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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 1, 1986)
“ A m e ric a 's H ottest A ll-G irl B a n d " o p e n s film series b y Eve S ic u la r The In te rn a tio n a l Sweethearts o f R h yth m : A m erica s Hottest A ll-G irl B and tops a triple bill as F ilm a ’s “W o m a n ’s Eye View ’ opens on O ctober 3 0 at the Irvington Theatre in an eight-program series through Novem ber. T h e Sweethearts chronicle was m ad e by Greta Schiller and Andrea Weiss, the Vi Burnside, tenor sax sensation with • C IN E M A Vi by listening between the lines. Here, for ex am ple, the group's lead trumpeter, Tiny Davis, tells an interviewer why she once tu r ned down Louis Arm strong's big-m oney offer to join his band: “I told him, I just love them gals!' Seeing her sparkling eyes widen as she m im ics A rm strong’s response, you know just what she m eant (and that he did, too). The stories of the band touring in the South, (w here segregation laws prohibited blacks, whites and mulattos mixing), of eating and sleeping on the bus because they were bar red from restaurants and hotels, of white m em b ers wearing dark m akeup to pass' in public, all testify to the institutionalized bigotry o f the recent Am erican past Fortunately, the Sweethearts were very popular and m ade t- ? i A N EVENING O F FEMINIST H U M O R WITH C linton ' “Outrageously funny, irreverent, outspoken” Boston Globe The Hollis Taylor Band opens the show “ S tra n g e S n o w / a d e lig h tfu l surprise b y D ou ge M a rtin It was with som e trepidaiion that I went to see “Strange Snow,” currently at Artists Repertory Theatre. Despite the good things • THEATER that I had heard about the production and the abilities o f the people involved, I was not look ing forward to another "Vietnam Vet" play; I had always found them over-indulgent or in adequate to the subject or both. I was delight fully surprised by “Strange Snow." "Strange S n ow ” is a well-drawn story of three lonely people who m ake a start, through reaching out, at breaking their insular ruts. David is a vet who was once full of promise but now spends his tim e driving a truck or drinking. M artha is his sister, a spinster schoolteacher who has that o h-so-com m on problem of believing herself to be so unat tractive that she goes out o f her way to m ake herself m ore so. Enter Megs, a rather crazy old w ar buddy of David’s w ho pops back into his life. M egs is the catalyst In his bum bling way he does not see that M artha is supposed to be F rie n d ly C o a litio n Jud y G rahn explains the Gay Tradition of cerem o nial dykes and faggots as the healers, priestesses, shamans and nature-worshippers of any culture. In keeping, the Halloween G athering at the O regon C o ast has been n am ed “W itches, W arlocks and O ther PINE STREET S.E. 9TH & PINE TWO SHOWS, 8:00 & 10:30 PM (LIMITED SEATING EACH SHOW) Tickets $10 in advance Pho to by w o * Voung 1 « however, this is not the film m akers' focus. M ost of its half-hour length is u p b eat At the end, I wanted m ore, especially of the w om en playing. The In te rn a tio n a l Sweethearts o f R h y th m and two other new docum entaries, W omen o f S u m m e r and The Flapper Story, is the first of eight Tuesday and Thursday evening program s in the fifth annual W o m e n ’s Eye View festival, through N o vem b er 2 5 . T h e series is produced by Film a, the Portland W om en's Film Forum . F o r m oreinform ation write Film a at P.O. Box 15143, Portland, O R 972 15, fo ra com plete festival schedule. T h e Irvington Theater is located at 1333 N E Broadway, just down the block from the new W o m an ’s Place Book store which carries the Sweethearts’ album . Tiny Davis. 245 pounds of jive and trumpe* team who directed and researched last year’s festival hit, Before S tonew all. In this new film, a sixteen-wom an multi-racial jazz band swings again, bringing their music and their story alive after nearly forty years of obscurity in film and record archives. S o m e readers m ay be fam iliar with the International Sweethearts’ music through the Rosetta Records’ re-release of their vintage cuts a few years ago. Photos and anecdotes on the album cover whetted m y curiosity about the group. Seeing the movie gave m e a livelier understanding of who they were. As with earlier w om an-them ed docum entaries though (U nio n Maids. Rosie the Riveter), m y questions about lesbian existence in these tim es and places were answered only r m an y records and movie appearances for the race’ market. Seen today, the film clips dispel any notion that the group m ade it as a novelty act, yet the ‘ all-fem ale’’ packaging is a quaint precursor to girl-group prom otions that have followed. Footage of the band play ing, couples swinging and crowds jam m ing the front of m ajor clubs around the country show beautifully what a hot act the Sweet hearts were. T h e film places the group as a phenom e non in its historical context, the late 1930s and early '40s. T he group’s break-up soon afer W orld W ar II — before the dem ise of m any other big bands, but after w om en were being again discouraged from “m en's w ork” — was certainly no coincidence, with band m em b ers leaving music behind for marriage; Available at A Woman’s Place Bookstore, Gl Joe’s, Jean Machine, Galleria, Music Millenium. Unique, original gifts in our gallery • fabric art & toys • ceramic sculpture hom ely, and so becom es the first person in her life to treat her as a w om an. He forces David to look at their war experience, and face the guilt that he harbors from it This rather basic story could be very trite indeed were it not for the abilities o f the actors and director. Bob M cG ranahan as M egs is am azing. M egs is full of nervous energy and fills every m o m e n t with som etim es pointless chatter. M cG ranahan m anages to m ake every line fresh and alive; it is a stream flowing unchecked from a rather untidy m ind. Megs could easily becom e a coarse, d u m b redneck, but M cG ranahan has m ade him endearing. Patricia B lem and Steven Clark Pachosa, as M artha and David, are also very good. The sparkle that begins in M artha’s eye as she starts to bloom before M egs is delightful. Stan F o o te’s direction is excellent The blocking is natural and logical, and the dram atic m o m ents are under firm control. T h e re were a few overly indulgent m om ents, but they were few and did not detract from the whole. Special com m endations are also due to set designer M ark Loring and costum e desingner M ary Chris Mass, for creating a com fortable and realistic lower-m iddle-class hom e. “Strange S n ow ” plays Fridays and Satur days at 8 :0 0 and Sundays at 7 :0 0 through O cto b er 2 5 at the Wilson Center in the YW CA dow ntow n Call 2 2 3 -6 2 8 1 . Assorted Homosexuals." People who have participated in previous Phoenix Rising retreats (W o m e n In the W oods, M en In The W oods & M en By T h e Sea) decided it was tim e to organize a retreat for both lesbians and gay m en. Together. At the sam e tim e, at the sam e place. From the evening o f O ctober 31 st to the afternoon of N o vem er 2nd, gay m en and lesbians will be creating a self- respecting/other-respecting space for the sharing of differences and com m onalities in a constructive way. Meals, rustic lodging and incredible natural beauty will be provided at the Westwind Y W C A C a m p just north of Lincoln City. The tim e will be loosely structured but will a c c o m m odate whatever workshops the participants are willing to create. There will be a Halloween party on Saturday night and costum es/m asks will be acceptable attire throughout the w eekend. People of all ages are welcom e. Segregated and co m m u n al sleeping spaces will be available. Fees are $ 5 5 -$ 105 based on ability to pay; in case of financial hardship, contact us as early as possible. Registration m ust be received by O cto ber 2 1 s t and infor m ation and registration forms can be obtained by calling, writing or dropping by: Phoenix Rising, 4 0 8 S W 2nd, Suite 412, Portland, OR 9 7 2 0 4 . Phone: 5 0 3 -2 2 3 -8 2 9 9 . Hope to see you there! Just Out, O ctober 1986