Portland Observer
Ramsey Lewis celebrates 20 years
Thiirsdav. Juh 19. 197 1
Pai*» ,1
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Charlton Heaton, a police investigator wounded by the assassins he's been chasing, tries to
warn his boss, Brock Peters, of a terrible crime against humanity in Metro-Goldwyn Mayer's
futuristic suspense film, "Soylent Green", a suspense story set in the year 2022.
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P eters a id s c o m m u n ity t h e a t e r
Whatever spare time busy
actor Brock Peters has is
spent as president of the
Free Southern Theatre and
vice president of the Dance
Theatre of Harlem.
New York born and based,
Brock currently stars with
Charlton Heston, laugh Tay
lor Young and Edward G.
Itobinson in Metro-Goldwyn-
Mayer's futuristic suspense
film "Soylent Green".
“The Free Southern Thea
tre is a company that tours
throughout the South playing
to mostly sharecropping aud
iences both Black and white,"
Brock states.
“ It's supported by founda
lions. They do such plays as
'Waiting for Godot', 'Of Mice
and Men' and 'Slave Ship'.
Best of all. it’s as the name
implies, 'free'.”
Under his other hat as VP
of the Dance Theatre of Har
lem. Brock says that or­
ganization has explored three
myths concerning ballet:
One, that a ballet dancer
can't be proficient in less
than ten years. Two, that a
strong and competent ballet
company can't be formed in
that space of time, and
lastly, that Black people's
not suited to
bodies
ballet.
"In the space of four years,
the company has toured Eur
op«- and America several
times," Brock says.
"To rave reviews," he adds.
“The Dance Theatre is
both the touring company
and a school where ethnic,
nnxlern and jazz dancing are
taught, as well.
Children
from eight years on up can
learn music theory and take
any kind of music lesson they
choose." Brock says.
The theatre was founded
and is headed by Arthur
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Mitchell. It also has a drama
department headed by Paul
Mann.
“ It was a direct result of
Martin Luther King's assas­
sination," Brock states.
“ He came over to my
house and we talked into the
night. He said he wanted to
DO something and not too
long after that he left the
New York City Ballet Com­
pany to found the Harlem
Dance Theatre."
The Theatre has outgrown
its headquarters and has
purchased the building next
door in Harlem. It is sup­
ported by foundations and
p riva te ind ivid ua l grants.
There are now 1,200 stu­
dents.
Brock Peters is justly proud
of the Theatre's achieve­
ments.
"We've been approached
by small countries who want
us to establish such Theatres
abroad. It's flattering, but if
we are to expand, I'd rather
do it in America." the actor
says.
Not too long ago, after
celebrating another birthday.
Ramsey Lewis received a
congratulatory telephone call
from Earl Calloway, enter
tainment editor of the Chi
cago Daily Defender.
But
Calloway, who has known
Lewis since the early fifties,
also informed the pianist that
he was entering his 20th
year in show business.
‘‘T w e n tie th year, eh,"
I<ewis commented. "I hadn't
even realized that much time
had elapsed. In a way I was
glad Earl called, but then I
kind of wasn't, because that
reminded me of how old I
was getting."
Had someone not told him,
Lewis' second decade in the
business may have gone un
noticed. And it has been 20
very fru itfu l years as well.
Lewis has recorded over 35
albums during that period of
time, "w ith not one going in
the red," he is quick to
remind us.
But Lewis’ career has been
a unique one.
He was a
nationally know figure for
more than 10 years before
leaving the comfortable sur
roundings of his hometown
Chicago. “ The guys in the
band, then Eldee Young on
bass and Red Holt on drums,
all had families,” Ramsey
reminisced. "And we were
able to find more than enough
work rig ht there in Chicago
not to go on the road."
In fart his first road en
gagemenl, which was in New
York City, was to only last
two weeks.
But the trio
found themselves spending
nearly three months in
Gotham. “ That kind of told
us we should be traveling,"
Ramsey added.
“ Our re
cording company then. Chess,
had for quite some time,
tried to get us to go. But it
wasn't until we went to New
York did we see the validity
in playing in other cities."
And though Lewis sold a
O ne D a y Service
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A re You in The C louds
W h e re To F ind
r e a l S ty le in e y e g la s s
fa s h io n a n d c o lo r Tints?
Answer:
Binyon Optical
RAMSEY LEWIS
great number of albums, it
wan't until a few years later
did he start to sell LPs in
mass quantity. “ It was dur
ing an engagement in the
Bohemian Caverns in Wash
ington, D.C. We did a live
album, and from those re
cordings came
The In
Crowd', which really turned
everything around for us.'
The following year. 1966.
was no different.
Another
live alubm was done during a
stint at the Lighthouse in
Hermosa Beach. California
From that came "Hang On
Sloopy” .
"A fte r that the hand brok«
up," Ramsey stated
Eld«-«
and Red went on to form
Young Holt Unlimited, and I
hired Maurice Whit« for the
drums and Cleveland E.iton
to play bass. The last per
sonnel change took place in
1969 when White left the
band to form Earth. Wind &
Fire. He was then replaced
by Morris Jennings."
Equally ironic about Lewis'
quiet celebration is that his
third album for Columbia
Records will be an updated
"greatest hits" LP. "When
we decided to do this album.
I. of course, didn't even have
any idea that 20 years had
passed.
So, for us, the
timing couldn't be more per
feet."
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When asked w hat he might
be doing 20 years from now,
Lewis replied. "No telling. If
these first 20 years passed
by this fast, then the next
20 should be a breeze. But,
if it's okay with you, I'd like
to take them one at a time."
Benefit aids prison
Save Gas: Save Cash family service program
D e a r Consumer
By Virginia Knauer
Special A ssistant to the President
and Director
Office of Consumer Affair*
Looking for ways to save money? Don’t overlook
the dollars that g o into your car’s gas tank.
By changing your driving habits, you can cut
that expense. Watch your gas bills go down as you
follow the tips below.
(Actually, saving gas for the entire country is
the goal of th e s e tips. It’s urgent for all Americans
to help beat the gas shortage that is closing in on us.)
By saving gas, you save cash. Here’s how you
can save:
• Drive 10 miles below the top speed limit on super­
highways (Tests show, for instance, that a ’69 station
wagon got 14.29 miles per gallon at 70 miles per hour,
and 17.36 miles per gallon at 60—a 12 percent gain,
which is a saving of more than 3 miles per gallon.)
• Have your engine well-tuned
• Have your tires properly inflated
• Don’t fill your gas tank up to the neck (You risk
losing gas when it overflows on hills or when heat
causes gas to expand.)
• Accelerate gradually (When you first start your
car . . . when you’re going up a hill . . . when you’re
entering the stream of traffic.)
• Maintain a steady driving speed
• Cut your engine when waiting for a passenger
to return to the car (Idling the engine wastes gas,
creates unnecessary emission pollution.)
• Limit the use of your air conditioner and de­
froster
• Travel light (Extra luggage requires extra fuel.)
• If possible, try to obtain comparative shopping
data by phone, instead of traveling from store to
store
• Arrange car pools for commuting, running er­
rands and transporting children.
By using these energy-saving measures, you
can cut your gasoline bill by as much as 20 to 25
percent.
Above all, DON'T save gas by hoarding it in five-
gallon containers. This is a serious fire hazard—
w hether in your car, your garage or your basement
Instead, save gas the smart, safe way. Follow
these tips.
Live e n te rta in m e n t 7 nights a w e e k
The National Prisoners U
liance is sponsoring a benefit
concert at East Delta Park
on Sunday. July 29, between
the hours of 2 and 6 p.m.
This benefit will raise the
money desperately needed to
continue the NPA Family
Service Project. This project
provides low cost transpor
tation to the Oregon State
Penitentiary, Oregon State
Correctional Institute, and
the Annex at Salem, referral
services, and a drop in cen
ter.
These activities are
geared to strengthen rela
tionships between the pris­
oner and family or friend,
realizing that strong personal
ties increase sharply the
ability of the prisoner to
make it once he's outside the
institution.
The Research
Division of the California
Department of Corrections
has stated that prisoners
who are visited frequently
have as much as 20% more
chance of staying out than
the prisoner who has had
less visits during the term of
his prison sentence.
NPA has been operating
without any substantial finan
cial assistance. They have
contacted many groups re
garding their cause and are
featuring three groups that
believe in NPA's activities
and it's needs.
D'Kane,
presented by Veer of the
Frog Productions, is a new
and upcoming group in the
Northwest. Carl Smith and
the Natural Gas Company-
features Signe Anderson,
who was with the Jefferson
Airplane in their earlier days,
and Vpeppo. a nine piece
local jazz group who are
amazingling tight.
Also.
Stanley Sherman" profes
sional mime, w ill be coming
up from San Francisco to
appear. And Al Menasco, a
dude who sings and plays
mellow guitar, w ill arrive
here from Eugene. The day
of festivities will begin in the
morning with an arts and
crafts display by local artists.
The music w ill begin at 2
p.m. and will continue until
6 p.m.
We are also at­
tempting to arrange a beer
garden sponsored by Ranier
Brewery. There w ill be a
dollar contribution requested
from the people who attend,
so that the benefit can raise
funds for the described
Family Service Project.
D ays a t
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