New Pittsburgh Courier from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania • Page 14

Pt 14 THE NEW COl'RIER SEPT. SO, 1972 NO MATTER WIAT your personal opinion of actress JANE FONDA might be, you have to give her credit for having a lot of guts. Not only is Jane most deserving of the Oscar won for her brilliant performance in the motion picture "Klute," but the actress proves that a Hollywood star can be endowed with brains as well as beauty. 1 HAD AN opportunity to witness for myself the beauty as well as the brain of Miss Fonda when I served as one of three news people questioning the star on a recent television show. "FACE TO FACE" is a locally produced show by WIIC TV11, the Cox Broadcasting co.

station here in Pittsburgh. The show's format is patterned somewhat after the nationally televised NBC TV show "MEET THE PRESS." AIRED ON ALTERNATE Sundays during prime time. 10 30 p.m., the moderator of "FACE TO FACE" is ace newscaster RAY TANNEHILL. The guest is always someone of prominence and the more controversial, the better. At the present time.

I doubt if there is anyone more controversial than JANE FONDA. THIS WAY MY first time participating on a show of the nature of "FACE TO FACE" and I found the experience interesting. My fellow panelists were drama critic GEORGE ANDERSON of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, our local morning daily, and, CARL ECKLES, news director of Radio KQV, the ABC affiliate here. THE SHOW WAS to have been video taped the previous Friday. Some unforeseen ocurrence in New York City, prevented Miss Fonda from coming.

Another date was set for 10 a.m. the following week. This time she was flying in from Detroit. For a time we thought there would be another delay when the actress failed to arrive at the appointed hour. JUST WHEN I had given up, word was received that the elusive Miss Fonda was on her way.

It was then an hour later. While we were being fitted with "mikes" around our necks, Miss Fonda was given her favorite drink grapefruit juice which she was still sipping when rushed into the studio for the taping. WE HAD EXPECTED her to be a little hostile. Instead she was most cooperative, giving a friendly smile and a firm handshake to each of us when introduced. She was dressed in faded blue jeans and a horizontally striped jersey.

Af II II 1 ltl mil. A SMILING THIRD "Garagiola is at third, standing up," they might have said of Joe in the days when he played major league baseball. Vow Joe, star host of "Sale of the Century," and the show's model, Madeline Saunders, are a smiling pair as the NBC TV Network daytime game show reaches third its third anniversary with the colorcast of Friday, Sept. 29 at 11 a.m. loose fitting sleeveless jacket and sandals completed her attire.

Oyer her shoulder she carried a big bulky black shoulder bag. ALTHOUGH IT WAS obvious that the actress wasn't wearing make up, she was able to look ravishingly beautiful early in the morning without powder or lipstick. And that is a real accomplishment because few women can do that. SIPPING HER JUICE as she sat down in the "hot seat," the actress explained that she had spoken at a rally in Muskegon, the day before. Most of the people there were "Wallace ites' but they listened, she explained.

"I had to get up before six this morning in order to get to Detroit and catch the plane for Pittsburgh. I didn't have time to get a bite to eat," she stated. THE QUESTIONS WERE hard, fast and furious but Miss Fonda never lost her "cool." Neither was she swayed from her way of thinking. Listening to her discuss the peace movement I had to admire her for being so courageous and sticking to her own convictions. Jane says she will be 35 years old her next birthday.

"I've missed 32 and a half of those years," she claims. DIONNE WARWICKE IS singing better than ever. Maybe it's because she's pregnant. The singer actress 'received a tremendous ovation after doing a medley of BERT BACHARACH HAL DAVID numbers on "THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JOHNNY CARSON" last Wednesday night. She confessed to being pregnant and seemed very happy about the whole im FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHT The special screening of "Sounder" the 20th rntury Fox release about a black sharerropping family was a highlight of thit year's Atlanta (Ga.) Film Festival.

The film was voted "Best Feature" and actress Cicely Tyson voted "Best Actress." Mrs. Martin Luther King Jr. hosted the special screening CORE head 'Sounder' is film NEW YORK In a significant move, highlighted by his earlier criticism of blark oriented films. CORE (Congress of Racial Equality) National Director Roy Innis has given a heftv boost to the 20ti. C.ntu.

Fox release of the Robert B. Radnitz Mattel Production selected 3 as the Best Feature Filp shown at the Atlama Iur national Film Festival Named as Best Ae'res was the film's star. Cicely Tyson. "I have long awaited black films which Black families could view without feeling msccurc or ashamed, "wrote Innis to 20h Century Fox sentatives after f.e had viewed the film, with his staff, at a private advance screening in New York. The film focuses on a Black, family in the South during tbe depression era.

The screenplay was scripted by Lonne Elder III, award winning author of the play, "Ceremonies In Dark Old Innis Wrote: "Sounder" represents a giant step in that direction and is additionally a manifestation of healthiness in at least a segment of the motion picture industry. It is thus that a long overdue tribute to the strengtfc of 30 million black Americans has finally appeared. "Sounder" merits acclaim not oniv because of its subject, which is presented with care and dignity, but also because it transcends the usual racist attitudes that have caused Blacks to be portrayed cither as pitiful, dependent types or as vulgar hippy characters Instead, brings out the many sorrows and I uiif RIGHT ON TARGET Redd Foxx (right), star of NBC TV's "Sanford and Son," is the new owner of the Target Record Store chain in Los Angeles, Calif. The final transaction was made on the set of "Sanford and Son" at NBC's California studio. Here Foxs pr sents bis check to, from left.

ENJOYED THEATER Mrs. Rogers (. B. Morton, wife of the Secretary of the Interior, is shown here with some of the 4(X) or more District of Columbia school 1 1 dren who recently attended their first legitimate theater performance "Godspell" which has been a major hit at Ford's Theater in the nati m's capital. "Theater in the conflicts of life in America as well as the strength of black folks now and during the period portrayed." Innis also went out of his way to commend actors Cicely Tyson.

Paul Winfield Summertime" was part of the "summer in the parks" program of the Interior Department's National Park Service. Mrs. Morton often serves as hostess to the groups of school children who attend special matinee performances at Ford's during summer months. and Kevin Hooks as being "superb" and "deserving of awards for their outstanding work." Producer Radnitz, director Martin Ritt, screenwriter Elder and Miss Tyson at stepped from the background to fronr stage at the Troubadour last week to make her national club Syreeta scores in dab debut HOLLYWOOD Syreeta. former Motown background singer, gave a most impressive performance when she and reception that followed.

From left are Jay Hunter Todd, director, Atlanta Film Festival; actress Cicely Tyson, Mrs. Martin Luther King Lonne Elder, III, who wi te the screenplay, and Robert B. RadniU, producer af "Sounder." The film la opening toon across the country. family can enjoy Robert Meals, Mark Harris and Kent Harris. Meals and Harris are the former owners.

Foxx's daughter, Debraca, is a man ajier of one of the Target stores. "Sanford and Son" which co star Demond Wilson, is seen Fridays at 8 p.m. on the network in color. tended t.e special preview of the film based on William Armstrong's Newberry Award winning novel, hosted by Mrs. Martin Luther King Jr.

at the Atlanta International Film Festival. debut before a standing room only audience. Opening to thunderous applause, Syretta has the unique ability to purr like a kitten on some sonzs and give forth with the gospel like screams of an Evangelist on others. Her performance prompted Hollywood Reporter critic, Jeff Thomas, to write "Syretta charmed tfce crowd with sweetness, style and song. She performs each selection with appropriate form and direction from the whispery sweetness of "If" to the funk rock of "Space Captain," never losing the feel or the mood "She will definitely records and fcave hits." Syreeta's i rst Mowest album.

"Syreeta," was produced by the talented Stevie Wonder, and containing the hit single "To Know You Is To Love You." along witfc several other origina's which they collaborated together on. Prior to becoming a per former, Syreeta collaborated with Stevie Wonder on such hits as "Signed, Sealed. Delivered I'm Yours." "If You Really Love Me." Never Dreamed You'd Leave In Summer" and Mher Protect trees DELAWARE. Ohio Man has learned how to protect himcall harittflll diseases by getting injections from the physician. Now he may be able to protect Lis trees with a shot in the bark, thanks to the work of a team of U.

S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service researchers. sell The Parfx cag By 10881 JACKSON PITTSBURGH Tk tti 4e Cil nat Ever Walk la Carta? SJaigfcler, played by Jim Brown, Uvea up to hla nam but falli abort of prolifraU lag the bad black screen hero. He's a "bad nigger" all right, but it'a queiUon able whether be aiterta any poiitlva valuei for black people. Even hit blackness is debatable.

Does the color of til (kin automatically make him a black film hero? I don't think to, for there to a lot more to being black than meets the eye. Certainly, one prerequisite of any black movie hero should be that be show some visible signs of a sufficiently developed relationship with black female. Whereas, Shaft, Sweetback and Nigger Charley seem to follow in screen tradition; Slaughter does not I am not commenting on the fact that Slaughter bad an affair with a white woman, but his mistreatment of the film's only black woman. Last week, L. Grant Coleman sang our praises to the emergence of the "bad this week we must give our condolences to the defamation of the "soul lister." Kim Walker, played by Marlene Clark, is misused, abused, but never wooed by Slaughter.

No one can accuse this film of treating the black woman a a sexual object for no one, not even the silly white boy Harry Bostoli, played by Don Gordon. Throughout the course of the film, one indignity after another is heaped upon her wooley head. Slaughter shoots at her, misses, and then throws her stark naked body out of r.is plush apartment. Kim Walker works for A. W.

Price (Cameron Mitchell) just about the most racist federal government official ever to be portrayed on the screen. Ann Cooper, Slaughter's white screen mistress (played by trashy Stella Stevens, who slobbers from scene to scene over Brown's muscle bound physique,) laments that she is in bondage to Mafia chief, Dominick Hoffo (Rip Torn). Slaughter replies, "I'm gonna set you free. Yea me, the bad dest cat that ever walked the earth. Ttey stopped buying and selling people years ago." How Jim Brown uttered these words with a straight face is beyond me.

While he's out freeing the white chick, the poor black a is out there struggling for herself. This doesn't sound like a black male hero to me, for what I see ain't necessarily wtat I get. There may be a black man on screen, but there sho' ain't no blackness up there. Jim Brown may as well be a white man in black face for the dialogue is pure white liberal minded Hollywood a ck (script) writing. Many patronizing white critics think black audiences don't know this.

The audience who attended Slaughter took a lambasting from the headlines of the "Pittsburgh Press" review. It read as follows: "Slaughter" Panders To Dehumanized Audience Tasts." The drama editor, Edward L. Blank, went on to say that the viewers present that day at the Stanley Theater "broke into wild, cheering and a plause. 'Slaughter' had eached its audience, and it wasn't pleasant being there. When John Wayne, Gary IMPRESSIVE CLUB DEBUT trrwV 'HCS Cooper, and Tanas tlau4 erd Indians, Africans, and anything else that aa moving, no one objected or called their viewtn who relished in such vulgarities, "dehumanised." Today many of these film art considered classics and lu audiences decreed an preclators.

a Ite critics eem to be always trying to imply that black people la general, and black audiences in particular, are inhumane and uncrlUcal. The only inhumanity I witnessed rests with the makers of this dumb film. Not too many black people take Jim Brown, or Us movies, seriously. If they did they'd probably tear the Stanley Theatre apart for there are more degrading slurs leveled against Brown than any other actor in the picture. Tbey bothered me, but the audience knew "bad cat" Jim Brown would set it all straight in the end by "washing" away all those white bigots.

Black audiences accept the movie for what it Is, incompetent trash spiced with fast action and absurd dialogue. What critics often do not comprehend, is that audiences usually know sham min' on the screen when they see or hear it Slaughter out shucks and Jives the best of them. Most of the action is staged so badly and the dialogue delivered so awkwardly tfcat the effect is ludicrous. Many times the audience cheered and applauded the ridiculou ness of the entire movie. For example, when Brown talks to Stella Stevens as though she were a sister (he limply grabs her by the arm and tells her to "sit down it sounds funny because it's so inappropriate.

A combination of black dialect and smart street talk are what helps give a black film feeling and Sweetback captured this and so did Come Back harlestoB Blue; Slaughter does not have rhythm. Brown must be an exception to the rule for his voice lacks the reasonance of the brother on the street. This is partly Brown's fault for being such a lousy actor, and partly the director's for having such a tin ear for black speech, rhythm and inflection, Most wiite directors, sound editors, speech coaches, script writers, are not accustomed to hearing "black" English spoken properly; so what you wind up getting on the screen is a flat, archaic, "hip" way of talking which in no way resembles black rap. There are so many things wrong with Slaughter that one hardly knows wtere to start, but then the beginning is always a good place. The initial situation sets the plot spinning into motion.

An elderly well dressed black couple get into a car. As the gentleman turns on the ignition, the car blows up. (The director had the good sense to repeat this explosive motif at the end of the film.) During the next scene, Slaughter's Under world fat.er and nsuspecting mother are pronounced dead at a hospital. He vows to avenge the brutal killing of his parents. Somewhere, in all this tragedy, is a potentially good story to be told.

But Slaughter does not tell it. At amy given moment the plot is disregarded and replaced with mindless violence. Technically, the violent sequences are neither good enough nor bad enough to elicit a sensible reaction. 1 Siager soBgwriter SyreeU, made an impressive night club debut recently at the Troubadour in Los Angeles..