Alabama History & Culture News: September 12 edition

 

Here's the latest batch of links to just-published Alabama history and culture articles. Most of these items are from newspapers, with others from magazines and TV and radio station websites. Some articles may be behind a paywall. Enjoy!

Harper Lee travels blurred line between fact and fiction in "Furious Hours" - Columbia Daily Tribune Columbia Daily Tribune Mild spoilers may be included. On Aug. 3, 1970, the Rev. Willie Maxwell's wife, Mary Lou, was found dead in her car beside an Alabama highway. During ...

Copy Shop Near Auburn University Closes After 34 Years | Alabama News - USNews.com

U.S. News & World Report

“He became our loyal customer,” Solomon said. “We've printed his book before it was published so many times.” Behind the Glass owner Donna Young ...

Local medical student writes COVID-19 children's book: 'The Virus That Came to Town' - WRDW

WRDW-TV

Walters says plenty of friends, family, and children helped him pull off this book including an art teacher in Alabama who illustrates it. If you want ..

First Baptist Church Bay Minette celebrates 150th anniversary Alabama Baptist Dalton Campbell of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission also presented a plaque during the service. Share with others:.

Aiming for the Unmediated Response: A Conversation with Brandon Taylor lareviewofbooks BRANDON TAYLOR'S NEW BOOK — his first short story collection, ... A writer, editor, and essayist, Taylor was born in Alabama and studied chemistry ...

Tim Gayle's new book "Cramton Bowl" is an intriguing account of the historical purpose of a ... WFMZ Allentown MONTGOMERY, Ala., Sep. 10, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Tim Gayle, a journalist and native Montgomery sports reporter, has completed his new book ...

Harold Franklin, Auburn University's first African American student, passes away at age 88 Office of Communications and Marketing ... passed away Thursday at his home in Sylacauga, Alabama. ... from the University of Denver and teaching history at Alabama State University, ...

First Black Student at Auburn University Dies at 88 | Alabama News - USNews.com U.S. News & World Report ... the University of Denver and taught history at Alabama State University, ... A historic marker near the university library tells his story, ..

Alabama's Return to the Sea | Hakai Magazine Hakai Magazine Adiel Klompmaker, the curator of paleontology at the Alabama Museum of Natural History, which has owned and excavated a large swath of Harrell ...

This historic hotel is a snapshot of Alabama history - al.com al.com The hotel managed to stay in business in part because it gained a reputation for the “family-style meals served there,” Joyce Burrage wrote in the book ...

Wetumpka becomes tourist mecca for fans of Ben and Erin Napier - Alabama NewsCenter Alabama NewsCenter The historic Victorian home, seen in the 2003 Tim Burton movie “Big Fish,” which was based on the novel by Alabama author Daniel Wallace, sits on a hill ...

Alabama Booksmith book store Homewood Alabama - WVTM 13 WVTM13 Book lovers from across Alabama are flocking to a bookstore in Homewood for a unique, nostalgic shopping experience. WVTM 13's Lisa Crane takes you inside ...

I walked across Selma's Edmund Petus Bridge and saw a synagogue | The Christian Century The Christian Century The Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, is known around the world for one thing ... After our bridge walk into history, we climbed back into the car and ...

Alabama's tax credit for historic renovations providing boost to projects - The Business Journals Birmingham Business Journal Alabama's tax credit for historic renovations has provided a big boost for downtown Birmingham. Will the program's extension spread that impact throughout the ...

Books of interest - Atmore News Atmore News Of Smoke and Sand deals with the lives and events surrounding the fictional Badaraque Plantation in Baldwin County, Alabama beginning in 1835 until falling ...

Poet's debut novel tells exhilarating story of Black family | Free | annistonstar.com Anniston Star The book calls to mind the brilliant work of Yaa Gyasi in “Homegoing,” her 2016 award-winning debut novel set in both Ghana and Alabama, though Gyasi's book ...

Debut Novel, The Essence Of Nathan Biddle, Earns High Critical Acclaim, Accolades - PR Newswire PRNewswire Debut Novel, The Essence Of Nathan Biddle, Earns High Critical Acclaim, Accolades. Written by Alabama native J. William Lewis, The Essence of Nathan Biddle is ...

Alumnus returns to OU for staged reading of his play 'Alabama Story' - The Oakland Post Oaklandpostonline “I took a lot of theatre and film history classes,” said Jones. “I wanted to be an entertainment writer.” After graduating, he worked as a critical ...

Lucille Times, civil rights figure who fought same driver of Rosa Parks bus, dies at 100 - Newsela

Newsela

Her role in fighting segregation in Alabama reflected a "remarkable, but undiscovered piece of history" that was unknown to many nationwide, said Troy King.

Pearl Harbor soldier laid to rest in Boaz | Free Share | sandmountainreporter.com Sand Mountain Reporter Hundreds gathered at Hillcrest Cemetery in Boaz Saturday afternoon to ... of the Alabama Society of the Sons of the American Revolution dressed in full ...

World War II sailor comes home to Alabama almost 80 years after death at Pearl Harbor ...

Stars and Stripes

Navy Fireman 2nd Class Ralph Curtis Battles, 25, was on board the USS Oklahoma Dec. 7, 1941, and for decades he's been buried as an unknown in the National ...

Auburn's 'Bloody Sunday' history project to receive $189,837 NEH grant - Alabama NewsCenter Alabama NewsCenter “We will be using much of the work that doctors Hébert and Burt did on documenting the historic sites from that period in Selma's history,” Gaddis said. That ...

Booklegger Used Books in Huntsville

For many years whenever my brother Richard and I are in Huntsville together visiting mom, we always try to make it by Booklegger Used Books. Our dad used to visit before his death in 2003; he probably introduced us to it. I've taken my son Amos at least once. 

I have no idea about the history of the place, and have been unable to find any online. Booklegger may be one of the last bookstores in America with no email address, no web site, no Facebook page, no presence on Instagram or Twitter. They do have a telephone, however; you can call them at 256-895-0082. The store also has an address and zip code: 4001C Holmes Avenue in Huntsville, 35816. 

Booklegger also has a vast collection of hardback and paperback books housed in three large rooms. Richard and I usually start at the new arrivals section and branch out from there. There are sizeable sections for Civil War and military history, which Richard spends some time in. I check out the Alabama books and then graze through the biographies, fiction, poetry and even the health section because sometimes an interesting medical history tome will turn up there. 

More comments are below some of the photos. I highly recommend Booklegger where you can spend some quality time with many, many books you might want to purchase. I only wish I could get by there more often. 

I've written several other posts about Alabama bookstores: one in Cullman formerly known as Deb's Bookstore, Books  Etc in Pelham which closed a few years ago, some long gone bookstores in Auburn and an adult bookstore that operated in Birmingham in the 1970's. 

One day soon I'm going to get serious and do a batch of posts from materials I've collected over the years about Alabama bookstores. 

The Booklegger is located in a small retail strip at the corner of Holmes Avenue and Jordan Lane. Interestingly, the building that houses Infinity College Bookstore is right next door. 

And here we are in some kind of nirvana. The photos below are all of different rows of books, or the same row from the other end. Yes, a veritable maze....

Ah, the familiar yellow and black covers of a few CliffsNotes! 

I like to read a western or two each year, and being out I hoped to pick up a couple at Booklegger this time. Unfortunately, I couldn't make up my mind...there is a good selection of paperbacks in the genre. The former Deb's Bookstore in Cullman linked above and now known as Camelot Books & Comics also has quite a few. 

Notice a few Ralph Compton books on these shelves? Let's investigate.

Compton was born on April 11, 1934 in St. Clair County, Alabama; he died September 16, 1998, at the age of 64. Before his death he authored numerous popular western novels. As sometimes happens, his publisher Signet Books has continued issuing titles under his name by other authors. You can see the extensive lists of titles and other authors here and here. 

Ralph Compton [1934-1998]

The store has a large selection of titles related to films and tv shows--either novels or non-fiction adapted or tie-ins based on particular films and shows. 

Movies with Alabama Connections: Stark Love (1927)

Well, I knew that Fob James, Jr., acted like a monkey while governor, but I didn't realize until recently that his father had actually appeared as the male lead in a silent movie in 1927. Let's investigate.

That film was Stark Love, set in the Great Smokey Mountains where it was filmed near Robbinsville, North Carolina. Directed by Karl Brown and written by him and Walter Woods. the movie was financed by a major Hollywood studio--what is now Paramount Pictures--and intended as a realistic portrait of people in Appalachia. 

To that end the two lead characters Rob Warwick and Barbara Allen are played by non-professional actors, Forrest Hood James, Sr., and Helen Mundy. Director Brown wanted to tell a story about mountain people that would be realistic in a way unseen before in Hollywood films. "Hillbilly" movies had been popular but full of stereotypes. The article about Mundy linked previously has some interesting background about casting and filming Stark Love. Numerous comments about the film can be found here. 

Brown located his two leads in Knoxville, Tennessee. Mundy was a 16 year-old high school student. Filming was done so far in the backwoods a new road had to be constructed. In the story Rob is the son of a harsh father who mistreats his mother. Rob learns to read and wants a better life for himself and the neighbor's daughter he's attracted to, Barbara [Mundy]. After various hardships and the death of his mother, Rob and Barbara escape their isolated community for a better life. Director Brown portrayed stereotypes of his own in his film; he had no direct knowledge of or experience with Appalachian mountain people. 

According to one source, [Ralph Draughon, Jr., Delos Hughes & Ann Pearson, Lost Auburn: A Village Remembered in Period Photographs. New South Books, 2012, p. 143] the premier of Stark Love took place at the first commercial movie theater in Auburn, the original Tiger Theater, which operated from 1926 until 1928. Owned by Foreman Rogers, the business was located on North College Street in an old storefront. The date was September 21-22, 1927; admission was 35 cents for adults and 15 cents.  In contrast, the IMDB says the film was released on February 28, 1927, and in those days films took time to make their way around the country due to limited numbers of prints, slower transportation, etc. I'm just not sure about the "premier" discrepancy. 

Stark Love was presumed to be one of the many lost silent films until a copy was discovered in a Czech archive in 1968 by film historian Kevin Brownlow. Although still little seen today, it was added to the Library of Congress' National Film Registry in 2009. A blurry copy is available on YouTube. 

Neither lead ever appeared in another film. Mundy married, moved to Michigan and died in 1987. 

His Word War II draft card [found via Ancestry.com] tells us a bit about Forrest James, Sr. He was born in Waverly, Alabama, on August 10, 1905, and married to Rebecca Ellington James. He was 5'9" tall, weighed 160 and had brown hair and blue eyes. Karl Brown offered to take James to Hollywood, but he followed his mother's wishes and returned to finish college at what is now Auburn University. James and his twin brother William both lettered in three sports at Auburn. James then taught high school and coached baseball before pursuing a business career. He died July 2, 1973, in Birmingham and is buried in Garden Hills Cemetery in Opelika.

By the way, I can highly recommended Brownlow's massive 1968 book The Parade's Gone By as a wonderful history of silent filmmaking. 

FURTHER READING

Articles by John White:

"Hollywood Comes to Knox County," Kentucky Humanities, Spring 2010: 29-34. Published by the Kentucky Humanities Council.

"Forrest James, Hollywood's Reluctant Star." Alabama Heritage. Number 93, Summer 2009: 44-53. Published by the University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

"Myth and Movie Making: Karl Brown and the Making of Stark Love." Film History, an International Film Journal. Volume 19, 1 (2007): 49-57. Published by Indiana University.

This book has a long chapter on the film:

Williamson, Jeremy Wayne. Hillbillyland: What the Movies Did to the Mountains and what the Mountains Did to the Movies. North Carolina: UNC Press Books, 1995.

Source: Spokane [Wash.] Woman 19 July 1928

Alabama History & Culture News: August 29 edition

 

Here's the latest batch of links to just-published Alabama history and culture articles. Most of these items are from newspapers, with others from magazines and TV and radio station websites. Some articles may be behind paywalls. Enjoy!

DON NOBLE: Novel explores the Civil War through a young doctor's eyes - Tuscaloosa News Tuscaloosa News The dust jacket copy of "Forgiveness" says that Phillip Kendrick of Mobile's Eastern Shore has published scientific articles on nurse anesthesia and patient ...

Descendants of Alabama's Africatown persist despite industrial pollution struggles - Reckon South Reckon South The daily reminders of Africatown's complex history can be seen several times a day, as trains slowly roll past the dilapidated homes, empty, overgrown lots ...

'The Wishbone Boys' book available at Amazon as movie premiers - al.com al.com The book shows the details of the wishbone offense and why it was so important to Alabama football history. In that span, Bryant won three national ...

Alabama Names Ashley M. Jones As Its New Poet Laureate - WBHM

WBHM

She has a new book coming out in September. And her latest accolade: Jones is now Alabama's poet laureate, a goal she has long wanted to achieve.

Smith, Vickery to host book signings in Gulf Shores, Fairhope | GulfCoastNewsToday.com Gulf Coast News Today He was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2007. After retiring from coaching, Smith and legendary Alabama basketball coach Wimp Sanderson, teamed

Alabama's only historical octagon house was setting for mystery tale - al.com al.com One of Alabama's most unusual homes has been preserved in downtown Clayton. The Petty-Roberts-Beatty House is known for its unique architecture, ...

Reggie Jackson: My journey to visit Selma, Alabama and the history some want us all to ... Milwaukee Independent What makes Selma stand out physically is the now infamous Edmund Pettus Bridge. The bridge across the Alabama River is a National Historic Landmark due to the ...

“An Amazing Alabama” book shines spotlight on state trivia, history - WSFA

WSFA

The book is called “An Amazing Alabama,” written by Karl Stegall, a retired minister at First Methodist Church in Montgomery. He calls this part trivia book, ...

Recent book releases from the TAB Media family - The Alabama Baptist Alabama Baptist TAB Media staff spouse Bryan Gill. “The Devils in Alabama”. The plot of Bryan Gill's first crime thriller/suspense novel involves a tangled web of illegal ...

State's Black Heritage Council to hold virtual forum | News | thewetumpkaherald.com Wetumpka Herald In 1984, the Alabama Historical Commission, the State Historic Preservation Office, created the Black Heritage Council (BHC) to advocate for and advise the ...

Auburn's 'Bloody Sunday' history project named recipient of NEH humanities grant Office of Communications and Marketing An Auburn University multidisciplinary project focused on the infamous “Bloody Sunday” civil rights event that occurred in Selma, Alabama, on March 7, 1965, ...

New documentary puts Alabama community in the spotlight Alabama Public Radio “Afrikan By Way of American” explores the historic community of Africatown. The town was founded by former slaves who were trafficked aboard the Clotilda, the ...

Brock's Gap debate: History buffs raise concerns over city's plan for new parkway in western Hoover Hoover Sun Since 1854, the South and North Alabama Railroad had been working to link Alabama's capital city of Montgomery with the Tennessee River in north Alabama with ...

Miles College awarded a half-million-dollar grant to preserve, restore Williams Hall ... Alabama NewsCenter “HBCUs like Miles College and Alabama State University have played a pivotal role in shaping American history, especially as it pertains to the struggle ...

Montgomery pastor leads tours, seminars about Alabama's Civil Rights history - The Alabama Baptist Alabama Baptist That's why Adams founded Montgomery Deep History, a company that offers walking tours and seminars about the history of Alabama's capital city ...

The Historical Society restores Looney House

Newsaegis

The Looney House, possibly the oldest dogtrot house in Alabama, held a restoration event this past weekend. This is the first official restoration on the ...

'The Show Goes On' — Birmingham's Carver Theatre is Back Birmingham Times The space features a new bar that gives the theater and Alabama Jazz Hall of ... The depth and breadth of Alabama's connection to the history and ...

Wade Hall's postcard collection on exhibit at Troy University

Union Springs Herald

“Military Service: A History in Postcards,” an exhibit now at the Troy ... “Historical Scenes of Alabama” and “Alabama Tourism” can be viewed from the ...

Historian Peggy Jackson Walls draws on locals' memory banks in 'Lost Towns of Central Alabama' The Alexander City Outlook Historian Peggy Jackson Walls poses in the Alabama Room at Adelia M. Russell Library in Alexander City with her latest book, "Lost Towns of Central ...