How to use this Page

Review: San Francisco Noir 2: The Classics. Edited by Peter Maravelis. NY: Akashic Books, 2009.
ISBN-13: 978-1-933354-65-1

Michael Sedano

The City, as its devotees object, should never be called ‘Frisco. The term offends the sensibility of loyal San Franciscans, or something classic Chronicle columnist Ralph J. Gleason must have written long ago. Similarly, stuff that isn’t classic shouldn’t be called “classic,” as does the subtitle of Akashic’s San Francisco Noir 2, The Classics.

To me, “classic” suggest a pair of standards. First, age. Second unusually distinctive quality. It’s not enough that a piece have age, nor even mere quality. Memorability, distinctiveness, adaptation to a particular readership, any combination marks the boundary between merely good old stuff and something Classic with a capital “C”.

These values might not be readily apparent, as in Mark Twain’s “The Black Hole of San Francisco,” from 1865. It’s an uninteresting satire of a courthouse so devoid of justice it emits horrible smells. Editor Peter Maravelis wisely hides this third, following two other old pieces, Ambrose Bierce’s “A Watcher by the Dead,” from 1889’s North Beach, and Frank Norris’ “The Third Circle,” set in 1897 Chinatown. They are entertaining work, not necessarily each writer’s most notable, and charitably allowing a huge stretch to comprehend including the Twain piece at all.

These are, however, old. Hence, the oxymorons “unappreciated classic” or “classic-in-waiting” come readily to mind to account for such editorial decisions as skipping ahead from Dahiell Hammett’s 1925, “The Scorched Face” to 1953’s “The Collector Comes After Payday,” by Fletcher Flora.

Two thirds of the collection comes from a roster of noted late 20^th century writers. After the mid-century stop, Maravelis skips ahead 11 years to 1966’ “The Second Coming” from Joe Gores, then to Marcia Muller’s 1987 “Deceptions.”

Akashic and Maravelis have put together a worthwhile anthology, despite the less than felicitous subtitle. Two stories frame the quality well.

In his ’53 piece, Fletcher Flora reflects the machismo and incipient violence of his era. The male criminal enjoys slapping around his trophy wife. Frankie lives the 1950’s fantasy life. A 120-pound weakling and born loser, Frankie’s luck turns around completely. He gets rich, gets the girl, enjoys wealth on the seamy side until he falls for a younger woman. Frankie’s last gasp exits a .38 hole in his chest, his irony the abused wife finally finding her backbone.

By 1987, Marcia Muller has a woman investigator tracking down a missing woman, a possible suicide. But it appears a plan by a clever woman looking to continue her life under someplace else. A park ranger is the victim, lured and abandoned by the missing woman. Her irony is being found hacked to pieces in an old cistern, the betrayed paramour’s revenge. The murderer himself plunges to his last gasp after pursuing the female dick to a dead end, where her lucky desperation produces the killer’s fatal stumble.

One story merits special notice, Janet Dawson’s 1998 story of children in peril, “Invisible Time.” A tense nightmare of two homeless children surviving on the streets around Union Square. Greta, a ten-year old girl takes care of her 5-year old brother Hank. Homeless after their alcoholic mother abandons them after one hard knock after another, the children steal or eat leftovers from lunchtime trash barrels. It’s a no happy endings story, truly frightening. Dawson has one of the best lines in the book, when, after expressing Greta’s growing desperation, “She was doing the best she could, but she didn’t know how long she could keep it up.” Avoiding the skid row of the Tenderloin and South of Market region, remaining in Union Square, the nicer area north of Market. Then comes gem of pure beauty:

"Greta couldn’t remember when Mom left. A few weeks, a month, two months, it didn’t matter. After a few days, the hours all ran together, like a stream of dirty water chasing debris down the sewer grate. She only remembered that it didn’t used to be like this.”

A classic metaphor line like that more than enough compels reading more Dawson. And the other writers, too. The familiar ones. For instance, the Hammett. Although not noir per se, I would like more readers to laugh at Hammett’s hilarious bronco buster short story from The Continental Op II.

There is one jarring note that still bugs me. There’s a story with a Chicano character, John Shirley’s 1991 “Ash.” But the Chicano’s weird. Not just a street weird-o, a Santero, or a Santeria apparition of some strange sort.  I’ll be embarrassed to learn Shirley’s a nom de plume of a Mexicano a todo dar, but from the looks of this character, either I haven’t been to Frisco for too long, or Shirley needs to learn more about Chicanos before dropping one into the middle a story. Ash, a middle-class guy has been laid off due to the current recession. He meticulously plans to stick up an armored car. When the heist goes south, the Chicano appears, the crook gets tangled up with the street person, the crook plugs the guard. The murder sends the robber into a psychedelic episode that ends only when Ash, the character, ends, at the bottom of an elevator shaft. Strange ending to an odd story and a fitting final page in an excellent collection.

If only they hadn’t stretched matters and called it “Classic.”

Foto Plactica at UCR – Inauguration of UCR’s Tomás Rivera Flor Y Canto Archives.

The elevator ride to Special Collections leads to Tomás Rivera Library’s top floor, but opens onto an anonymous dark hallway. A few turns and I’m at the twin glass doors. The entry corridor is lined on both sides with matted photographs mounted on the wall. (Click images to enlarge.)

The dramatic Oscar Acosta images greet me on my left. The shot of Tomás Rivera with Ybarra-Frausto and Hinojosa-Smith holds the initial space of the right wall. The photos are hung with ample wall space between them so each can hold its own focus of attention. At 19” by 13”,  viewers can stand back and take in the full frame with easy comfort. Research Librarian Gwido Zlatkes has labeled each image. He smiles pointing to the photo of rrsalinas. Gwido, a research librarian to the bone, wanted to know more about these Chicana and Chicano writers. Somehow, the ex-Tecato poet has joined the family of a recent Mexican president, Salinas-Gortari. Gwido makes a quick trip to the word processor and in a moment rr rejoins his own clan.

Dr. Melissa Conway, Head of Special Collections & Archives does the introduction. I’m preceded to the lectern by Elihud Martinez, a wonderfully informative talk on Miguel Leon-Portillo’s work in Nahuatl philosophy, the term, “flor y canto” and its place in understanding chicano literature and the brief moment of the floricanto movimiento that began with the 1973 USC gathering.

After my time on the platform—the performance was videotaped—the audience adjourned to a side room for chocolate, café, pan and conversation. Doña Rivera was elegantly charming. Meeting her today, after photographing her late husband in a candid moment thirty-five years ago brought me an unexpected sense of completion.

Written by Octavio Solis. Directed by Juliette Carillo.
Mark Taper Forum, April 2 - May 17, 2009.

Octavio Solis' Lydia, directed by Juliette Carillo, joins a club so exclusive I count the inspirations on one hand: Zoot Suit, although a 1978 New Theatre For Now entry, it debuted on the main stage, not some remote stagelike setting. Zoot Suit swiftly suited up as part of the regular season. A daring piece was Oliver Mayer's 1996 Blade to the Heat. Two Culture Clash entertainments, the dark Water & Power in 2006 and the 2003 romp, Chavez Ravine. Failing to make the main season but given a short-run on the main stage in 2002 was the superb "Black Butterfly, Jaguar Girl, Piñata Woman and Other Superhero Girls, Like Me."

Given that history of few-and-far-between plays on the Mark Taper Forum playbill, any Chicana / Latina themed vehicle would be a must-see on the basis of rarity alone. Forget all that. Lydia is a must-see dramatic masterpiece, one of the finest productions to step upon the main stage at the Taper.

Make a list of theatrical gems presented over the years, first by Gordon Davidson, lately by Michael Ritchie. Catonsville Nine. Mahagonny Songplay. McKenna / MacGowran. Zoot Suit. Burn This--all of Lanford Wilson's work. Dorfman. Luminous theatrical stuff there. Obviously, it's no small thing to list Lydia as equalling such compelling moments. But ths production of Lydia easily makes the list. Hence, the must-see category.

La Bloga's Daniel Olivas ran an interview with the playright, Octavio Solis recently that offers this summary: Set in El Paso in the 1970s, "Lydia" portrays the saga of the Flores family, whose teenage daughter, Ceci, has been disabled in a horrific accident. Into this household of troubled souls and buried secrets enters an undocumented caretaker who shares a mysterious connection with Ceci.

Complex direction by Juliette Carillo delivers a visual feast enhanced with staging techniques ranging from comic acto to surrealist drama. Sparkling moments come and go seamlessly and to think of one just passed is to miss one in the present.

This is one of those productions that almost everything works. The parachute didn't. That aside, the characters and events create rich layers of looming tension. Everything looks almost OK but something definitely is waiting to happen tension. It winds the audience up so tightly that I hear some exit complaining that Saturday afternoon is no time to be stunned so ferociously. So go at night. But go.

The work debuted in Denver, with many of the same actors. Who knows the refinements worked into the piece, but the Los Angeles production shows a writer's ear for dialog and and a director's eye for movement. Like the language, the stage action is always in motion.

The actors play against one another beautifully. The opening surprise of the evanescent narrator who sinks into contorted paralysis finds an off-kilter mirror in the cackle cute voice of la criada, Lydia. Hired to cook clean and care for the teenager who communicates in her own whistles and grunts, at $60 a week in 1970, Lydia becomes Ceci's prosthetic voice and emotional proxy. The two lead women, Onahoua Rodriguez and Stephanie Beatriz, play with discipline to remain in character.

The ensemble plays together with such power that moments of comic relief come incredibly, well, relieving. When the maid has undressed the incapacitated teenage Ceci in front of her wide-eyed brother, Lydia remarks, "Your sister has nice tits." The explosion of laughter quickly stifles itself as the audience hushes to hear the ensuing dialogue. Talk about edge of your seat excitement.

Solis, the writer, Carrillo the director, and all the actors make only half the production, of course. Having a superlative supporting staff is the undisguised secret that makes the Taper's main stage an artificial world, for two plus hours: Christopher Acebo's Costume Design, Christal Weatherly's Lighting Design, Christopher Akerlind's Sound Design, Original Compositions by the late Chris Webb with Additional Music and Arrangements, by David Molina.

Natsuko Ohama, listed as Vocal and Dialog Coach, deserves special note for her work with Daniel Zacapa's Claudio. Or, perhaps Zacapa himself understands the pain Claudio experiences in a key monologue when the brutal father turns to the house to express himself beaten down. One hears also Claudio's enduring steadfastness. Even a despicable asshole like Claudio offers something worth hearing, given the audience.

Long-time Taper sitters like me, with fond memories of Gordon Davidson's highlights--when he hit it, Gordie hit it good--can look upon Michael Ritchie's efforts with new eyes, now that he's brought Lydia to the main stage. And upcoming, another Culture Clash evening. Maybe Ritchie's finding an El Lay conecta after all?

Inland Empire / Southland Reminder

Manuel Ramos highlights events taking place at University of California, Riverside this week, the Tomás Rivera Conference. Click here for a reminder of this annual event.

That's the penultimate Tuesday of month four of twelve comprising the year two thousand nine, a day like any other day, except you are here. If you'd like to comment on the above, click the Comments counter below. La Bloga welcomes guest columnists. Click here to let us know what you're thinking.

mvs

TOMAS RIVERA CONFERENCE

Michael Sedano reported on this conference last week on La Bloga, and he mentioned his role in the conference including his important gift of photographs. The conference deserves another post; here's language from the conference website. Notice the prominence of Señor Sedano.

The 22nd Annual Tomás Rivera Conference will Feature Screenwriter Ligiah Villalobos’ film Under the Same Moon and will be screened at the event celebrating Chicano Latino literature and arts. Screenwriter Ligiah Villalobos, who wrote Under the Same Moon (La Misma Luna), will be the keynote speaker at the 22nd annual Tomás Rivera Conference on Friday, April 24, at the University of California, Riverside. Among the highlights of the annual event are an art installation of a life-size car made of burlap, My ’61 Ford, by Adán Avalos, an exhibition of previously unreleased photos of Rivera and other Hispanic writers by Michael Sedano, screenwriting workshops by Villalobos, and the screening of Villalobos’ Under the Same Moon.

All events will be held on the UCR campus, and are free and open to the public. Parking costs $6.

The 2009 conference has as its theme From the Fields to the Stars and commemorates the 25th anniversary of the death of Tomás Rivera, a Chicano poet, educator and UCR’s chancellor from 1979 to 1984. He was the first Hispanic and first minority chancellor in the UC system, and also, at 43, the youngest person ever appointed to lead a UC campus. He died in 1984 after a heart attack.

"So many things have come together for this most heartfelt conference in honor of the 25th anniversary of Rivera’s passing – the availability and genius of Ligiah Villalobos, the daring of Adán Avalos, the new script by Carlos Cortés, the generous photography collection donated by Michael Sedano and the hard-working Tomás Rivera Conference Committee, the engine of this program. And, of course, Mrs. Concha Rivera’s vision," said Juan Felipe Herrera, Tomás Rivera Chair in creative writing and conference organizer. "Each hour of the conference day will be a star for all to see."

Conference events start at 8 a.m. when Adán Avalos will begin the installation of his life-size burlap car in the lawn area outside the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences Interdisciplinary Building, where most conference activities will take place. Avalos, the son of farm workers, recently was the resident artist at the Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga, Calif.

At noon, the Flor y Canto (Flower and Song) Chicano Literature Festival archives will be inaugurated in Special Collections and Archives on the fourth floor of the Tomás Rivera Library. Rivera attended the first Flor y Canto National Chicano Literature Festival held at University of Southern California in November 1973. An original photo collection will be displayed featuring images of Rivera and other early Chicano writers at that groundbreaking festival. Michael Sedano, the donor and photographer, will be present.

Villalobos will conduct three screenwriting workshops from 1 to 4:15 p.m. in the Interdisciplinary Building screening room. The sessions will focus on the structure of the half-hour comedy, the one-hour drama and the full-length screenplay. Villalobos has been the head writer of the Nickelodeon series Go, Diego! Go! and previously directed all television production and development in South America for The Walt Disney Co.

A 5 p.m. reception outside Interdisciplinary 1020 will include music by local guitarist Hector Ceballos. Activities will move inside at 6:15 p.m. with Carlos Cortés, UCR professor emeritus of history, performing an original dramatic solo in homage to Rivera, followed by a screening of Under the Same Moon. A question-and-answer period with Villalobos will follow.

NERUDA POETRY FESTIVAL KICKS OFF WITH TRIBUTE TO POET PIONEERS

Su Teatro's Tenth Annual Neruda Poetry Festival had a soggy opening night as another spring storm moved into Colorado - rain expected to turn into snow - but a little moisture couldn't dampen the spirits of the audience. We listened to excellent readings of the works of two pioneers of Chicana poetry: Flor Lovato and Margie Domingo. Truly, we shared an inspiring evening with the actors from Su Teatro who did the readings, giving new life to poems and word art, some of which were written decades ago. The two poets confessed that hearing their works read by someone else was a "liberating experience" and a "beautiful event." Margie thanked Tony Garcia, Su Teatro's Artistic Director, for "not waiting until we died" to do the tribute, and Flor revealed that writing her spirited poetry back in the day when the Chicano Movement was in its beginning stages in Colorado, "saved her life."

Margie Domingo and Flor Lovato

Participating authors confirmed: Sarah Cortez, Lucha Corpi, Rolando Hinojosa

Participating authors confirmed: Richie Narvaez, Sergio Troncoso, Liz Martinez, Carlos Hernandez

Participating authors confirmed: LM (Linda) Quinn and S. Ramos O’Briant

Participating authors confirmed: Sergio Troncoso, Carlos Hernandez, Richie Narvaez, Sarah Cortez, Liz Martínez

Michael Sedano

Over the past year, I've related the fruition of a dream come true, the conversion of "lost" videotaped performances of important Chicana Chicano poets and writers into modern DVD and web-streaming media. Look for an official announcement from the University of Southern California in the next few weeks on its receipt of the finished product, 39 recordings of such poets as Omar Salinas, rrsalinas, Oscar Acosta, and Tomás Rivera.

Happily, Juan Felipe Herrera and the Tomás Rivera Archives at the University of California Riverside's Tomás Rivera Library acquired a number of photographs I shot back in 1973 at the first Festival de Flor Y Canto, held at USC. I'm happy to report UCR and the Tomás Rivera Archive will be showing these photos in conjunction with the upcoming Tomás Rivera Conference.

Here's news from the Conference website. Please click here for mayor info.

From the Fields to the Stars

22nd Annual Tomás Rivera Conference

April 24th, Friday – Free to the public

Featured Speaker: Ligiah Villalobos

LIGIAH VILLALOBOS is the Writer/Executive Producer of the feature film Under the Same Moon, (La Misma Luna). The film was an Official Selection at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival and became the highest sale for a Spanish-language film in the history of Sundance. Since its release on March 19, 2008 by Fox Searchlight and The Weinstein Company, the film has become the 3rd highest grossing Mexican film and the 6th highest grossing Spanish-language film in the U.S., of all time. The workshops are open to all students and community members at large. Learn from one of the first Latinas to make it into the Hollywood film industry.

In addition to Villallobos' keynote, she leads a TV Workshop and a Screenplay Workshop, as part of the daytime program. See the Conference site for enrollment details.

Day Program 8am-4:15pm, 

Evening Program 6:00-10:00pm

The conference is funded and coordinated by UCR Tomás Rivera Endowment/Department of Creative Writing and co-sponsored by UCR Chicano Student Programs, the Tomás Rivera Library – and Special Collections, CHASS First, Department of Theatre, Palm Desert Graduate Center, Riverside City College-Academic Support Program and the Inlandia Institute of Riverside.

Mural Dedication Mid-April

Join La Bloga friend Carlos Callejo and the City of Piru for the dedication of Callejo's just-completed mural, above.

"The Piru Mural -- A pictorial history of the town and its people." The dedication of the mural to the Piru community takes place on Saturday, April 18 at the mural site, at 10:00 a.m. The site is East of Piru Creek, north of Center Street, on the Piru Camulos Bike Path. From Highway 126, exit Center Street. Park by Piru Motocross.

Help Needed - A Book About the College Experience

I am striking out going through a mental annotated bibliography of Chicana Chicano novels to help fill this request from a bloguero's former student:

I am searching for a fiction book which depicts Latino/a trials and tribulations of young Latina/os trying to go to college.

Have a suggestion? Please click on the Comments counter below.

Bits and pieces for April's initial Tuesday, a day like any other day, except we are here, ¿que no?

La Bloga welcomes your comments on the above, especially a novel about the Chicana Chicano Latina Latino college experience. Click the Comments counter below. La Bloga welcomes guest columnists. When you have a review of a book, an arts or cultural event, or an extended comment or bone to pick with one of La Bloga's daily reviewers, email las blogueras los blogueras with your proposal.

TOMÁS RIVERA CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

Artist Alfredo Arreguín and author Lauro Flores will receive lifetime achievement awards at the 21st annual Tomás Rivera Conference on Thursday, April 24, at the University of California, Riverside.

The theme of the annual conference, which honors the memory of UCR Chancellor Tomás Rivera, is “AméricaViva” (“America Live”). The event will begin at noon in the University Theatre and continue until 3 p.m.

The conference will feature the presentation of a Lifetime Achievement Award in the Visual Arts to Arreguín and the Lifetime Achievement Award in Chicano Literature to Flores.

New this year is a poetry contest for Inland area college and high school students. Poems must relate to Arrequín’s artwork. The contest deadline is April 11. Prizes of $250, $150 and $100 will be awarded to winners in separate college and high school competitions. Winners must attend the conference to receive their awards. Entry details are available online.


GORDO FINDS A HOME AT BERKELEY
The papers and archives of Gus Arriola have been collected by the Bancroft Library at U.C. Berkeley, Arriola was the creator and artist for the comic strip Gordo. Here's a paragraph from an article in the U.C. Berkeleyan Online (Barry Bergman):

"Gordo, the syndicated comic strip Arriola drew almost continuously from 1941 until 1985, at its peak ran in 270 newspapers, including the San Francisco Chronicle. (The Chronicle was among the original dozen or so papers to pick it up, printing the inaugural strip two weeks before the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor; Gordo took a brief hiatus a year later while Arriola served a stint in the army.) By turns fanciful, narrative, and flat-out psychedelic — especially on Sundays, when the conventions of daily comic-strip art gave way to lyrical, visually dazzling tributes to jazz, ecology, or Mexico’s Day of the Dead — it won kudos from lawmakers on both sides of the border for its role in promoting international understanding, and from fellow cartoonists for its originality. More important, it won the loyalty of millions of readers, many of whom followed Gordo’s adventures as devotedly as the wealthy Widow Gonzales pursued Gordo. (Gordo’s own taste in women, alas, skewed a bit younger.)"

Arriola died on February 2, 2008, about a year after he began to transfer his artwork and related materials such as correspondence, personal papers and promotional materials to the Bancroft Library, a world-renowned resource for the study of California and Western American history and one of the top research libraries in the world.

Accidental Ambassador, Gordo: The Comic Strip Art of Gus Arriola by Robert C. Harvey and Gus Arriola (University Press of Mississippi, 2000) is a biography of the artist that features his art. The publisher says: "Profusely illustrated with runs of the strip from various periods, the book traces Arriola's artistic evolution and celebrates the cartoonist as a supremely inventive stylist whose artwork always displays design qualities unusual for a comic strip. His stunning Sunday fiestas of color and design are exemplified with eight pages of full-color reproductions."



ROBERT MIRABAL - MODERN INDIAN IDENTITY
The Modern Indian Identity lecture series, sponsored by the Center of the American West, presents Robert Mirabal on March 19 at 7:30 PM at the First United Methodist Church in Boulder, Colorado. As a composer, songwriter, and musician, Mirabal has won many honors including two-time Native American Artist of the Year, three-time Songwriter of the Year, and two Grammy Awards for Best Native American Album of the Year. More information at the Center's website. Admission is free.

ROLANDO HINOJOSA-SMITH IN KOREA
Professor Rolando Hinojosa-Smith informed La Bloga that he currently is visiting Seoul National University as a guest of El Instituto de Estudios Latinoamericanos de la Universidad Nacional de Seúl. Rolando is a presenter for the Presencia latina en los Estados Unidos program, and the title of his lecture is El lugar de proveniencia como estímulo para la creatividad. La Bloga's readers recognize Rolando as the esteemed author of the Klail City Death Trip Series of fifteen novels, which set the standard for Chicano multi-generational epic stories. Professor, if you get a chance, would you mind asking about Martin Limón's books? I wonder how they're received over there.

EL LABORATORIO REMINDER
March 15, El Lab at Belmar -- Mario Acevedo and Aaron Abeyta read, perform, answer questions, explain how to do this writing thing, and otherwise act up at El Lab, the Latino Literary forum that has featured excellent programs for the past year or so. The reception begins at 6:00 PM, $10 non-members, $5 for members. El Lab is located in The Lab at 404 S. Upham Street, Lakewood, CO; 303-934-1777.

Later.

Originated from Mexico near the city of Pueblo, these mild, heart-shaped chiles is just one of those peppers with huge interiors perfect for stuffing delicious fillings (also known as picadillos). Some are filled with black beans, fresh steamed white corn kernels, cheese, garlic, onions, and many more...The poblano holds up well under grilling which enhances its velvety rich taste. Young poblanos such as Pepe, have dark green skin and mature to red or brown. Dried Poblanos are called Mulatos or Anchos and they are awesome ingredients for soup or sauces.