Jolted in the night, San Francisco’s East Bay residents attempted to shield themselves from shattering windows as the sky blazed.  320 people were killed, 400 more were injured, and everything within a one mile radius was destroyed in a flash.  50 survivors were imprisoned for mutiny.  If you have not heard about the worst home front military disaster in our history, you will now know why.  If you had already known about it, you will find out that there is still much more to the story. The worst home front military disaster in US history has been one of our best kept secrets, until now.

After 6 decades (July 17, 2009 marks the 65^th anniversary of the tragedy), the story known as the MUTINY AT PORT CHICAGO is finally brought to the stage in this WORLD PREMIERE production at Ruskin Group Theatre July 10-August 15, 2009.

Ruskin Group Theatre has been making an impact on the Los Angeles theatrical scene with an eclectic mix of thought provoking plays and programs.  Their ‘Fostering Imagination’ program sponsors foster kids in theatre & film classes that produce several original shows each year.  The CAFÉ PLAYS, created by RGT are produced monthly and are the culmination of writers, actors, and directors who meet at 9am, where they are given a theme.  They then write, produce, and perform a show by 7pm the same day.  Recently celebrating their 5^th anniversary, RGT supporters Ed Asner, Dylan McDermott, Chris Malkey, Olivia d’Abo, and other industry celebrities joined to produce the Best of Café Plays (both shows sold out within hours).  Anthony Hopkins and Anthony Franciosa were some of the Ruskin School of Theatre’s first teachers.

Written and directed by: Paul Leaf. Produced by: Mike Myers and Dana Lynn Bennett

Ruskin Group Theatre, 3000 Airport Road, Santa Monica, CA 90405. Tickets (310) 397-3244.  Running: Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm. Sundays at 2 pm. Closing performance: Saturday, August 15, 2009. All Seats are $20 ($15.00 for students, seniors, and guild members.)

With J. Teddy Garces, Maury Sterling, Josh Drennen, Cris DAnnunzio, Durant Fowler, Eric Bivens Bush.

For more information on the mutiny itself, go to www.portchicagomutiny.com.

J. Teddy Garces as Ed.

The calendar on the Venice Beach Drum Circle website hasn’t been updated since 2007 but I believe dancers and performers gather every Sunday. I walked along Venice Beach yesterday late afternoon and at 6:30pm the drum circle was well under way.

The web site is still a great place to get information about the history of the Drum Circle and the many controversies surrounding it since the year 2000 when the site was created, including the Boardwalk Lottery, which sadly resulted in the exodus of true artists selling their work and the arrival of junk arts and crafts. I hadn’t been to Venice Beach in a long time and was truly saddened by the mediocrity of the art and jewelry on display.

According to DrumsOnTheWeb.com, which lists Drum Circles in the US and around the world, the Venice Beach drum circle dates back to the 1960′s.

]]> http://thesmilingspiderblog.com/2009/07/06/venice-beach-drum-circle-july-5th-2009/feed/ 0 frankiely 4TH JULY DRUM CIRCLE http://thesmilingspiderblog.com/2009/07/02/the-drafting-of-the-constitution-hbo-films-john-adams/ http://thesmilingspiderblog.com/2009/07/02/the-drafting-of-the-constitution-hbo-films-john-adams/#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:09:40 +0000 frankiely http://thesmilingspiderblog.com/?p=1261 ]]> In the HBO movie “John Adams”, John Adams asks Thomas Jefferson to draft the Declaration of Independence. “Why me?” asks Jefferson.  “I have a great opinion of the elegance of your pen,” is John Adams’ third reason.

Benjamin Franklin (Tom Wilkinson) and John Adams (Paul Giamatti) review Jefferson’s draft.  Benjamin Franklin to Jefferson: “You lay the evils of slavery at the feet of the King but you say nothing of slavery itself sir.”

The following is an excerpt of a story written by AlDesmadre for the LA Eastside blog:

Most of us are sadly familiar with the present state of a former Eastside jewel, the Golden Gate Theater.

The property, including the remaining auditorium structure, are currently under ownership by a development company who appears inclined to possibly lease it to a commercial builder. I’ve heard of a proposed Walgreen’s drug store or something of that nature being mentioned. Over the past few years, I’ve undertaken a grassroots preservation effort by networking with local individuals and groups who unanimously agree that this former icon deserves a legacy worthy of the historical and cultural importance of our East Los Angeles community.

I now call out to anyone out there who agrees that this site of the Golden Gate Theater should house something of more significance and better use for the community than another drug store. And now, there’s a small glimmer of hope…

Based on my recent posts on the Golden Gate, I have recently been contacted by the Los Angeles Conservancy to share my efforts with them and present our case at a public hearing scheduled for next week. If you agree with us and would like to support our proposal for something better on that corner, now is the time that we need your emails and letters of support. Post your responses here, send an email, whatever way suits you, and I will compile the entire show of support and present it to the planning commission. And please do it soon! We’re also banking on our faith that Ms. Molina and the County board will also lend their support by reconsidering the current plans for the space.

Imagine the possibilities, An East L.A. Cultural, Arts & Heritage Center, a place for our neighborhood students to rediscover their local history. A place to showcase the images, recordings, readings, history, literature & arts that the Eastside has contributed to the world. Or perhaps a local non-profit could find some wonderful use for it. I especially would like to see the stage and auditorium refurbished and reused again. I’d almost say: “Anything but another drug store!”

Thanks to all in advance! Let’s do this. Below is a copy of the L.A. Conservancy’s position letter with the information on the hearing at the very bottom.

Click here for full story.

The web site Cinema Treasures is a great place to learn about the theater history and its impact on the community, like in this reader’s comment: “Growing up, I lived near Atlantic and Olympic and have many wonderful memories of days at the Golden Gate. What a classic, beautiful theater!! I would often just go and watch whatever was playing. I remember one afternoon when my mother gave me some money for the movies and I went there by myself and, as a 10 year-old, watched “Psycho”!! I also loved the set-up, where you would purchase the ticket at the booth at the sidewalk on Whittier Blvd., then walk down the covered courtyard, past the shops before entering the theater. On hot summer afternoons, there was no better place to be. Too bad it has not been restored. I would also love to see other photos of the place in its glory days.”

Betsy Kalin.

I wrote this story for the second issue of “Brooklyn & Boyle,” a monthly magazine about Art & Life in Boyle Heights and Beyond. It was originally published in December of 2008.

When Connecticut transplant Betsy Kalin was approached to make a documentary on Boyle Heights, nothing in her activist and filmmaking background had prepared her for the obstacles ahead: “Boyle Heights is the richest area that I’ve ever been in contact with,” Kalin confesses after two years of total immersion in the neighborhood’s history, past and current. “How do you choose one amongst the million great stories? That was the biggest struggle.”

Her starting point was photographer and entrepreneur Eric Waterman, who originated the project and produced it. “It has such resonance for him because his family is from Boyle Heights,” says Kalin. Even though Waterman’s parents left in the 1940′s and Eric was raised in the valley, his family would talk about Boyle Heights all the time and would often bring him back to visit. This is a story Kalin would hear time and again as she began researching the neighborhood. “People who lived in Boyle Heights in the 20′s are still going back and feel a strong attachment to it, and people who live there now share the same passion,” Kalin remarks. “I don’t hear people in my neighborhood say ‘I was raised in West Hollywood, what a great place!’ Why does Boyle Heights have this power that other neighborhoods don’t have?”

Kalin found answers in the friendships of 50 plus years featured in the film: Floyd Jeter, the first African American to receive a track USC scholarship in 1955, and his Russian Molokan neighbor Bill Novikoff; Marsha Vasquez, Momo Yoshima and Dian Harrison, three women activists who met at Belvedere Junior High School. Kalin even captures on camera 89 year-old Japanese American Cedrick Shimo‘s visit to his old home. Forced to leave their house after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Cedrick’s family was sent to internment camps never to return to Boyle Heights to live. Saul Ines, a 30-year old Mexican American Cal Arts student who now lives in the house with his parents, welcomes Cedrick home and the men instantly bond over their shared upbringing.

Cedrick and Saul’s first meeting. Photo by Martha Nakagawa.

Titled FRIENDS IN COMMON, Kalin’s documentary tells the story of Boyle Heights’ multicultural friendships from the 1930′s to the present and how history affected its residents. From there, the film’s central theme evolved into a lesson in building community. “How come Boyle Heights was able to function as a multiethnic community before the word multicultural was even invented?” asks Kalin. “It wasn’t a community that was built on assimilation. It was a community where, if you were a Russian Molokan, you went to the Molokan church, but that didn’t preclude you from having friends from other backgrounds. Of course there was racism. It’s not like it was Utopia. I think there were 80 different nationalities at Roosevelt High School. We’re that diverse now but we don’t have that sense of community across backgrounds. I want people to look at these stories of friendships and yes these are friendships but they’re also representative of community. If these people hadn’t talked to each other, they wouldn’t have the richness that they now have.”

Kalin was also drawn to the film because of all the political activism that was going on at the time. “You had, among others, the Mexican revolutionaries, the Eastern European Jews who fled because they were Socialists, Communists, and Anarchists. These movements are all based in class, in working together, and in acceptance of people from different backgrounds.” Kalin stresses that these groups shared a history of persecution in their native countries and, after escaping to America, ended up in Boyle Heights because they were all forbidden to move to other neighborhoods by the racially-motivated covenants laws.

Touched by Boyle Heights’ power, Kalin is hoping one day to become one of its residents. “Walking the streets today you really get this amazing sense of community which is absent from a lot of places in Los Angeles.” But Kalin is also aware of the frictions between old and new immigrants. “Boyle Heights is an immigrant neighborhood that’s shifted its whole life and will keep on shifting. I’m just sad that a lot of people who live there now don’t know Boyle Heights’ rich history.”

Bill Novikoff and Floyd Jeter.

FRIENDS IN COMMON is still a work in progress. The passionate director is looking for residents to loan her their home movies and photographs and she can still be seen filming in the neighborhood. “We have amazing footage of the East LA classic football game. It’s Garfield vs. Roosevelt High. 20,000 are in attendance for a high school football game. It’s incredible!” Past resident Floyd Jeter is seen on the bleachers beaming with pride: “It’s 2 different schools but one community!’

For more information on the film, go to http://www.bluemediawater.org . Betsy Kalin can be reached at itchybee@gmail.com.

Information on Kalin’s first documentary, “Hearts Cracked Open” about Tantra for women who love women, can be found at www.heartscrackedopen.com.

Marsha Vasquez & Momo Yoshima. Photo by Betsy Kalin.

“America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves: If our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time — to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.”

Click here for full transcript of Barack Obama’s victory speech, November 4, 2008.

This picture was found this morning on www.lataco.com.

Free Screenings of Four Los Angeles-Themed Documentaries at L.A. Archives Bazaar This Saturday

Four Council-supported films, “The New Los Angeles,” documenting the city’s recent political and social history; “The Eastsiders,” about the historic Central Avenue area before 1965; “Chicano Rock,” Jon Wilkman’s film tracing the history or rock ‘n roll and Latino identities in East Los Angeles; and “Chinatown Remembered: Los Angeles During The 1930s And 1940s,” about the creation of first planned Chinese American community in the United States, will be screened at the L.A. Archives Bazaar this Saturday.

The Bazaar, an annual gathering to show off Los Angeles history and provide a clearinghouse of information, features exhibits by local historical collections, museums and archives as well as book signings and panels on such topics as family genealogy and digital archives. The Bazaar runs from 10 am to 5 pm on Saturday, October 25 at the USC Davidson Conference Center, 3415 South Figueroa Street (at Jefferson Boulevard). See Map

Admission is Free. Parking is available for $8 at USC Parking Structure D next to the Davidson Center.

Film Screenings Schedule
Location: Cardinal Room and Gold Room, 2nd floor

“The New Los Angeles”
10:30-11:45 am
www.californiadreamseries.org/nla.htm

“The Eastsiders”
12:30-1:30 pm
www.eighthandwall.org

“Chicano Rock! The Sounds Of East Los Angeles”
2-3 pm
www.wilkman.com

“Chinatown Remembered:
Los Angeles During The 1930s And 1940s”
3:30-4:30 pm
www.chssc.org.

Click here for the festival’s brochure.

“I’m also troubled by, not what Senator McCain says, but what members of the party say. And it is permitted to be said such things as, “Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim.” Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he’s a Christian. He’s always been a Christian. But the really right answer is, what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer’s no, that’s not America. Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president? Yet, I have heard senior members of my own party drop the suggestion, ‘He’s a Muslim and he might be associated terrorists.’ This is not the way we should be doing it in America.”

“I feel strongly about this particular point because of a picture I saw in a magazine.  It was a photo essay about troops who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.  And one picture at the tail end of this photo essay was of a mother in Arlington Cemetery, and she had her head on the headstone of her son’s grave.  And as the picture focused in, you could see the writing on the headstone.  And it gave his awards–Purple Heart, Bronze Star–showed that he died in Iraq, gave his date of birth, date of death.  He was 20 years old. And then, at the very top of the headstone, it didn’t have a Christian cross, it didn’t have the Star of David, it had crescent and a star of the Islamic faith.  And his name was Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, and he was an American. He was born in New Jersey.  He was 14 years old at the time of 9/11, and he waited until he can go serve his country, and he gave his life.  Now, we have got to stop polarizing ourselves in this way.  And John McCain is as nondiscriminatory as anyone I know.  But I’m troubled about the fact that, within the party, we have these kinds of expressions.”

“And I’ve also been disappointed, frankly, by some of the approaches that Senator McCain has taken recently, or his campaign ads, on issues that are not really central to the problems that the American people are worried about. This Bill Ayers situation that’s been going on for weeks became something of a central point of the campaign. “Mr. McCain says that (Bill Ayers)’s a washed up terrorist, but then why do we keep talking about him? And why do we have the robocalls going on around the country trying to suggest that because of this very, very limited relationship that Senator Obama has had with Mr. Ayers, somehow Mr. Obama is tainted. What they’re trying to connect him to is some kind of terrorist feelings. And I think that’s inappropriate. Now, I understand what politics is all about, I know how you can go after one another and that’s good. But I think this goes too far, and I think it has made the McCain campaign look a little narrow. It’s not what the American people are looking for.”

“I think the American people and the gentlemen running for president will have to, early on, focus on education more than we have seen in the campaign so far.  America has a terrible educational problem in the sense that we have too many youngsters not finishing school.  A third of our kids don’t finish high school, 50 percent of minorities don’t finish high school. We’ve got to work on this, and my, my wife and I are leading a campaign with this purpose.

Also, I think, the new president has to realize that the world looks to America for leadership, and so we have to show leadership on some issues that the world is expecting us to, whether it’s energy, global warming and the environment.  And I think we have to do a lot more with respect to poverty alleviation and helping the needy people of the world.  We need to increase the amount of resources we put into our development programs to help the rest of the world.  Because when you help the poorest in the world, you start to move them up an economic and social ladder, and they’re not going to be moving toward violence or terrorism of the kind that we worry about.”

Click here to read the full transcript and access to video clips of the MSNBC interview.

THE DEADLINE TO REGISTER TO VOTE IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY IN EACH ELECTION IS 15 DAYS BEFORE THAT PARTICULAR ELECTION

Remember:  

•  You need to re-register if you have moved, changed your name or wish to change your political party affiliation;You may request that an Affidavit of Registration be mailed to you by calling the Registrar of Voters’ general information telephone numbers: (562) 466-1310 or (800) 481-VOTE, 24 hours a day; 

• Self-executing registration forms that can be filled out and mailed to the Registrar of Voters by anyone eligible to register to vote are available at over 1,950 locations in Los Angeles County, including most libraries, fire stations, post offices, and city clerk offices. Assistance in registering to vote is also provided by staff at the Department of Motor Vehicles and some Social Services agencies.

For more information go to www.lavote.net.

The Smiling Spider has been noticeably absent the past weeks and will be for the next few weeks as she is volunteering for an undisclosed candidate.

Toraichi Kono and Charlie Chaplin.

I attended two out of the three plays presented at EdgeFest’s LA History Project at the Autry National Center last Sunday. Circle X’s 1pm production of Tom Jacobson’s “The Chinese Massacre” which “chronicles the first race riot in Los Angeles history, when 19 Chinese men and boys were lynched by a mob of 500 people from all nations” was a truly impressive debut even if still in the workshopping stage. The play generated many laughs while staying true to the hard facts. Or attempting to. Indeed, some of the funniest moments were born out of the playwright’s desire to confess to us that all the research he did came from press clippings and studies that might or might not tell the absolute truth. Sometimes the playwright gave us two points of view on the same person or incident from two different sources with two very different agendas, which made the play very timely as we’re dealing with two presidential candidates with two very different versions of our future, our past and our present. I highly recommend that you add your name to Circle X‘s e-mail list to stay informed about the future of this disturbing yet necessary play.

I stayed for the next presentation: the first act of Lodestone Theatre Ensemble’s “My Man Kono” written by Philip W. Chung and directed by Jeff Liu about Toraichi Kono who was Charles Chaplin’s valet for 17 years “before being arrested as a Japanese enemy spy on the eve of World War II.” This first act was extremely moving and also enlightening – does anybody know that Charlies Chaplin was the subject of an attack on his life while visiting Japan? – thanks to a terrific cast all around and an outstanding Garrett Wang as Toraichi Kono, all impassive face and bottled up emotions against Donovan Oakleaf’s Charlie Chaplin pirouetting around the stage with open arms and an overflowing heart. I must say when the play began I was embarrassed for whoever had the formidable task of bringing Charlie Chaplin to life but that’s exactly what Donovan Oakleaf did and I’m still recovering from the shock of having been in the genius’ presence. I also recommend that you go to Lodestone’s website to get a chance one day in the near…distant… future, as Philip W. Chung promised us, to witness this intriguing pair who, ironically, ended up having more in common when they grew apart.

Here is Sunday’s line-up for Part II of the festival:

11 AM
Watts Village Theater Company
At Risk
By Judy Soo Hoo
Directed by David Catanzarite
In a fictional middle school in South Los Angeles, every student is at risk, and so is every teacher. Watts Village Theater Company’s offering to the festival explores the history of United Teachers of Los Angeles through the eyes of a rookie and the motley band of veterans who get him through his first year.

1PM
About Productions
Bleeding Through
Written by Teresa Chavez and Rose Portillo
Directed by Teresa Chavez
A multi-media work inspired by Norman Klein’s novella Bleeding Through Layers of Los Angeles, which uncovers the narrative ghosts, both fictional and non-fictional of Angelino Heights, and addresses historical forgetting and the erasure of memory.

3:30PM
Native Voices at the Autry
Serra Springs
By Larissa FastHorse
Music by Brian Joseph
Lyrics by Brian Joseph and Larissa FastHorse
Directed by Robert Vestal
Two teens, two adults and one strange dude deal with some major surprises during one magical night at a protest to save the last sacred site of the Tongva people in West Los Angeles.

What: EdgeFest Los Angeles History Project
When: Sunday, July 13, and Sunday, July 20, 11AM, 1PM, 3:30 PM
Where: Autry National Center of the American West, Griffith Park Campus, 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles, CA, 90027-1462
How Much: Free
Reservations: Not required.
More Info: lahp@edgeoftheworld.org