ARTS Wednesday, March 8, 1989 The Michigan Daily Page 9 Rebirth of a legend Films resurrect performer Josephine Baker BY MARK SHAIMAN JOSEPHINE Baker used to walk her pet leopard down the Champs-Elysdes. She could afford to - she was a legend-in-her-own-time in Paris music halls and also the highest paid entertainer in Europe in the '20s. After sound came to motion pictures at the end of that decade, Baker began to appear in films. In a time when Black women in films generally played mam- mies and maids, Baker had starring roles written for her. Just recently two of her movies, Princess Tam Tam and Zou Zou, have been re-released, offering a rare opportunity to see this talented performer and per- sonification of the Roaring '20s. Baker was born in St. Louis, Mo. in 1906, and by the age of eight she was singing in Harlem nightclubs. At 13, she left home to join a travelling road show, working her way up the ladder in all-Black revues, and eventually moving to Paris before she was 20. In 1926 she was the headliner in the renowned Folies Bergere, and her fame spread across continents, leading her to do tours of Europe and South America. In 1934, Baker starred in the autobiographical Zou Zou. Here, Baker stars as a poor launderer who works her way up in music halls, eventually becoming the toast of Paris. The film was one of the top box office hits of that year. Her next film, 1935's Princess Tam Tam, stars Baker as an African peasant brought to Paris by a French author who was in Tunisia to find inspiration. "He turns her into a proper lady in this variation on the Pygmalion theme, which isn't so farfetched as it might seem considering Baker's own enormous suc- cess. Of course it must be remembered that her success came in France and in French films, not in the con- fines of Hollywood where a Black actor was never given a lead role, and especially not opposite a white actor. So these Josephine Baker films not only are a rare find today, but were unique at the time they were released, too. With the onset of World War II, Baker moved to North Africa, worked for the Red Cross as an ambu- lance driver, and entertained the troops. She was award- ed the Medal of Resistance by Charles De Gaulle for her efforts. Following the war, Baker was still active in enter- tainment and as a personality. She adopted 12 children of different nationalities, and their care eventually led her into debt. In 1951, she was denied service at New York's Stork Club, so she sued the management and created an international incident. Other concert and stage performances brought her acclaim. But Baker never again achieved the glory of her for- mer days; a month after opening in France Soir in 1975, which was a box office smash, she suffered a fatal heart attack. With the re-release of two of her films, however, the apex of her career can be appreciated today. PRINCESS TAM TAM and ZOU ZOU will be playing at the Michigan Theater tonight and tomorrow night. Josephine Baker, an American-born performer who became the toast of Paris in the 1920s, demonstrates her singing and acting talents in the autobiographical Zou Zou. Hope I die before I get old: Who is rock for? BY BRIAN JARVINEN "WV ATCHING heavy metal Metallica performI realized what it is about heavy metal and rap music that bothers me. Heavy metal and rap are the Little Leagues of music - entry level lyrics and chording. Your child in the basement or garage can do it. Child's play. It's kids' attempts at music. In the best hands, metal and rap come close to being real music. But only close." - Bob Talbert, The Detroit Free Press, Febuary 26, 1989. Unfortunately, audiences evaluate columnists by how well they agree {with their pre-formed opinions. So I think this little digression probably went over well with a majority of his readers, despite the fact that it is the lots of kids trying to play music in most ill-informed dumb-ass opinion the garage, and if any of them could ever printed in the Free Press. play one Metallica song decently, The first thing I thought of upon they wouldn't be stuck in their reading this was I should finally get garages. And how's this for "entry around to writing a Letter To The level" lyrics: "Independence limited/ Editor. I quickly rejected that; Talbert already has enough readers writing his column for him anyway. Besides, my ego is better served with this than it would by a two-sentence ex-_ cerpt from a letter with a dim chance of being printed. So, a-refutin' I will go: Even Bob admits that Metallica uses chords - freedom of choice/ means choices surely a sign that they are playing made for you my friend"? Am I evil? real music. And anyone who plays Not always, but ignorance such as music will recognize how compli- this can sure get me in the mood. cated their song structures really are. To me, music is the expression of With regard to kids being able to emotion using your voice and/or all play it in the garage, well, I've seen those technical things such as har- mony, melody and notes; complexity doesn't necessarily equal excellence (complex music can be quite good; I like Metallica, remember). Some of the best music ever made is the sim-i plest. I could go on and on about this, using the Troggs' "Wild Thing" as being the best example of simplicity, even if the emotion ex- pressed is lust, but some of my fel- low critics will put me on the spot for copping someone else's idea. This idea that music for teenagers isn't really music has been around since the birth of rockroll (to cop some more crap) in the '50s. Change the subjects in Talbert's column and the date could be 1959. After the aforementioned paragraph Talbert goes on to complain about the bla- tant sexual lyrics of today's rock, right before extolling the virtues of the new Chuck Berry box (Now let me see, who would supply the best definition of "entry level lyrics" in a rock dictionary? It couldn't be Chuck Berry, could it?). What does he think Chuck means when he sings "Come on little Queenie?" Teenagers in the '50s sure knew "how I felt/ when I couldn't unfasten her safety belt." Since Dylan made the first rock music for adults, it has been way too easy for people like Talbert (who trumpets the new Lou Reed album - which anyone under the age of 20 would eject as soon as it hit the tape deck - as an example of good rock) to claim to still like rock music while simultaneously putting down new, youth-appealing styles, forget- ting rock's prime ingredient: teenage emotions. r m Welcome BAchl Show off your Tan And come Lugh wth ust LAUGI-i RACK Presents the Hilarious Comedy of_ TIM SLAGLE With Student Comedians..- Dana Nessel and The Two Jons 10 pm Wednesday, March 8 Only $1.50,.. Hail off the regular price IN THE U-CLUB s V h Exhibit reveals Miro's world BY JOHN KIPFMUELLER HURRAH for the University Museum of Art! On display in their main lobby is a series of prints by the Spanish artist Joan Miro (1893-1983). This show is entitled The Lively World of Joan Miro, and like most of Miro's creations, these prints are indeed lively. The works are taken from the core of the artist's life, from 1938-1960. This show is a nice example of the progressions that Miro went through during that 22-year span. The earlier works, especially the 1948 etching "Deadly Passage," are uncolored, small and sinister. They speak directly of the problems of the Spanish Civil War. While looking at Miro's work from that period, one cannot but help to think of works created by another Spanish artist, Francisco Goya, over 100 years earlier during the Napoleonic invasion of Spain. The small, closely comprised eerie scenes of Goya and Miro speak directly to the issues of occupa- tion and bloodshed. Not all of Miro's art bespeaks of terror; much of it is whimsical and light. Some of the works from the early post-war years are stern and heavy, but that is not surprising considering the situation. The works from the 1950s-1960s are lighter, and there is a marked in- crease in the use of color. "Woman and Bird," a 1960 aquatint, shows a childish figure looking as if it has lost its mother in a K-Mart. Another lithograph from the same year, "Invention of Fire," features figures looking like Chinese characters placed on a brillant red background surrounded by an translucent white fire. It is unfortunate that there are no examples of Miro's works produced during the last 20 years of his life, but the works that are displayed are well chosen. One of the most intriguing things about The Lively World of Joan Miro is that all eight works are part of the permanent collection at the University Museum of Art. One has to wonder what other treasures are lurking about the basement of the impressive limestone build- ing. TIE LIVELY WORLD OF JOAN MIRO will be on view in the Lobby Gallery at the University Museum ,f Art through Sunday, March 12. PLASMA DONORS $ Earn extra cash $ Earn $20 on your first donation. You can earn up to $120 a month. Couples can earn up to 4'f'?" f 7 $240. Repeat donors who have not donated in the last 30 days receive an additional $5 bonus - for return visit. I Mihigan YPSILANTI PLASMA CENTER c 813W. Michigan Ave., Ypsilanti MILES Monday thru Friday 8:00am-4:00pm /call Plasma donors are people helping people today 67 ) NOW HIRING_ ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES FOR SPRING/SUMMER AND FALL TERMS Gain valuable business experience while selling advertising to local and regional businesses. You'll be responsible for managing your own account territory. You'll work for a student-run organization, and become a profes- sional representative of the newspaper to the University community. Positions Available Assistant Account Executives: Assist Account Executives: Service advertis- Account Executives with territories, 6 ers, 35 hours per week in summer; 12- hours per week, unpaid position. 15 hours in fall. Paid position. WEEKEND MAGAZINE r'ridays in The Daily 763-0379 BUIES ER3 ES- -Get your buttons from Word Silkscreening. We have the best prices. Call 665-6031. 2 PISTON TICKETS available for selected home games. Great seats, parking. Call 761- 9610. BIG $ for UM-ilhini basketball tickets. Call PJ747-9528. DESPARATELY SEE3G up to 4 tickets to Illinois b-ball game. Call 761-3067. DETROIT-NEWARK: March 24 and/or Philadelphia-Detroit April 5th. Cheap! Call 764-5901. FOR SALE: 2 one wa tkts. from Washing- ton D.C. to Detroit Metro on Sun. March 26th (Easter Weekend!) Please call 996-9004 or7 791151. NEED TICKETS: Michigan vs. Illinois. CAll r-l. t'11AA0,711 K VA