan appreciated the snicker imbedded in Trump's request. Don't forget, the judge has already warned Trump that if he continues making “inflammatory” cracks about the case she might have to accelerate the process.)

• Trial date set in NYC: Jan. 15, 2024. E. Jean Carroll won $5 million from a jury in a defamation civil lawsuit against Trump earlier this year. Afterward, Trump kept on talking trash about Carroll, so here we go again. Meanwhile, on the primary calendar, the Iowa caucus' process will also happen on Jan, 15, 2024. 
• Trial date set in NYC: Jan. 29, 2024. Trump faces yet another civil trial that targets his notorious business practices. This federal lawsuit accuses Trump himself and his company of fraud.              
• Trial date (proposed by Willis) in Atlanta: Mar, 4, 2024. The second RICO trial (for the defendants who want to slow-walk it) is still in flux.
• Trial date in NYC: March 25, 2024. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has charged Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records connected to Trump’s efforts to conceal his extramarital affair with a porn star.
• Trial date in Fort Pierce, Fla: May 20, 2024. Smith has charged Trump with hording national security papers at Mar-a-Lago, plus eight additional charges to do with Trump's alleged efforts to obstruct the government's legit efforts to recover those classified materials.

Thus, I'm predicting Chutkan will pick a trial date sometime in February of 2024. Stay tuned... 

-- 30 --

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 4

Mugshot No. 4:

Beyond the fringe. Beyond the 

crazy zone. Beyond the pale.

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 3

Mugshot No. 3:

"Breakin' rocks in the hot sun

I fought the law and..."

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions No. 2

Mugshot No. 2:
A look his
wives have seen.

 

Fulton County Mugshots w/captions

Mugshot No. 1:
Lost Soul.

 

A Confluence of Evils

We've all known people who seem to hate government at all levels -- local, state and federal. The government they hate the most is the one that most recently made them angry. 

Of course, the majority of the government-haters probably aren't all that dangerous (I hope!). Unfortunately, some of them are stockpiling weapons of war and getting more dangerous every day. Some are loners. Some are members of bad boys groups. 

And, we've all encountered people who crave power. Some of them are merely tyrants who operate within their own sphere of influence. They simply take pleasure from bending people to their will. Others must have political power, Rather than hate government they covet access to the levers of power governments possess.

In their travels in the past those two antiestablishment factions weren't usually answering to the same boss. However, for the time being, it appears they are and MAGA cult leader Donald Trump is directing this confluence of evils. 

No one knows how long Trump can keep those two different camps harnessed and cooperating under the Republican banner. Meanwhile, we already know some foot soldiers in those two camps are crazy as hell and they're "standing by," awaiting the signal from Boss Trump. 

However, given election trends over the last five years, Trump's lieutenants must have deduced that winning a majority of the votes in most fair elections in the future is going to be out of reach. Nonetheless, using money, propaganda and the threat of force to create fear, they mean to seize control of those aforementioned governmental levers of power. ASAP. 

-- 30 -- 

Words and art by F.T. Rea.