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  The Sophisticated Gentleman

The March On Washington's 50th Anniversary: 1963 ~ 2013

8/28/2013

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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
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"As it roars to a stop and the steel doors open, I step up onto the mostly empty bus and deposit my hard-earned money into the slot. From where I’m standing, I see can an empty seat next to my friend, Johnny Ray. I motioned for him to save it for me. But first, I must rush back onto the hot pavement, walk to the rear of the bus and re-enter through the back before taking my seat in, what I’m told is an exclusive area, reserved just for me: the Colored Section. Am I supposed to be thankful that my family, friends and neighbors are allowed to pay full fare for discounted services and little to no respect? Or thankful to have our own "section" in which to commiserate (often while having to stand) on our way downtown? I can’t speak for my fellow riders, but this "privilege" never made me feel special?" 

Even though this incident did not happen to me, and I was not alive in 1963, I have heard similar stories from family members about the state of the country, and more specifically the state/treatment of Black America (particularly in Mississippi, where they lived), doing those tumultuous times. The idea of having to also use separate, dirty water fountains and filthy, poorly maintained public restrooms, is mind boggling to me. Being made to sit in balconies, with worn, broken and uncomfortable seating, of movie theatre for which I would have paid the same entrance fees as those sitting on the main floor in cushioned seats. How could Black America not dream for better working and living conditions? Why would Black America not be expected to want/require better working and living conditions? 
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With water hoses being turned on teenagers and little children because they dared to stand up, merely to be counted and heard, and with schools not only segregated, but horribly unequal, and people being senselessly murdered, August 28, 1963’s “The March on Washington For Jobs & Freedom” was long overdue on many fronts. From the coast of Mississippi and the bayous of Louisiana, they came. From Alabama and Georgia, yet two more states sweltering in overt racism, they came. They hitchhiked, carpooled, walked and rode in the back and front of buses on their way to Washington, D.C. They were joined by celebrities from around the world: Josephine Baker, Harry Belafonte, Diahann Carroll, Marlon Brando, Jackie Robinson, James Baldwin, Bob Dylan, Sidney Poitier, et al. Braving unbearably hot and humid weather, many still trudged forward and came; totalling over 250,000 marchers – with nearly 25% of them White. 

Organized in just two months by Bayard Rustin & A. Philip Randolph, America watched as the marchers gathered at the feet of The Great Emancipator, Abraham Lincoln, assembling themselves for a day that many could never have previously anticipated. They watched and listened as Marion Anderson sang the National Anthem, with Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee serving as the event’s Master & Mistress of Ceremonies. They heard remarks from the likes of a then 23 year old John Lewis (the current Georgia Congressman) of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Roy Wilkins of the NAACP, and A. Philip Randolph of The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. And then came the turn of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He spoke of equality, Civil Rights and de-segregation. Most importantly, he spoke of the dream that he fostered for his children... America’s children, the Nation. For 16 minutes (well beyond his allotted four minutes) he engendered a fervor that rippled over the National Mall. He asked the crowd to “let freedom ring” for not only the oppressed, but the oppressors. Because, as the saying goes, "To keep someone down, you must stay down yourself."

With the Black unemployment rate double that of white America in 1963 and, ironically, still more than double today, I question how much have times really changed. With the actions of the KKK still being carried out by rogue neighborhood watchmen, who are allowed to cower behind antiquated laws after unjustly stalking and killing our black young men, how much of the dream has been realized? I wonder. Still, I too, have a dream...
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  • W.E.B. Du Bois, co-founder of the NAACP, died the day before in Ghana at 95.
  • Advertisers sent out different brochures about the march to Blacks and Whites.
  • Over  5,000 Law Enforcement was on hand for the march and not one arrest was reported; a truly peaceful assembly.
  • Much of the "I Have A Dream" speech had been given a few months prior in Detroit.
  • The Red Cross treated more than 1,300 marchers for dehydration and heat exhaustion.
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Image by Julie Shaver
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Mahalia Jackson
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Harry Belafonte
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Joan Baez and Bob Dylan
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All images via Google - Videos via Youtube
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., August 28, 1963


President Barack Obama, August 28, 2013
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President Barack Obama, Former President Jimmy Carter, First Lady Michelle Obama and Former President Bill Clinton

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AD: Ralph Lauren's Home Collection's 30th Anniversary

8/12/2013

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Image by Richard Corman
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rawing inspiration from his daily life, as well as his Norman-style manse in Bedford, NY, his 17,000 acre Colorado ranch and his Manhattan apartment (not to mention his Jamaican retreat, Round Hill) who better than Ralph Lauren to instruct America in the fine art of home décor? His home collection provides truly one-stop shopping for any well-appointed home: bedding, furniture, lighting, paint, rugs, tableware and wall coverings and so much more. Since 1983, he has been director, producer and cinematographer of one beautiful home collection after another; providing a stunning storyboard for what can only be termed, “My Dream Life.” 

Not unlike his fashion empire, which started with a necktie, his home collection was also born out of his need/desire to have something (sheets, specifically) which he was unable to find in stores; proving necessity is the mother of invention. 

Whether or not you appreciate Ralph Lauren's stylistic renderings of a most grand lifestyle, you must admit that his is, incontrovertibly, a style that is luxurious and chic. Pure perfection. 

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Image by Victor Skrebneski

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Ralph Lauren's Madison Avenue headquarters. Note the Highbridge glass-top desk and RL-CF1 Carbon Fiber lounge chairs.
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The Bedford, NY living room

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The Bedford poolhouse. I really like the Chinese porcelain throughout the space.
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The Bedford manse poolhouse bath
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nly once, nearly eight years ago, have I purchased a complete line of one of  Ralph Lauren's bedding ensembles: the Rodeo Drive Collection. As a matter of fact, I liked it so much that I purchased it all in duplicate: comforter, sheets, pillow cases, shams...the works! They've held up so well over the years that only recently have I started to use the second set of linens. Still I suppose it's probably time to add another full collection to my Christmas list, instead of just sheets. The haunting question: Which collection?

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The Bedford terrace. How perfect is this for alfresco dining?
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The Colorado ranch guest cabin
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The living room in the main house of the Colorado ranch.
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The Colorado Ranch's Saloon porch. The table is set with Lauren's own linens & tableware, of course.
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The ranch's Chief's tepee.
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Interior shot of the Chief's tepee.
Images by Bjorn Wallander/Architectural Digest

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Lee Daniels' The Butler

8/10/2013

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While it’s been several months since I’ve been to a movie theatre, it’s been even longer since I’ve anticipated a movie’s release like that of director Lee Daniels’ The Butler. Based on the true story of White House butler, Eugene Allen, it tells the story of his thirty plus years of service (1952-1986) under eight U.S. Presidents. In this historical drama, the lead character, Cecil Gaines (played by the stately Forest Whitaker), during his illustrious tenure, witnesses major changes in America, both political and social: from a presidential assassination to civil rights marches on Washington. From the trailer, it seems as though it will reveal a rather accurate account of the dichotomy of a Black man's life during the most turbulent of times. A man having a foot in two worlds: Black and White. (Even working in The White House, once he stepped outside of 1600 Pennsylvannia Avenue, I'm certain that there was an ever present evil lurking about that society-at-large was always ready to visit upon him as a Black man in America.)
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The Gaines Family
This movie has everyone: Oprah Winfrey as Cecil’s wife, Gloria, James Marsden (John F. Kennedy), Alan Rickman (Ronald Reagan), Jane Fonda (Nancy Reagan), Liev Schreiber (Lyndon B. Johnson), Robin Williams (Dwight D. Eisenhower) and Melissa Leo (Mamie Eisenhower), who was nominated for an Academy Award for one of my all-time favorite films, Frozen River. With Lee Daniels (“Precious”) directing and screenplay by Danny Strong (HBO’s “Game Change”) The Butler is sure to serve up a wonderful helping of American history (both good and bad, I'm certain), this Friday, August 16, 2013. I greatly hope that it does not disappoint.

Sidenote: Earlier this week, there was a report that Oprah Winfrey was shopping (or trying to) at an upscale store in Zurich (she was in Switzerland for Tina Turner's wedding) and, after asking to see an expensive handbag, was told no because she could not afford it! (Now, that's funny.) In this film, Oprah plays a character whose prime was during a most tumultuous time in our nation; when racism did not hide behind closed doors, but often sat out on the front porch for a passerby to see and hear. Now, a half of a century later, even someone in her position is still experiencing the same ignorance her character (and her) would have expected to experience some 40, 50, 60 years ago. (And I thought Switzerland was known for being neutral?)
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Mrs. Annabeth Westfall & Cecil Gaines
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Cecil at 8 and Mrs. Annabeth Westfall (Michael Rainey, Jr. and Vanessa Redgrave)
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Cecil Gaines as a teenager (Aml Ameen)
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President Dwight D. Eisenhower (Robin Williams)
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President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Cecil (Robin Williams and Forest Whitaker)
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Jacqueline & President John F. Kennedy (Minka Kelly and James Marsden)
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President & Mrs. John F. Kennedy with daughter Caroline & newborn, John Jr., greeting the staff
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Cecil at work
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James Holloway (Lenny Kravitz)
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Nancy & President Ronald Reagan (Jane Fonda and Alan Rickman)
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Gloria Gaines (Oprah Winfrey)
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YaYa Alafia
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Louis Gaines and Gloria Gaines (David Oyelowo and Oprah Winfrey)
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Cecil and Carter Wilson (Forest Whitaker and Cuba Gooding, Jr.)
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Cecil Gaines at 15
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Maynard and Cecil (Clarence Williams III & Aml Ameen)
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Hattie Pearl (Mariah Carey)
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Howard and Gloria Gaines (Terrence Howard and Oprah Winfrey)
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Silhouette of Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker)
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All images by Anne Marie Fox/The Weinstein Company 2013)
Video via IMDB

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Happy 52nd Birthday, Mr. President

8/4/2013

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President Barack Obama (Image via ABC News)

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    N.D. Harrington
    I was born in the country, but brought up in the big city, with hopes of always maintaining the charm, wit and character of a southern,      sophisticated
    gentleman. In my goal to live more  passionately & purposefully, here are just a few things  that  I've  learned and experienced along the way, making my journey more interesting, and more importantly, easier.
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