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janell (pointing to one of the many mementos adorning her walls): i remember when fats domino played the rio palm isle [a legendary honky-tonk dive in longview, texas which still exists to this day] back in 1955 and every kid in tyler drove over to see him.
mkf: fats domino played the rio? but wasn't it segregrated back in those days?
janell: yeah, there was a big rope across the back part of the club--the white kids could watch, but we weren't allowed on the dance floor.
[more to come, soon as i sort it all out]
2 comments:
Was the rope to preserve the sanctity of dancing?
I'm surprised, given the strong Baptist morality of the time, that anyone was allowed to dance.
noblesavage: exactly; i.e., segregation that actually makes sense. my lame white ass thought it was hilarious, but apparently (as with so many things) i'm in the minority.
and as i've pointed out before, all the little towns that ringed our dry, baptist county have always been veritable dens of iniquity.
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