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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 12, 2003)
March 12. 2003 ®t|e Jìortlanò ©bseruer Book Mixes Humor With Controversy Page B3 The Humours of Black life D a n c e t o F ran ce continued ) J V ! ‘Black Life’looks at the lighter side of African Americans A new book. The Humours of Black Life, forewarns those with thin skin, ‘black or white,' not to tum its pages The book humorously exposes the un derbelly of African-American history, cul ture and lifestyle from slavery to hip-hop. Using irony, sarcasm and witty banter in short narrative expose, streetwise editori als, offbeat poetry and tongue-in-cheek anecdotes, it’s sure to offend more than a few sensibilities. Written under a number of author pseud onyms, the book reveals some o f the most intimate details o f black life in em barrass ingly frank detail. “Examining stereotypes humorously takes away a great deal of their power to dem ean," said M Dee Cee, the book’s editor. "The book is a very potent ego- builder.” At 360 pages, the book does an interest ing job of revisiting history to uncover the ironies it sees everywhere in black life. President George W ashington’s Last Will and Testament, for example, is hilariously S te v e M artin a n d Q ueen Latifah s ta r in “Bring ing Down th e H o u s e ." ‘Bringing Down the House’ Brings Down the Comedy Bar (AP) — Queen Latifah oozes charisma and talent «¡nd absolutely deserves her supporting-actress Os car nomination for playing prison matron Mama Morton in the musical “Chicago." Which makes “ Bringing Down the House” all the more baffling. Latifah not only co-stars in the movie, she’s an executive producer and contributed music for the soundtrack. What was it about this movie that compelled her to get involved so intimately? It couldn’t be the script from first-time screenwriter Jason Filardi. It’s chock full o f outdated racial stereo types. All the white people are uptight, racist WASPs, all the black people are ghetto fabulous, and none of them resembles a human being. It starts out amusingly enough, albeit in a “You’ve Got M ail" sort o f way. Tax attorney Peter Sanderson (Steve M artin) is nervously preparing for his first date with Charlene Morton (Latifah), with whom he's conducted a giddy online affair. This opening section is the only part that depicts reality in any form, as Peter and Charlene carefully choose their words to make themselves sound desir able. He describes himself as having “light hair," when it’s actually gray. She writes about exercising for an hour, then working in the yard - which is what she does at the Los Angeles County Jail, where she’s doing time for robbery. But then Charlene busts out and shows up at Peter’s house in all her booty licious glory and insinu ates herself in hopes of getting him to exonerate her. D espite his initial disdain. P eter form s a friend ship with this w om an, chiefly because she func tions as a M agical Black Person - a cinem atic character, like Will Smith in "The Legend o f Bagger Vance and Don C headle in "The Fam ily M an,” w ho sw oops dow n, solves everyone’s problem s and provides clarity. Jhe Mixtape Series Live JN TC C l Come to the Ash Street Saloon, 225 SW Ash St., on W ednesday, March 12 at 8 p.m. for The Mixtape Series Live Vol. II featuring O nry O zzborn and A naxogorus o f O ld o m in io n , M y G, o th e rw is e k n o w n as Sinistapushaman, Mic Crenshaw of Hungry Mob, Keary Kase and D J’s Wicked and Evil One with special guest Mystic. Admission is $8 for those 21 and older. Go to Paris without leaving Portland Until March 23, the Portland Art Museum will feature Paris to Portland: Impressionist and Post-Impres sionist Masters in Portland Collections.’ The show includes 165 worksdrawn from private collections in the Portland area and has work by Cezanne, Renoir, Monet. Gauguin, Picasso and prints by Toulouse- Lautrec, am ongst others. Reparations Thursdays David Park s new band. The Reparations, will play every Thursday at 9 p.m. with DJ Chill and special guest performers and DJs at The Red Sea, 318 S.W. Third Ave. Admission for those 2 1 and older is $5. PCC Kit Kat Klub Cabaret The Portland C om m unity C ollege T heater Arts departm ent presents the fabulous m usical, the Kit Kat Klub, at 7:30 p.m. on T hursday, M arch 13 through Saturday, March 15. The show features an em cee that leads the audience through a wild and decadent jo u rn ey into B erlin 's Kit Kat K lub in 1929. The play follow s the character o f C liff Bradshaw as he m eets Sally Bow les and the girls o f the Kit Kat Club. The production contains m ature subject m atter that may not be suitable for younger audience m em bers. Tickets are $8 for general adm ission and $5 for students and seniors. The play will be perform ed at the Perform ing A rts C enter at the Sylvania Cam pus, 12000 S.W. 49,h Ave. For tickets or inform ation, call 503- 977-4949. I JtfcsJ by M IV * Cw The H um ours o f Black L ife' is available a t B a rn es a n d N o b les a n d on A m azon.com translated for its hidden meaning such as the fact that W ashington freed his slaves after his death, but only after his fields have been harvested one last time. The book is full o f original caricature drawings depicting five black personality profiles-Treadmillers, Saints, Revolution aries, B-Boys and Girls, and Buppies as well as numerous other caricatures under such headings as “The Sociology Hall of Fame,” “All in the Family" and “Roots”. Beneath its sarcasm and humor, ‘The Humours of Black Life’ makes a very posi tive statement about being black in America and is a must read for anyone who wants to look at the lighter side of black life. The book is available online at Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble. o f five students from Jefferson that will go abroad. She is in her third year in the program. "I’m excited for everyone,” she said. "It’s a unique opportunity to do something really different." Many o f the Jefferson dancers would someday like to dance pro fessionally. And most find inspira tion in Gonzales’ real world experi ence. He still dances during his summers with Momix, an interna tionally renowned m odem dance company. “He still knows what its like to be out there in the p ro fe ssio n a l world," said senior dancer Chris Patterson, who finds G onzales’ story a constant source o f am aze ment. “H e’s been dancing longer than I’ve been alive and he dances 20 times better than 1 do,” Patterson said. “He started when he was 16. If I work hard like he did, I can do this." In the meantime, Gonzales is adding an extra hour or two here and there to a practice schedule already topping 30 hours a week. But the kids don’t seem to mind. Expectations are running high as they have less than a week to wait before departure. " I ’m co u n tin g d o w n ,” said Patterson. from Metro In addition to the perfor mances, the kids will have a chance to sightsee and take in all that is French. T here are a couple girls in the com pany that speak French," Gonzales said. "W e’ll alsohavea couple interpreters there, thank g o odness.” Mean whi le, this gaggle of tal ented artists are training harder, focusing longer and maybe hav ing a little more fun as the antici pation tickles there sense of ad venture. "1 ’ m ecstatic,” said dancer Ty Cheng, a Sunset senior. "I’ve never been out o f the country." Cheng credits Gonzales for bringing out the best in all his dancers and never accepting sec ond best in the pursuit of the perfect dance. “Kids our age are capable of doing this. Steve gives us the chance to really go for it,” Cheng said. “He prepares you to be a professional.” Cheng, who started dancing just two years ago is curious about performing in other coun tries and is looking forward to this unique opportunity. Senior Ashley Caldwell is one Dean’s Beauty & Barber Shop Rapper Faces Obscenity Charge 3 DOLLARS OFF Naked performance riles South Carolina prosecutor T u e s d a y s th ro u g h T h u r s d a y s S e n io r C itizens days are Tuesday (A P) — F orm er 2 Live C rew rapper L uther C am pbell faces a felony charge after police said he led a sexually charged perform ance at a D orchester C ounty nightclub in South C aro lina. An arrest w arrant was issued W ednesday for the 42-year-old Florida-based rapper on a charge o f presenting or participating in an obscene perform ance. _ t h e O ctober show reportedly featured na- / w ked people on stage at the End Z one nightclub. "T hat might go over in South Beach or w herever h e’s from, but it’s not going to fly in D orchester C ounty,” prosecutor W alter Bailey said. Police began their investigation the day after C am pbell’s show , when a 23-year-old w om an reported she was dragged onto the stage, stripped naked and sexually assaulted. A fter review ing videotapes o f the perfor m ance. police determ ined the w om an had been a w illing participant and charged her with filing a false police report. C am pbell’s spokesw om an, R ebkah Funk, said the rapper had no im m ediate com m ent on the charge. " B e s t know n for his explicit rap lyrics, form er 2 Live Crew m e m b e r Luther Campbell fa c e s cha rg es for a sexu a lly charged perform ance. " 215 N .E . 1 la n c o c k S t., P o rtla n d , O R (50.31282-2920 BARBERS: W A.D. Williams I yrone Frazier (n e w s ty lis t) A L K - IN S W E L C O M E PRESS k Cl RES SPECIAL S25» WE NEED YOUR You are invited to review and comment on grant applications to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for funding to assist in the reuse of Brownfields Properties Attend community meetings to: • Review the conceptual designs developed by a citizen-based committee and learn about the reuse efforts for property located at 3368 NE Martin Luther King Jr., Blvd. • Learn about the City's "Brownfields Showcase Program" to address contaminated properties. • Review application drafts, provide direction and assist in finalizing the grant applications to U.S. EPA. Wednesday, March 12 • 3 :3 0 - 5 :0 0 PM ___ T H H F ” The Faces of Art and Psychology at Bureau of Housing & Community Dev, 421 SW Sixth Ave., Suite 1100, Portland AND ‘Faces’ by Gary Mac Smith will be Thursday, March 13 • 6 :3 0 - 8 :0 0 RM showing through March 28 at Portland State Uni versify ’ s Littman Gallery. Smith is a Portland Psychiatrist specializing in individual psychotherapy. at OAME Cascade Plaza, 4134 N. Vancouver Ave., Portland This planning process is being led by the Buieau of Housing and Community Development, MargaretCho‘RevolutionTour’ the Portland Development Commission, and the Portland Brownfields Showcase Program. W ith the same unbridled, no holds-barred hum or that has made her famous, M argaret Cho will tackle the axis o f evil, her travels through T h ia lan d 's red light district, the explosion o f child birth, bartering sex for household chores, revolutionizing your self-esteem , the jo y o f bodily functions, her loosed ex-boyfriend, and o f course, her w orld-fam ous m other and much more that cannot be printed. Cho will perform in Portland on T hursday, M arch 13 at the A rlene S ch n itzerC o n cert Hall. For general Brownfields Showcase information, contact Clark Henry at (5 03 ) 823-7053. For information about the NF M IK Jr, Blvd. project, call Christine Hermann at (5 0 3 ) 823-3239 To review the draft application, go to w w w . p d c . u s PDC PORTLAND D fV ilO P M f N T C O M M IS S IO N H. & B. Too Portland Symphonic Girlchoir The Portland Sym phonic G irlchoir, a 170-m em ber choir for girls ages six through 18, will host its annual Inform ance/Tcacher A ppreciation Concert, on M onday. M arch 17 at 7 p.m. at the First United M ethodist C hurch, located at Southw est 18,h and Jefferson. Admission to the event will be a free-will donation to the G oose H ollow Fam ily Shelter. For more information, call 503-226-6162. Back to the Ooo Wop days High school friends from Detroit’s North End, Levi Stubbs, Renoldo “Obie” Benson, Abdul “Duke” Fakir and Lawrence Payton began marveling their audiences with an infectious blend of pure vocal power and sweet harmonies in 1954. Once they signed with Motown Records in the 60s as the Four Tops, the group churned out hit after hit eventually ending with an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. With 43 years of playing history, the group will play at Chinook W indsCasinoon Friday, March 21 and Saturday. March 22 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 to $40 depending on seat location. For more information orto buy tickets, call I -888-624-6228, or Fasdxx at I -800-992-8499. NOW OPEN Oregon’s Oldest Licensed Pawnshop 4709 N.E. Martin Luther King Blvd. 2 blocks south o f Alberta Weekdays til 6 p.m. - Saturdays til 4 p.m. Free Parking - State Controlled Rates - Se Habla Espanol www.hbloan.com Oregon Family Business for over 50 years Lie #306 I