Writing About Famous Black People
While I was an elementary school principal I wrote for two syndicated newspaper chains, popular magazines, my television show, KFWB radio, TV spots, professional journals and two books. Writing 90 second spots was a favorite. When the superintendent decreed principals must make their point in 90 seconds my spot writing skills made this edict a snap.
Wilson Riles, a black man, was elected California State Superintendent of Public Instruction. I interviewed Wilson for the Progress Newspapers. Ms. magazine, a high end sophisticated publication was founded in 1970 by the famous Life magazine photographer Gordon Parks. Back in the day Ms. always had a glamorous unidentified black model on the cover. Then Mis content was top tier. Today it’s a rag.
I wrote to Marcia Gillespie Ms. Editor-In_Chief. Would she like a story about Riles? She would. I wrote it. She published it. Shortly after it was published Riles flew from Los Angeles to Japan. There was a current copy of Essence in each seat back. By the time his plane landed in Tokyo Riles was being congratulated by his fellow passengers. Wilson felt I’d made him famous. We became life long friends.
Marcia asked me to interview Mission Impossible star Greg Morris. His role called for him to plant electronic bugs to nail the bad guys. I interviewed Morris for four hours in the library of his Beverly Hills home.
I'm not a drinker. Morris kept the Jack Daniels coming. Not to be rude I drank. If my tape recorder had died I would've missed his story.
Marcia published the four thousand word story with my name in large caps.
I attended a conference for school principals in San Francisco. Nearly 2,000 principals listened as the keynote speaker, a short black man, told an interesting story about discovering his Roots. When he finished speaking I introduced myself. May I interview him?
My name tag identified me as a principal but he perked up when I told him I’d written for Essence. Alex Haley said he’d be out of the country for six months. He’d call when he returned. I should do my research and prepare my questions.
This was before computers. When I wasn't being a principal I was at the library researching Haley. Six months to the day Haley called.
I flew to San Francisco with my photographer, Aldo Panserie. We caught a cab to a small hideaway apartment in the financial district. The apartment was owned by Melvin Belli, the King of Torts. Belli had represented people like Zsa Zsa Gabor, Errol Flynn, Lana Turner and Muhammad Ali to name but a few. Belli had won over $600 million for his clients.
Belli had lent his apartment to Haley so Alex could hole up and write Roots. Haley let us in, sat behind his IBM Selectric and we were off and running. It was 9:00 a.m.
Haley had written extensive story style interviews for Playboy. I asked him how this had come about.
Haley said that back in the day Playboy didn't carry an interview. He told Hugh Hefner, publisher of Playboy that it should. Hef, his buddies called him Hef, disagreed but said if Haley could land an interview with jazz trumpeter Miles Davis he’d publish it.
Alex learned Davis liked to go to the gym, put on the gloves and box with a sparring partner. Alex birddogged Davis relentlessly. After two weeks Davis told Haley to get some trunks and shoes and get in the ring with him. If he did he’d grant him the interview.
Haley did. Davis beat him up mildly, no pun intended. This was the first Playboy interview.
We spoke more about his Playboy interviews. He pointed to a framed picture on the wall. Haley is seated at a table on a porch with a typewriter in front of him. Dense woods in the background. Standing beside Haley is a Nazi storm trooper with a machine gun. Haley was interviewing, George Lincoln Rockwell the self-appointed fuhrer of the American Nazi party at his home.
I’d prepared 116 questions on various subjects on 3 x 5 cards. At noon we went out to lunch. As we ate I asked questions.
Back at the apartment Alex continued to answer each question forthrightly. Nothing was off-limits. Five hours later It was time to say goodbye. As we passed through the kitchen I asked about a small hand painted stool next to the stove.
He said he enjoyed baking pound cakes from scratch. He’d sit on the stool in front of the oven and speculate on were the first bubble would appear. When he guessed correctly it made his day.
It was 6:00 p.m. A nine hour interview. We flew back to Los Angeles. I wrote the piece and sent it to Marcia Gillespie. She liked it but wouldn't publish it because she had learned Haley had co-authored the black exploitation film Superfly TNT. Marcia felt that was disgraceful. She paid me a kill fee and permission to sell it elsewhere. Sepia bought it. This opened the door for me at Sepia. My first piece for Sepia was about a black private detective. Several months later this detective was hired to surveil me. It’s a long story.
I was on a roll. I called Gail Fisher the black secretary on the television show Mannix. Fisher at won two Golden Globes and an Emmy. May I interview her for Essence? Yes, but only if they put her on the cover. I knew Essence didn't put known people on the cover but I thought I'd give it a shot. I called Marcia. She reminded me they didn't put known people on the cover. I called Sepia. Would they like a story about Gail Fisher and would they put her on the cover. Yes and yes. I called Fisher. She didn't want to be on the cover of Sepia.
In closing I expect I’m the only school principal who wrote about a black calf roper for Players the black Playboy magazine. I took the magazine to the district office to show the article to the superintendent, my boss. He wasn't interested. He just wanted to look at the centerfold.