In Black America; Gordon Parks Sr.

fb in black america reflections of the black experience in american society gordon parks senior is an author and film director and composer who is also a self taught photographer enjoy life magazine staff in nineteen forty nine more to park became well known sort of fowl eiffel essays story of flavio in the world of theory thomas what parcels also the first black to reduce a large budget failed four major motion picture studio the fear was an autobiographical novel a learning tree i'm jackie hanson and this week focuses on gordon parks senior in black america that i go around the country speaking to a lot of young people who were huge job for

an oedipal question is how to do it back in nineteen forties late forties how to walk into vogue magazine wired magazine day except you will some people thought was passing for white i am a i think possibly because i had a very strong will mother with modern i sometimes say and those fifteen of those children i was the youngest of fifteen as sheriff rick and our any of us to hide behind our blackness as she said a white boy can do it you can do a subtle areas usually get up and go so i suppose that's why i walk in the vote in nineteen forty five the rats and refusals i walked in the heart of his army told me very frankly we don't use that grows and i said

ok now what the building actually was a wig on trial and they tried it and i did the same thing at life magazine later in nineteen forty eight and with gordon parks' senior was born november thirtieth nineteen twelve and force got kansas among his other accomplishments arts wrote the screenplay and produced directed escort the film the learning tree in nineteen sixty nine his subsequent films were staff in nineteen seventy one sasse big score in nineteen seventy two the super cop in nineteen seventy three and leadbelly in nineteen seventy six was the park's tv credits include directing the world of period dramas and the diary of a harlem family court has composed symphonic set billowing trees seventy and five piano sonatas he also hauls membership and the directors guild of america national board they ask him key past director offers a deal past

director and be in double a cpa he has also served as editorial director of essence magazine one parks is a self taught photographer enjoying life magazine in nineteen forty nine as most of hearts why decided on journalism jane chose me i didn't set out for particular things of china can actually to rant like photography art music poetry films everything i didn't necessarily realize it neither education and to some of myself and so whatever came along grabbed hold of it going to fail khan founder well i wrote for a show naugle introduction autograph now and the cell phone wallet and john cassel is vita needle on to afford become a director

as immigration from uc follow normal is so large and didn't listen to mr bridges jewish immigrant nomination for a second because i haven't had bought usage you direct the film you know write screenplays or writing is a new local produce that was a referee and more families of underserved people he didn't care objections you can find st francis directors guild of america says they can be introduced to a toilet chess club musicians go through a large check he said let's stop this and you didn't in order to find his book the money i went to first and i force black people were reminded him into the confinement

age funk third families' who's trained for that joe walcott was not fit to cameroon ireland and found about nine or ten other people and we went from that they're non been training with time i did say if i was about twenty one liberal after we buckle well they've been trying to different places such directors guild which on the number of known but after some prodding accepting black and minority perch fish into the programs saves five new film but you can apply to become my assistant on the phone that is known not as an assistant director but he can watch they were in asking questions and in calico cool about that was going to learn what is the director and the different category is screenwriter that you were because we know those things happen

it's been trying to park city lasik sylvie simmons there are quite a number of black friends they made twenty years later ten years later that is the very few black form if any they made was is that a problem for blacks in the motion picture industry well allow bad films lives on at the chef and i think when shepherdson much money in living and inferior products and so that led to much more than people in black became tyrone and this became the band for renewal and i think that it was hollywood's fall more slowly one else because they didn't give people a chance to put their infants adequately and the way we didn't as black to allow young black filmmakers who are promising a chance to do that that's because they had been severely weakened criticism

on that and because they think they can do anything that lenders threw a white student activism the money in says redstone is being limited to avoid in them apart news the if i were shipped to succeed that i must have my way and do it slowly do it well as people like fire on them and that's where it happened you working on any project that the presenter how senate president of the book poetry a book on gender determined newspaper dungeon ballet music going on piano concerto the music for this film selma novel and some of them are all at a low they tend to be nasty fire directed ira the screenplay elected and follows an important thing

that has a film that as black people i really want a good platform is one they can buy is one that i kept it was nuts possibly could pulse sexual sing to play way down and listen to play in high school clinic in the garden and it's an important and says blacks and whites and i'm a black chow c well if you have the intensity one man have experienced slavery is very significant and we know we talk about slavery in the millions or suffered slavery but here's one black man was kidnapped with the slavery wrote a book about it tells about it and that's what's so sharply defined the phone where's your definition of a black family i had no definition for black for myself out there

that everybody is up to a black politician films like this that feels a phenomenal and the same schaffner says for a while have the actors in the film a white people super cop cited as i get some calls about the starter why ron lieber and they would sell white stars and there was a film about them were supposedly recover black recollections of black felt so i don't so i'll call when i see a museum all about film and if you don't call white from puerto rican from puerto rico the directors so i that's somebody that nasa public up why they consider it like there hasn't been any actors or actresses that she had difficulty working when we assess why we're getting around on a

us no i'll go why joe's exactly is a relatively unknown because i felt that they were pursuing for roles i don't care about star necessarily i have to feel it if they can and so this is now no no one's ever heard of the fourteen general wells i think every brooks didn't just feel as though i can be i would choose who more than anyone else on tour beginning of course hollywood has feels different about them and the biggest stars they can get it's a surprise box office and ticket sometimes well as in the actor has long has been a lot of books and then has to do the richard pryor they will help more blacks get involved in a tale in the film industry i also i don't know what ricky dillon jim brown's working with an infection

for asians more my thing oh right and enough healthy successful anything i can do for him to get to an approach it there were telegrams being good luck and congratulations alanna back patting a lot of hand slapping what the pressure was there at every turn to the lights i was definitely on trial and liberals would slip through the front gate you realize i was the brotherhood's flip through my love something for everybody else there are times i thought that we should i was being pushed farther and farther on to some lonely island or alone i would have to suffer up until i proved myself and in such times i turned of those who have faith and me long before

i got started mostly they were simple people on his little means and unselfish koch people secure enough in their own right to lend themselves to me but why in the century in which we exist should there have been ruled for so many firsts in the top ranks of black america why because america is still a registration and we blacks remained perplexed of the leftovers is like the blood wings show and the best must die as americans so all of us want to reassure someone was to be following so was a born with great talent some would not at all of what seems to matter far more is that we are born blind and that single fire would control our destiny above all others i would never suggest that black americans

are rewarded equally for the efforts they put forth far too many of us exist in a chasm of hopelessness far too many of us have perished under the very weight of our efforts to succeed and far too many of us have surrendered to the anger and this frustration that overtakes such so many times quite have said to me well if you made it whatever other black boy and they get to make and there is a reason although i was born poor and suffered mountains of prejudice and discrimination i was born of a good mother and a good father and a real place with overflowing emotional and that black boys suffer the ghettos of harlan watson other big cities with more than likely born to a broken home or cocaine it's innocent and poise is needles are used as long a dream each day and i would not say that

that's conditioned should cause us to give up on such a bore we you and i was a temp to lift him to replace his anger and frustration with an understanding of the law alt rockers fear with encouragement a decent home and education the black revolution has not failed it has grown to a halt momentarily because those were priceless why the murdered are joel rose jailed and jason on the ground or out of the country martin was the mega bargain and all the others will always remain more and just a memory time and circumstance we decide upon other black leaders who will recall lost on although on the nineteen sixties that terrible time i was a journalist for life magazine

they forced me into writing less because the pampas the muslims and yet on his notions would not trust them to report on life magazine hanaway endured life magazine to get their stores across life magazine tried to do the muslims for three years ford asked me although i was a writer on the twentieth floor finally one day they came to minnesota gordon do you think that you could do the black muslims with a white reporter i said no thank you could do the black boys with a black reporter i said no do you think you can do the black was a lot of you know i don't i said because you set up a great screen of distrust that i never i will try i saw malcolm x and we journey back and forth see alot of how the coalition four times by plane

i'm out in the four west wing is just suffering from broken as marcy it's time i spoke to him he said son why you working for the des moines and i said well you know you're the shorter haul ship to get inside is yes people back and from what i've finally he said to me i don't like the young man he said how'd you like to do a story on them on the movies and a picture unless i will give you have a million dollars as a very honored server actor's usual until he's a quiescent because i'm a reporter and you would expect me to listen to what you have to say about the situation a morsel of possible about like you say he says you can bet your life if i gave you have a million dollars of expect decisive

and so i said well that's exactly why can't be a patient so as i started out about the fifth time is the festival they said that i'm a lawyer to a story on the black mountain and brother malcolm will be our guide through the nation is that we like the story we'll send your boxers a lot because we don't like the story will be out the visitor and they did come to visit i had to do my own writing them and i had to watch a copy as it went through each night and those at the four o'clock in the morning when we close the story i had to watch each line because some research or our checker mike changed ah word from protest begin to write something that's raul journalist you know what i'm talking about but each word has different meanings

out i walk that tight rope i knew i was reported very responsible position when i work with the panthers and now they would say to me are well what you write a survivor what i find out and that's what i did and that i would not let life magazine tell me what the right they had to write what i want an otherwise it didn't go down i will integrate enviable position but a very terrible on in a way that i had to be very cautious about what i said but i have to be honest because that is the true mark of a journalist to be objective it's very difficult to be objective if you're black and you're out on a story like that and you see people being murdered and shot so for was i did with the panthers and with muslims i remember flying out of atlanta and stokely carmichael that one i thought he was weary and tired and i suspect very interesting

because i'm along the front he named our overall neighbor's tired he said all this hatred that surrounds us has taught me that one's life isn't too much to help to give to help me had a nation of fashions can use says in a revolutionary period is always the best to die the loss activists leave the last word to the collards and the tumors and sewage others have lost it by giving the best of themselves he then put his hand on rush ahead and get on my shoulder and went to sleep is a special expertise it's you have to have to be a director who a lot of things you have to be very considerate an understanding of your people has to happen with the actors should have a different temperaments

the cruz very specialized talent yet to protect them from an onslaught of hierarchy and produces and so for the sort of thinking more creatively i think it all people must be respect for their contribution to the flag you must feel the directness feel it not one of those who went for the deal without any less dependent on so get in an interactive director must know the film version backwards she must be able to answer all of thousands of questions are asked him all day alone by all people in the city must never bitter it was never show weakness allies in austin you must protect your crew

you must protect your actors away from people like produces coming in one of northern and you must go there because they are your life or as an actor producer does is to single black can sit down because he is what he is supposed to have done that is good produce is to set things up for the directors of a ticket and then operate in a very creative way to he's not an audit bothered by anyone lot of producers this would do that as a thing you dont have limited edition of the arizona law or producing it and i can now walk out and buy a book and sung by five dollars and suddenly he's produced but annoying the pollution without a producer mexican action suit for forty guests all that money himself together yet you say i want roger moseley ah ah so go get roger moseley for

may and they cured deal with financial she's jewish and do with their message out when radicals and the writers will be happy financially so that i will have no problems with them i know he's getting what he's taking on one time and that's it and i think we're joined by the ball and now give me a lot of publicity was oh i have to keep on producing <unk> actors but in the eu people in the sunset and then you have big problems and yet to really put a foot down that's what you hear a lot of times a director demands that the dissident come on set and you can do it because it's so if the phone companies invested say two or three million dollars and an ad directors and his passions group they have that point i'm not going to sad to me with a producer whose work is that is us as director up in our estimates that so two two and

the public at his response that is a tremendous responsibilities are similarly done in my life gordon parks senior photographer offer film director composer and journalist nesta parks is a nineteen eighty three recipients of the national association of black journalists frederick douglass award for lifetime contribution to joe's if you have a comment a like approaches a cassette copy of his program write us he dresses in black america's long on radio network austin seventy seven one to when black americans technical producer want to morgan i'm jackie hanson join us next week you've been listening to in black america reflections of the black experience in american society in black america is produced and distributed by the center for telecommunication services and does not necessarily reflect the views of the university of texas at austin where the station