4A • July 21, 2017 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com SignalViewpoints Memphis man comes to study Lunceford mystery R.J. MARX/SEASIDE SIGNAL Celia’s Gourmet Foods participates in the Seaside Farm- ers Market. Finding friends at the Seaside Farmers Market SUBMITTED PHOTO Ron Herd in downtown Seaside near the site of the Bungalow, the dance hall where Lunceford was to play his last concert. M eet Ron Herd, a Memphis, Tennessee, native and founder of the Jimmie Lunceford Jamboree Festival in 2007. Herd, 37, of course never knew Lunceford — along with Count Basie and Duke Ellington, among the most renowned and bestselling jazz musicians of the 1930s and ’40s. But as a student at Washington Uni- versity in St. Louis, Herd was turned on to jazz and jazz history. After reading a journalist’s account of the music scene known as the “Chit- lin’ Circuit” in 2007, Herd wondered why Lunceford wasn’t better remem- bered. “I thought something should be done about honoring this guy.” He did just that. Herd founded the “Offi cial Jimmie Lunceford Jamboree” website with salutes to Lunceford, memorials and events, including a June jam session and wreath-laying, this year in honor of what would have been Lunceford’s 115th birthday. Herd plans on using the informa- tion and footage gathered for a fea- ture-length documentary about Lunce- ford, which will be available 2018. The Jimmie Lunceford Jamboree Festival returns Oct. 23-29. especially in those days.” On the other hand, Porter said, Wilder, who had a very sharp memory, confi rmed that the Seaside venue tried to exclude blacks from that evening’s concert. Determeyer, contacted in 2015 at his home in Holland, acknowledged there was little hard evidence of poisoning. “Let’s hope there will be an after- math, and hopefully some new clues,” Determeyer said. SEEN FROM SEASIDE R.J. MARX Seaside connection REBECCA HERREN/SEASIDE SIGNAL Ron Herd pays a visit to the Signal offi ces. Lunceford’s legacy As an athletics instructor at Manas- sas High School in Memphis, Lunc- eford organized a student band, the Chickasaw Syncopators, whose name was changed to the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra. Under the new name, the band started its professional career in 1929, and made its fi rst recordings in 1930. Manassas was the fi rst black public high school in Shelby County, and Lunceford was the fi rst public high school band director in Memphis, Herd said. In 1934, Lunceford and his orchestra took over the prestigious role as the house band at the Cotton Club in New York City’s Harlem, following in the footsteps of Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway. While Lunceford was the most popular bandleader among black audiences — selling more records than Ellington and Count Basie —his hits like “Margie,” “Rhythm is Our Busi- ness” and “My Blue Heaven” crossed all racial barriers. A commitment to education contin- ued even as his popularity grew. “No matter how big he got he was always starting education programs,” Herd said. “Wherever he went, he used to come back from Memphis, he always gave free concerts to Manassas High School students and gave lessons to young musicians who wanted to learn more about their instruments.” Under the baton of Lunceford pro- tegé Emerson Able Jr., Manassas High School trained countless musicians, including Motown star Isaac Hayes. Death in Seaside Lunceford’s death at age 45 was a shock to bandmates and friends. Lunce- ford collapsed while signing records for fans at Seaside Radio and Record Shop on Broadway. Lunceford, a teetotaler, was “a per- fectly healthy man who had boxed, run PUBLISHER EDITOR David F. Pero R.J. Marx SUBMITTED PHOTO Jimmie Lunceford track and played softball,” according to trumpeter Joe Wilder in a 2012 biog- raphy of Lunceford. “It was one of the saddest days of my life.” In “Rhythm is My Business,” author Eddie Determeyer posits that Lunceford may have been poisoned by tainted meat deliberately served by a racist restaurant owner in Seaside. The Clatsop County Coroner declared Lunceford died of “coronary occlusion, due to thrombosis of anterior coronary artery due to arteriosclerosis” — in other words, a heart attack caused by a blockage. Jazz historian Lewis Porter suggests that Joe Wilder — a member of the Lunceford band — remembers the racist restaurant owner as having been in Portland, not in Seaside. “Further, Wilder was present when Lunceford collapsed and he remembers nothing about bad food beforehand,” Porter said. Botulism is not a poison and cannot be “manufactured” or “planted,” Porter said. “It’s simply a severe form of food poisoning that can occur in, for exam- ple, rotten meal. But he (Lunceford) died from a heart attack — nothing to do with the food! He’s not the fi rst guy to die suddenly at a relatively young age from unsuspected heart trouble, CIRCULATION MANAGER PRODUCTION MANAGER Jeremy Feldman John D. Bruijn ADVERTISING SALES SYSTEMS MANAGER Brandy Stewart Carl Earl Herd was in Seaside this month to expand his research, replete with visits to the Signal, the Seaside Historical Society and interviews with jazz fans and folks who remember the days when the city was a hub of big bands and jazz music. “Engaging strangers on the 70th anniversary of his tragic death at the key spots that played a pivotal role in his last moments was emotionally and spiritually moving,” Herd said. During his visit, Herd revisited the sites of the landmarks of the past: 10 Downing Street, the restaurant Lunce- ford ate; the Bungalow, the venue where Lunceford’s band played on, even after their leader’s death; and Seaside Radio and Record Shop. Herd met with Tita Montero and other representatives of the Seaside Mu- seum and Historical Society, and talked with Gloria Linkey, author of “A Town Called Seaside.” “I could tell in her voice that she had a lot of respect and admiration for Jimmie Lunceford and his music,” Herd said of Linkey. “I always appreciate when I meet someone who is really a fan of Jimmie Lunceford because they can never hide their enthusiasm for this particular unsung music genius. It was very insightful, entertaining and helpful. All were very grateful for the food for thought I provided.” He met jazz lovers from near and far, including fans Kazakhstan and a bar owner who “photo-bombed” the presentation. Herd played his trumpet near the site of Lunceford’s death, and fi lmed a short commentary about the signifi cance on “why people should never forget the man or his music.” “I thoroughly enjoyed Seaside in particular and Oregon in general,” Herd wrote me upon his return to Memphis. “I really did not know what to expect. Being a black man from the American South I am no stranger to racism, both covert and overt. “The Pacifi c Northwest has a repu- tation for being a home and breeding ground for white supremacists,” he continued. “Oregon’s actual history as a Jim Crow state did not help either. Given that perception, I could easily see a scenario where Jimmie Lunceford might have been killed by a devout white supremacist in Seaside due to the fact he was a proud and confi dent black man who did not settle for second-class treatment by anyone, regardless of color.” Seventy years after his death, Lunce- ford’s death in Seaside remains clouded. “To paraphrase William Faulkner, “The past is never past,” Herd wrote. STAFF WRITER Brenna Visser CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Rebecca Herren Katherine Lacaze Eve Marx Esther Moberg Jon Rahl didn’t make it to the fi rst two weeks of the Seaside Farmers Market. This was unusual for me, because I fi nd it hard to pass up a farmers market. I go to the one in Astoria. I’ve been to the one in Cannon Beach. I hear there’s a very good one in Manzanita, which makes sense since Manzanita is so much closer to Nehalem which is where the farmers work and live. So I was very excited to learn this season’s Seaside Farmer’s Market VIEW FROM would be located THE PORCH just a 15 minute EVE MARX walk away, right by the Broadway Elementary School. And hey, the parking is easy. It’s still a little early in the season for locally grown fruits and veg, although I picked up a small carton of tasty raspberries and another of strawberries we made short work of. I also got some nice looking snap peas. What I really wanted was fudge. I won’t even let myself try a sample because I’m afraid what might happen. A Gearhart friend relayed to me that visiting family members always buy some and then they eat a tiny bit and leave rest at her house and she always eats it. That would be me. I cruised the aisles, ogling the fi ne goods on display from Se Me Family Food and Grater Foods and the Naked Winery. I learned the guy from Buddha Kat Winery lives right on my street. How cool is that? He offered to make a home delivery. I waved to Margot Nye from Sea Star Gelato. It’s great to see them at the market. My husband bought two bars of soap from the gentleman at Golden- wood. For a couple of years now, he’s had a love for a scented soap called pikake, made from the oil of Hawaiian jasmine. It’s the same fl ower they use to make leis. The name “pikake” is derived from the Hawaiian word for “peacock,” the favored scent of the Hawaiian princess Ka’iulani, who was fond of both the fl owers and the birds, or so the legend goes. The guy who sells the Goldenwood products allowed that he had to change the name of the soap because the name “pikake” didn’t go over so well. Maybe nobody knew how to pronounce it, is my guess. In any case, he changed the name of the soap to “Hawaiian Jasmine” and now it sells great. Since I’ve developed quite the muffi n top, I passed by the kettle corn and the aforementioned fudge, although not without sorrow and regret because I love that stuff. Nuts are a healthier choice. I’ll buy them next week. As we made yet another lap around the market, greet- ing the friendly Seaside police offi cers who were keeping watch, we saw our friends, the two Kathleens, neither of whom know each other, but who are both Seaside resi- dents. Before we left, purchases in hand, we stopped to listen for awhile to the band Pacifi c Fire. Who doesn’t love live music at a farmers market? I remarked to my husband that next week we should hang around longer and partake of the food truck, which offers an easy dinner. (Any excuse not to cook.) We could have some of that affogato from Sea Star afterwards, which is gelato fl oating in a bath of espresso. Sounds yummy, doesn’t it? I LETTERS Gearhart needs to get facts right In reviewing the June 7, 2017 Gearhart City Council minutes, I found some inaccurate information being given out by City Manager Chad Sweet in regard to voter regis- tration. In response to a question asked by Gearhart resident, Susan Spring, regarding the procedure for changing one’s voter registration, Mr. Sweet stated “there are some tests done such as how long you have been registered, where the title of your car is mailed and where you receive your taxes.” When attempting to open the Pacifi c Way Cafe, John Allen was faced with the same issue from the city. Judge Thomas Edison ruled against the city, costing Gearhart a great deal of money. The sooner the fl ow of foggy and mis- leading information being fed to the residents of Gearhart from its city hall is stopped, the better. See Letters, Page 5A Seaside Signal Letter policy Subscriptions The Seaside Signal is published every other week by EO Media Group, 1555 N. Roosevelt, Seaside, OR 97138. 503-738-5561 seasidesignal.com Copyright 2017 © Seaside Signal. Nothing can be reprinted or copied without consent of the owners. The Seaside Signal welcomes letters to the editor. The deadline is noon Monday prior to publication. Letters must be 400 words or less and must be signed by the author and include a phone number for verifi cation. We also request that submissions be limited to one letter per month. Send to 1555 N. Roosevelt Drive, Seaside, OR 97138, drop them off at 1555 N. Roosevelt Drive or fax to 503-738-9285, or email rmarx@seasidesignal.com Annually: $40.50 in county • $58.00 in and out of county • e-Edition: only $30.00 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Seaside Signal, P.O. Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103. Postage Paid at Seaside, OR, 97138 and at additional mailing offi ces. Copyright 2017 © by the Seaside Signal. No portion of this newspaper may be reproduced without written permission. All rights reserved.