Remembering the Savoy Cafe

Item Information

Title:
Remembering the Savoy Cafe
Description:
In this clip Sabby Lewis and vocalist Mae Arnette discuss the popular clubs in Boston of the 1950s and the different performers they knew. Both reminisce about the Savoy Cafe. Mae Arnette remembers the Savoy when it was on Massachusetts Avenue. Sabby Lewis recalls when the club moved from West Newton and Columbus Avenue to Massachusetts Avenue following the creation and enforcement of stringent fire rules after the Coconut Grove nightclub fire in November of 1942. In the program overall, host Tanya Hart provides a brief survey of the unique contributions African Americans have made to music, film, dance, and theater in the United States, and describes the vaudeville experience, which is the focus of the program. In an effort to recreate vaudeville shows, Say Brother arranged for in-studio performances by some of the popular entertainers of the 1920s-1950s in Boston (and elsewhere): vocalist Novella Crocket, tap dancers Willie Spencer and Winnie Brown, dancer Norman Wallace (famous for his backward dance up a wall with flip), comic/singer/dancer Bobby Underwood (performing "Mack the Knife" and "Bye Bye Blues"), the Jones Brothers (a musical group), and Sabby Lewis and Company (who accompany other program performers and perform individually). Program includes a conversation between Sabby Lewis and vocalist Mae Arnette, in which they discuss the popular clubs in Boston of the 1950s and the different performers they knew. Produced by Marita Muhammad Rivero. Directed by Conrad White.
Creator:
Barrow-Murray, Barbara
Creator:
Jones, Vickie
Producer:
Rivero, Marita
Director:
White, Conrad
Contributor:
Coleman, Vern
Contributor:
Hill, Rebecca
Contributor:
Fairweather, Bill
Contributor:
Kane, Pat
Contributor:
Cross, June
Contributor:
Allen, Lydia
Contributor:
Holden, Dick
Contributor:
Wilson, Bob
Host:
Hart, Tanya
Contributor:
Clarke, Brian
Contributor:
Bundy, Kissette
Contributor:
Lane, Frank
Researcher:
Spooner, Dighton
Contributor:
Plausse, John
Contributor:
Mahard, Fran
Contributor:
Bordett, Bruce
Contributor:
Smith, Kathy
Contributor:
Kramer, Sharon
Date:
March 21, 1976
Format:
Film/Video
Location:
WGBH
Collection (local):
WGBH Open Vault
Series:
Say Brother
Subjects:
Music--Performance
Hart, Tanya
Wallace, Norman
Lewis, Sabby
Spencer, Willie
African American entertainers
Crocket, Novella
African American musicians
Vaudeville--United States
Underwood, Bobby
Arnette, Mae
Jones Brothers, The (Musical group)
Brown, Winnie
Sabby Lewis and Company (Musical group)
Link to Item:
https://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_DB3F4AE622DF40BE8A0982901CA9ED33
Terms of Use:
Rights status not evaluated.
Contact host institution for more information.
Publisher:
WGBH Educational Foundation
Identifier:
V_DB3F4AE622DF40BE8A0982901CA9ED33