INDEPENDENT LENS: STRANGE FRUIT (TV)
Summary
One in this PBS series that showcases new documentaries and dramas created by independent filmmakers that tell stories of ordinary people who are heroes nonetheless. Angela Bassett introduces this documentary about "Strange Fruit," a song about lynching in the American South that became a civil rights anthem. The song's story is told through extensive interviews with activists, artists, and academics; archival visual and audio recordings of the song; and photographs. The film begins with Commodore Records owner Milt Gabler's recollections of the recording of the song in 1939, then focuses on the song's subject matter, lynching; the history of lynching in America is told through photographs as well as commentary from writer and educator Farah Jasmine Griffin, civil rights activist Reverend Dr. C. T. Vivian, and sociologist E. M. "Woody" Beck. Singer and composer Abbey Lincoln provides a dramatic reading of the lyrics. Next, the program looks at the social and political movements from which the song arose. The program discusses CafŽ Society, an integrated New York City nightclub where Billy Holiday first performed the song and where progressives would gather, including the song's author, Abel Meeropol, a Jewish schoolteacher and member of Teachers' Union Local 5. (Meeropol was also a member of the Cabaret TAC (Theatre Arts Committee) where "Strange Fruit" was actually first performed.) Commentary is provided by poets Amina and Amiri Baraka; retired teacher and visual artist Bernie Kassoy; retired teacher and union activist Henry Foner; retired teacher and visual artist Honey Kassoy; and Meeropol's adopted sons, Michael and Robby. The film then discusses the song's role in public discourse from its creation through the present day, including its popularity despite its ban from commercial radio (discussed by historian Jeff Melnick, composer Don Byrn, and musician Pete Seeger); Meeropol's appearance before a New York State committee investigating the anti-lynching movement's ties to Communist activities; and folk singer Josh White's performance of "Strange Fruit" before the House Un-American Activities Committee in the 1950s. Meeropol's ties to persecuted political movements is further examined, in particular his and wife Anne's adoption of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg's two sons, Michael and Robbie, who recall meeting the Meeropols after their parents' executions; dinner parties at the home of civil rights leader W. E. B. DuBois; and the origin of Meeropol's pen name "Lewis Allen." The film then discusses Billie Holiday's alleged appropriation of the song as her own in her autobiography "Lady Sings the Blues"; included in this section are recorded performances of "Strange Fruit" by Anne Meeropol at the TAC and by Holiday on BBC Television in 1958 and commentary from Griffin. The film ends with a look at the legacy of the song and its writer: Robbie and Michael Meeropol discuss its place in the civil rights movement in the 1960s; writer Hazel Carby looks at its usage in the Rock Against Rascism movement in the United Kingdom in the 1970s; Robbie and Michael Meeropol discuss Abel Meeropol's illness in the 1980s, during which they would play new reggae versions of "Strange Fruit" to their father; DeWitt Clinton High School English teacher Ray Pultinas and his class deconstruct "Strange Fruit"; and the Barakas, Robbie and Michael Meeropol, Seeger, and Bernie Kassoy talk about the song's inter-generational relevance and power. The film ends with Cassandra Wilson's performance of "Strange Fruit," followed by a list of the many artists who have recorded the song.
Cataloging of this program was made possible by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Details
- NETWORK: PBS
- DATE: April 8, 2003 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:56:29
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:78568
- GENRE: Arts documentaries
- SUBJECT HEADING: Civil rights; Lynching - Songs and music - History and criticism; Protest songs - United States - History and criticism; African-American Collection - Music
- SERIES RUN: PBS - TV series, 1999-
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Sally Jo Fifer … Executive Producer
- Prudence Hill … Coordinating Producer, Researcher
- Joel Katz … Producer, Director, Writer
- Lois Vossen … Producer, Writer
- Yvette Mattern … Associate Producer
- Mary Ann Thyken … Series Coordinating Producer, Writer
- Charley Randazzo … Director
- Eric Martin … Writer
- Tal McThenia … Researcher
- Bonnie Rowan … Researcher
- Don Byron … Music by
- Hans Wendl … Music (Misc. Credits), Score produced by
- Angela Bassett … Host
- Dorothy Thigpen … Narrator
- Amina Baraka
- Amiri Baraka
- Beck, E. M. "Woody"
- Don Byrn
- Hazel Carby
- DuBois, W. E. B.
- Milt Gabler
- Farah Jasmine Griffin
- Billie Holiday
- Bernie Kassoy
- Honey Kassoy
- Abbey Lincoln
- Meeropol, Abel (Lewis Allen)
- Anne Meeropol
- Meeropol, Michael (Michael Rosenberg)
- Meeropol, Robbie (Robbie Rosenberg)
- Jeff Melnick
- Ray Pultinas
- Pete Seeger
- C. T. Vivian
- Josh White
- Cassandra Wilson