The Watermelon Woman (1997)

1. Where do you want it? Where do you want it?

2. Where you want it?

3. Camera, camera, go stand over there.

4. Go stand over there with that, it's kinda dark.

5. Why don't you move it? Why don't you move over there?

6. Can you smile really pretty for the camera?

7. Aww, isn't that sweet?

8. Why don't y'all fool around?

9. Why don't y'all run around, Sadie?

10. Ring around the rosie

11. Oh, "pocket," you know the whole song.

12. Ring around the rosie

13. Okay, Joshua, get up in there.

14. Just get up in there.

15. Throw yourself.

16. All fall down!

17. Okay, let me just tighten you guys up in here.

18. Very nice.

19. Could you just angle it a little bit more?

20. Great! Come over.

21. You two switch places.

22. Looks great.

23. Could you two guys in the back

24. switch places, please?

25. Sir!

26. Excuse me, sir?

27. We're working with the family right now.

28. - Oh. - Don't you—

29. don't you even see the video equipment?

30. Why don't you just, like, wait your turn?

31. - Okay. - Thank you.

32. - Okay. - Oh, my God, what a day.

33. We'll take care of it, you know.

34. We'll get the video done as soon as we can

35. and deliver it to you, okay?

36. Thank you.

37. Let me see that.

38. Lord.

39. Ooh, I love cash!

40. I don't like cash, I like checks,

41. but this will have to do, okay?

42. Uh, can I use the equipment this weekend to work on my project?

43. You know, this is the third weekend in a row

44. you want to use the equipment,

45. but you've yet to shoot anything.

46. Uh-uh, my cut is $50 short.

47. You remember what Rose and Gwen said in the "Go Fish" book.

48. If you want to make a film, you gotta make some sacrifices.

49. And besides, we have to make money payments on the camera.

50. Ticket to Hollywood, baby!

51. Excuse you, I'm not, like, into making sacrifices

52. for some quote-unquote "future," all right?

53. I want to take Stacey out this weekend for dinner,

54. and for that I need cash today, okay, so just give me my money—

55. - I'll lend you some money. - ... and cut the attitude.

56. - I'll lend you some money. - Lend me some money?

57. You gonna lend me my own damn money?

58. You worse than white people in a bank.

59. Oh, my God. It's raining.

60. I don't care if it's raining. Give me my damn money.

61. What does one got to do with the other?

62. Give me my money, Cheryl.

63. Don't be frontin' with no attitude.

64. Okay, I'll give you your money.

65. I know you're givin' it to me.

66. Shit.

67. What are you shooting anyway?

68. First you're arguing with me,

69. now, and then you're shooting?

70. It's urban realism!

71. Come on, won't this be a nice contrast?

72. So these people will really know,

73. on their day of sacred matrimony—

74. These people don't want to put this mess

75. in their video, Tamara.

76. Well, honey, they're paying me,

77. this is my impression of their wedding.

78. So, how is your video going?

79. Uh, I'm gonna use the equipment tonight,

80. if that's possible.

81. What are you shooting?

82. Come on, Cheryl, this is the really good stuff.

83. This is like urban... poverty...

84. very raw, it's very in, very new.

85. I just don't believe it.

86. Look, I'm tired of you and your projects.

87. The Watermelon Woman, who the hell is she?

88. - Turn off the camera. - Who cares?

89. I don't want this stuff to be on film.

90. Hi, I'm Cheryl,

91. and I'm a filmmaker.

92. Uh, no, I'm not really a filmmaker,

93. but I have a videotaping business with my friend Tamara,

94. and I work at a video store,

95. so I'm working on being a filmmaker.

96. The problem is I don't know what I want to make a film on.

97. I know it has to be about black women

98. because our stories have never been told,

99. so I've been renting movies—

100. No, I haven't been renting movies,

101. but I get movies from the video store

102. that I work at, and I've taken all these films out

103. from the '30s and '40s with black actresses in them,

104. like, um, Hattie McDaniel and Louise Beavers,

105. and, um, in these films, in some of the films,

106. the black actresses aren't even listed in the credits,

107. and I was just totally shocked by that.

108. So, in this one film that came into the store,

109. "Plantation Memories,"

110. I saw the most beautiful black mammy named Elsie,

111. and I just had to show this, so...

112. Watch.

113. Missy Barbara?

114. Oh, don't cry, Missy.

115. Master Charles is coming back for sure.

116. I know he is.

117. Do you really think so, Elsie?

118. Oh, yes, Missy Barbara, I know he is.

119. I prayed to God all night long, and this morning,

120. His little angel told me that he was coming back.

121. Back to you.

122. Her name: The Watermelon Woman.

123. That's right, Watermelon Woman.

124. Is "Watermelon Woman" her first name, her last name,

125. or is it her whole name?

126. I don't know, but girlfriend has it goin' on,

127. and I think I've figured out what my project's gonna be on.

128. I'm gonna make a movie about her.

129. I'm gonna find out what her real name is,

130. who she was and is,

131. everything I can find out about her,

132. because something in her face,

133. something in the way she looks and moves

134. is serious, is interesting,

135. and I'm gonna just tell you all about it.

136. Hey, Tamara, is Bob here?

137. Late again, you know,

138. you really should try to pick up the phone sometime

139. because I called you this morning

140. to let you know Bob was coming in early.

141. Or were you at the White Dog Cafe

142. cruising all the cute girls again?

143. No, I was home doing something

144. more important than this place, thank you.

145. You know, you don't have to work here, Cheryl.

146. Sorry I got you the damn job in the first place.

147. Tamara, that was two years ago, you know, it's time to move on.

148. I'm a filmmaker, you know.

149. Anyway, did those special order tapes come in yet?

150. Yes, they're over here.

151. I certainly hope that...

152. Mike O'Reilly likes those films as much as you do.

153. I can't believe you're wasting a tape scam to order them.

154. I can barely stand the stuff that Hollywood puts out now,

155. let alone that nigga mammy shit from the '30s.

156. Oh, my God, look what's here!

157. A film with The Watermelon Woman in it!

158. Like I said, boring stuff.

159. All you do since you don't have a girlfriend

160. is watch those boring old films.

161. I'd rather watch boring old films

162. than black porn like you.

163. Okay, there is no need to get

164. into my personal shit up in here, okay?

165. I was just kiddin' in the first place.

166. What I meant to say was, uh,

167. what are you doin' tonight?

168. Probably watching these.

169. You want to go out with Stacey and me?

170. With a four-month-old lesbian relationship?

171. She has a friend in from out of town.

172. - Not another blind date, Tamara. - Oh, come on, Cheryl,

173. I apologized for that a million times.

174. How was I supposed to know that she was spiritual?

175. It's your turn to wait on a customer.

176. Spiritual is not the word.

177. Heavy afro-fem-centric is the word.

178. Remember Sister Yafumila Ifá In-ze-lay?

179. You wait on a customer 'cause I just clocked in.

180. Tired late ass getting on my last black nerve.

181. How can I help you?

182. Yes, do you have The Three Tenors?

183. No, I'm sorry, it's out.

184. Thank you.

185. So get on up on the floor

186. 'Cause we're gonna boogie oogie oogie

187. till you just can't boogie no more

188. Boogie

189. Boogie no more

190. You can't boogie no more

191. Boogie

192. Boogie no more

193. Listen to my bass, yeah

194. I think it's time for me to sing my song.

195. What song? Not the one you tried to—

196. —I mean, sang back in college.

197. Right, the one I sang for the...

198. Spike Lee audition at the Black Deb Ball.

199. Tell them, Stacey.

200. Tell them how I almost got the part.

201. Part? Are you sure you—

202. Are you sure you want them to know that story?

203. Why not?

204. I'm a singer, right?

205. Tell them I'm a singer.

206. What's this about a Spike Lee audition?

207. She's gonna look really stupid if she gets up

208. on that stage and can't sing.

209. It was our freshman year in college,

210. and it was rumored that Spike Lee

211. was gonna be on campus

212. recruiting for his new film on black schools.

213. Anyway, our little black group on campus

214. decides to throw a party in the hopes

215. that Spike will come and discover us.

216. And Miss Yvette shows up with this tight ass,

217. and I mean tight ass, red polka-dot outfit.

218. - Outfit, man. - She goes up to the DJ,

219. makes him turn off the music in the middle of a slow jam,

220. and then starts to sing.

221. And...

222. And this boy throws a drink in her face.

223. That was the first time I had ever seen Yvette

224. go off like that, I mean, she put the boy in the hospital.

225. It was the beginning of what we called

226. Yvette's real emotional period.

227. Real emotional, huh?

228. But she's cute though, Cheryl, don't forget that.

229. - Great. - All right, ladies.

230. Yvette would like to perform "Lovin' You."

231. Let's hear it for Yvette.

232. Yeah!

233. Behave.

234. Thank you. Thank you.

235. I'd like to dedicate this song to my friends,

236. Tamara, Stacey, and Cheryl.

237. Great.

238. Lovin' you

239. is easy 'cause you're beautiful

240. Makin' love with you

241. is all I want to do

242. Lovin' you

243. is more than just a dream come true

244. And everything that I do

245. is out of loving you

246. La-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la-la

247. La-la-la-la-la, la-la, la-la-la

248. Do-do-do-doo

249. No one else can make me feel the colors...

250. Um, excuse me, sir?

251. Can I ask you a question.

252. Shoot.

253. Uh, can you tell me,

254. do you know who The Watermelon Woman is?

255. Watermelon Woman?

256. Yeah, she's the one who originated

257. what we call Aunt Jemima,

258. like on the syrup bottles.

259. From the sound of the name,

260. she must've been in early Hollywood cinema.

261. Watermelon Woman, I think she's from Philly.

262. I... is she from Philly?

263. Isn't she the lady that wore the fruit cocktail on her head?

264. No, that's Rosie Perez, Bookah.

265. Well, that could've been her alias name.

266. Oh, child, I don't think so.

267. She wore the fruit cocktail with the leaves and—

268. No, no, no, uh-uh.

269. Was that Aunt Je—

270. - Avocadoes and things? - No, no.

271. No, that's—that's still—

272. isn't that Rosie?

273. It was not Rosie! She was from—

274. This was lady was from back in the '40s and '50s.

275. Oh, well, it could've been Rosie.

276. She looks like she was in the '40s and '50s.

277. - Ooh, Rosie gonna kill you. - Okay, well, thank you.

278. - Okay, bye-bye. - Thank you, you have a good one.

279. Watermelon Woman.

280. Do you think you've heard of her?

281. - No. - No.

282. My mother was the first person I called up

283. because I knew she'd have something to say

284. about The Watermelon Woman.

285. She is a collector of sorts.

286. A better word for her is a collector of junk.

287. She never throws anything away.

288. Keeps things "filed" away in the basement.

289. As you can see, her "filing" system

290. needs updating.

291. I mean, look at it all.

292. Old books, boxes of clothing,

293. my dance costumes, my brother's Star Trek models,

294. her dead mother and brother's stuff.

295. She even has boxes of the most remarkable props

296. from when she used to go to the movies back then.

297. You know, picture cards and magazines.

298. I just can't find them, is the problem.

299. the box was in the closet.

300. Why don't you listen to me, Cheryl?

301. Ugh, Mom.

302. Then the other one.

303. How do I look, Cheryl?

304. Oh, you look fine.

305. Get those earrings on, you look good.

306. - You think so? - Yeah, this is for the video,

307. so don't worry, it's not, you know, gonna be too deep.

308. So, you saw lots of films when you were growing up

309. in the '30s, right?

310. Oh, yes, saw a lot of films.

311. And one of your favorite stars was The Watermelon Woman, right?

312. The who?

313. The Watermelon Woman.

314. Remember the skinny girl we talked about?

315. I didn't see the Waterwho—

316. I never heard of The Watermelon Woman.

317. Oh, come—Mom!

318. Look, I took off from work to come all the way out here

319. to ask you about The Watermelon Woman.

320. Now, wait a minute, Cheryl.

321. You're talking to your mother.

322. You don't talk to me like that.

323. I'm sorry, I'm sorry,

324. but I specifically wanted to talk to you about this,

325. and you acted like you knew before.

326. What—did you see any movies back then

327. with any other actresses?

328. Oh, yes, uh-huh,

329. but I didn't see that one.

330. - I saw Queenie. - Queenie?

331. Yeah, she was in "Gone With the Wind."

332. You mean Butterfly McQueen?

333. Well, okay.

334. She was in "Gone With the Wind."

335. And we saw some of these other actresses and things.

336. Yeah, well, I wanted to know about The Watermelon Woman.

337. She was, um, in, um,

338. the films by Martha Page.

339. Look at this box.

340. Martha Page is the director.

341. Well, look at the black woman in the picture.

342. That's The Watermelon Woman.

343. - I've seen her face before. - Where?

344. It wasn't in any film or anything.

345. I saw her a couple of times at some clubs.

346. - Really? - Yeah, she was singing.

347. Where? What clubs?

348. Oh, the clubs we used to hang out at.

349. Oh, The Blue Note,

350. Showboat, Pep's.

351. - No! - Different clubs like that.

352. Well, who was at the clubs with you?

353. Oh, there was, um,

354. Hattie and...

355. Shirley, May, Jeannie.

356. - Mm-hmm. - Just a regular old gang.

357. You know, we'd go there.

358. But, um,

359. I don't know.

360. Did they like the clubs?

361. Oh, they were weirdos.

362. - No! - Yes, weird people were there.

363. Uh-huh, kinda sounds like my type of people.

364. Yes, you would've loved it.

365. - You would've loved it. - I'm sure I would've.

366. You know it's, uh, two-for-one Monday through Thursday.

367. Really?

368. Yeah.

369. I'm having a hard time deciding.

370. What do you think? "Cleopatra Jones,"

371. "Jason's Lyric," or "Personal Best"?

372. Hmm, well, "Cleopatra Jones" is really fun.

373. Why don't you do "Cleopatra Jones"

374. and... "Carrie"?

375. I think the two go really well together.

376. I know, but "Carrie," I hate Sissy Spacek.

377. She's all weird and pale and thin and anorexic

378. in this movie.

379. I kind of like my girls with meat on their bones,

380. you know what I mean?

381. Anyway, I just saw it.

382. Well, um, there's always, uh,

383. some sci-fi like "Aliens,"

384. or how about, uh,

385. "Repulsion" with Catherine Deneuve?

386. She goes nuts in her apartment one night.

387. Oh, I just moved in to a new apartment.

388. I don't think I need that.

389. Well, help yourself, it's two-for-one.

390. Okay, thanks for your suggestions.

391. You're welcome.

392. - So, who's the cutie? - Some customer.

393. She's got nice bone structure if you're into white girls.

394. Do you think she is or isn't in the family?

395. Tamara, why are you always constantly clocking women?

396. We're lesbians, remember, Cheryl?

397. We're into female-to-female attraction.

398. Anyway, you're the one who's supposed to be

399. clocking all the girls.

400. How long's it been since you've been with one anyway?

401. A week. Remember the emotionally-unbalanced Yvette?

402. Come on, Cheryl, she was not that bad.

403. - Yes, she was. - Besides, she called Stacey

404. last night and she asked about you.

405. - Oh, she was all— - Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

406. If you two worked as much as you talked,

407. I'd have a chain of video stores by now.

408. Tamara, Cheryl,

409. I'd like to introduce you to your coworker,

410. Annie Hinkley.

411. Heath, Annie Heath.

412. Yeah, Annie Heath.

413. She's a Bryn Mawr graduate, right?

414. Right. It's nice to meet you, Cheryl.

415. It's nice to meet you, Tamara.

416. I'll tell you what, Cheryl, why don't you help Annie

417. learn the Bob system while waiting on this customer?

418. - Okay. - Miss Attitude,

419. in my office.

420. Let's go.

421. Okay, so I'm taking you up on your suggestion,

422. and it's two-for-one, right?

423. Right.

424. So, maybe I should go get the tapes?

425. No, no, stay here and we'll do this together.

426. - Okay. - Um, name on the account?

427. It's Rolland, but it's a new account.

428. Okay, new accounts get rung up like any other order

429. except we have to get her, uh, name and address,

430. phone number, and I'll get her credit card.

431. Gotcha.

432. Can I have your credit card?

433. Thanks.

434. All right, so the name is Rolland.

435. And your first name?

436. Diana.

437. And your address?

438. 4043 Ludlow.

439. Thank you.

440. And that's 4043...

441. And your phone number?

442. Uh, 555-2112.

443. Okay, that's it.

444. Don't I have to sign something?

445. Oh, yeah, sorry.

446. You know, Cheryl, I've worked in a video store before.

447. I mean, I just get the tapes she wants and scan 'em, right?

448. Yeah.

449. So, I'm getting "Repulsion" and...

450. - ..."Cleopatra Jones." - "Cleopatra Jones," right.

451. I'll get 'em, they're in alphabetical order.

452. Alphabetical.

453. Can I have my credit card back?

454. Oh, I'm sorry, here you go.

455. Thanks.

456. Here we go.

457. All right, there you go.

458. Thank you.

459. Uh, would you like a bag?

460. No, thanks,

461. Cheryl.

462. You're welcome.

463. And that's how you take a customer order.

464. You mean, that's how a customer picks up an employee.

465. If it's that easy, I need to get a name tag, Cheryl.

466. The other day, I mentioned my project to Tamara's mother,

467. and she gave me this card.

468. Some friend of the family, no doubt.

469. She said this Lee character is really into black film.

470. Tamara told me that when she was a child,

471. she saw Lee trying to hit on her older cousin Tyrone,

472. and Tyrone kicked him in the balls.

473. Well, with a background like that,

474. you know I had to go check him out.

475. I even brought Miss Tammy along to help me film it all.

476. So, you came to see what I got, huh?

477. Yup. What's this stuff over here?

478. Oh, got some posters here

479. from some black cast films,

480. like this one here, got "Gone Harlem"

481. with Ethel Moses.

482. Kinda sultry sepia diva.

483. She's just reclining there.

484. Got July Jones, "Juke Joint" here.

485. Ralph Cooper in "Dark Manhattan."

486. Ralph Cooper used to MC at the Apollo.

487. His son still works up there.

488. I like this one up here.

489. Got Bill Pickett,

490. World's Colored Champion, "The Bull-Dogger."

491. - Tough. - Oh.

492. Come on in here.

493. Now, everything is authentic

494. except some of the race memorabilia in the kitchen

495. and, uh, this sign here.

496. Right up there.

497. Drama, 'cause you know who serves the drama

498. in this household, right?

499. Please.

500. Well, what's this Royal Theatre?

501. The Royal, the Standard, the Dunbar.

502. Those were the places to be in the '20s and '30s.

503. South Street was jumpin' with night life.

504. - Like South Street now? - Hell no, girl!

505. South Street sucks now!

506. The Royal and the Dunbar,

507. those were black-owned— write this down—

508. those were black-owned, black-operated,

509. right up until and even after the Depression.

510. Black folks wanted to see the Hollywood stuff,

511. you know, with the stars and the costumes.

512. All that junk.

513. Got my little office right back here.

514. - See, "Film Department." - Yes.

515. - Voilà. - Wow!

516. What an impressive setup.

517. You mean expensive setup.

518. - Whoa, sorry there. - That's okay.

519. Cheryl, ask him about The Watermelon Woman.

520. Never heard that name before.

521. Watermelon, no, no...

522. Tell him the name of the woman who directed it.

523. Watermelon Woman, mm-mm.

524. What was the name again?

525. Martin—

526. Martha, Martha Page.

527. She was a white woman director.

528. Martha, a woman, huh?

529. Women are not my specialty, I tell you.

530. Of course they aren't. Look at you!

531. What was that, Tamara?

532. Cheryl, I have some Photoplay magazines

533. for you in the basement, I'll get 'em for you, all right?

534. You can take 'em with you when you leave.

535. You can be so rude sometimes.

536. The Royal, the Standard, the Dunbar.

537. Those were the places to be in the '20s and '30s.

538. 20th and South, that was it!

539. Everyone who was anyone wanted to be up there,

540. you know, in the theater, seeing the shows

541. and the movies.

542. Really great.

543. If they had only played those black cast films,

544. those theaters would've gone out of business

545. during the Depression.

546. Black folks wanted to see the Hollywood stuff,

547. you know, with the stars and the costumes.

548. All that junk.

549. Yeah.

550. The, uh, black cast stuff or negro stuff,

551. that played before the Hollywood features.

552. Well, you know,

553. that was, uh, that was it for the sisters back then.

554. You know, playing that domestic help.

555. Hmm, I bet that's how The Watermelon Woman

556. got her start.

557. Oh, don't cry, Missy.

558. Master Charles is coming back for sure.

559. I know he is.

560. Do you really think so, Elsie?

561. Oh, yes, Missy Barbara, I know he is.

562. I prayed to God all night long, and this morning,

563. His little angel told me that he was coming back.

564. Back to you.

565. There you go.

566. Are the green plums in yet?

567. Ma'am, not until Tuesday

568. when all the other produce comes in.

569. Need anything else?

570. - No, I think that's it. - You sure?

571. You'd expect a young girl like that

572. to be quick about things.

573. What is she buying anyway?

574. Be ten dollars, please.

575. Um, do you want some money?

576. I'll pay for half of it.

577. No, I got it, you can buy the wine.

578. Okay, that's fair.

579. Hey, it's Cheryl from the video store.

580. Yeah, I saw you standing in line.

581. - I thought I'd say hi. - Hi.

582. Let's go, Diana, we have a lot of errands to run.

583. - May I help you? - Yes, carrots and broccoli.

584. Carrots and broccoli, right here.

585. Carrots,

586. and we have broccoli.

587. Four dollars.

588. Damn, Tamara, what's up with that?

589. Look, we gots to go or Is is gonna be late.

590. For what? Can't you see I'm just getting into it?

591. Dang, Cheryl, all these books!

592. Isn't there a limit to how much you can take out?

593. Twenty. Don't you think I asked before I came down?

594. I mean, it's not like I can go and ask for information out

595. about The Watermelon Woman.

596. They only have references on black women in film.

597. Well, did you ask at the reference desk?

598. Tamara, pick up the book.

599. I don't think you're listening to me.

600. I'm not listening to you, Cheryl,

601. because we have to go, okay?

602. I promised Stacey that I'd meet her at her house,

603. and I want to get there a little bit early, you know,

604. give her some wine, some flowers.

605. I'm trying to get some tonight.

606. Look, I just have to do one more thing, then we can go.

607. Okay?

608. Cheryl, you're next, come on.

609. I have to be there in 20 minutes.

610. - Hi. - Hi.

611. Um, I'm looking for information

612. on The Watermelon Woman.

613. She was a black actress in the 1930s.

614. I seem to be having a bit of trouble.

615. Nothing comes up.

616. Check the black section in the reference library.

617. Um, well, how about Martha Page?

618. She was a white woman director in the 1930s.

619. All this information is referenced

620. in the reference section.

621. Have you checked the reference section

622. of the library, Miss?

623. Well, both were involved in films,

624. and I thought there was some sort of non-reference book

625. that could be checked out on women in film and...

626. Well, have you tried the film section,

627. - PM 1993 to 1995? - Yes, we have.

628. Why does he think we're waiting in this line?

629. Shut up, Tamara.

630. The names again.

631. Uh, The Watermelon Woman and Martha Page.

632. Watermelon Woman?

633. The only thing that's coming up is Martha Page.

634. She is listed in several non-reference titles

635. on women in film.

636. No, no Watermelon Woman.

637. Check the reserve desk on the third floor.

638. Next on line, please.

639. Great news: With my mom's help,

640. we went through some of her "files" in the basement.

641. It took all day, but we found info

642. on her old friend Shirley.

643. Miss Shirley.

644. Never married,

645. worked in a factory most of her life.

646. I think she's in the family.

647. Watermelon Woman?

648. Oh, you mean Fae, Fae Richards.

649. I thought her name was The Watermelon Woman.

650. The Watermelon Woman.

651. I don't know where you got that mess from,

652. probably from when she was making those movies.

653. But her name was Fae Richards.

654. When she sang for us, she used her real name.

655. And she used to sing for all of us stone butches.

656. We used to stand in front of the stage

657. and fight for position

658. so that she would look at us.

659. And, um,

660. one time I got in a fight

661. with this girl from North Philly,

662. who kept popping in my space, you know?

663. And, um, but when Fae would sing,

664. oh, God, she was beautiful,

665. like poetry.

666. Why don't you tell me what the clubs were like

667. back then, like, who was at these clubs?

668. The clubs were mixed, you know?

669. The white folks owned 'em,

670. the black folks attended,

671. and the ofays came to socialize.

672. And we had a real good time there, you know?

673. We really did, we all got along.

674. Was... Fae hanging with the ofays?

675. Yeah, Fae hung with the ofays quite a bit, you know?

676. Especially, um, with the...

677. Martha—Martha Page, is that her name?

678. Yeah, it was some— one particular woman,

679. I think that was her name, Martha Page.

680. She was, um, big-time director.

681. - Yes, yes. - Movie director.

682. And, uh, she and Fae used to hang a lot,

683. and I think Fae, you know, wanted to get into movies,

684. and, um, that's why she hung so tough with them, you know,

685. and especially with Martha.

686. And I heard some very ugly—

687. If I remember my gossip correctly,

688. that Martha Page was one mean and ugly woman.

689. Maybe that's how you have to be in the movie business.

690. Oh, no, no.

691. Do you have any pictures from back then or anything?

692. - Yeah, I got a lot of pictures. - Oh, good.

693. Used to save them 'cause, like back then,

694. we could buy the pictures in the clubs,

695. and the performers would sign 'em for us.

696. - I see. - And I kept my mirror covered

697. with all of these performers.

698. - You'd like to see 'em? - I'd like to see them.

699. All right, wow.

700. Let's see what's in the box.

701. You got any pictures of, uh, Fae Richards?

702. Let me just see, I've got so many pictures in here

703. of these performers.

704. Oh, look at that.

705. Oh, here it is, here it is.

706. Let's see, hold it up.

707. - Yeah, that's good. - She was a looker, wasn't she?

708. Yeah, she was a looker, all right.

709. Can you believe it?

710. Fae's a sapphic sister.

711. A bulldagger, a lesbian!

712. Oh, my gosh, I knew something was up

713. when I saw "Plantation Memories."

714. But with Martha Page?

715. Hmm, Fae was really swinging back then.

716. I guess we have a thing or two in common, Miss Richards.

717. The movies, and women.

718. Hey, Cheryl, Yvette's been asking about you again.

719. - What? - In fact, she and Stacey

720. are stopping by after work tonight if you're interested.

721. Tamara, why'd you do that? You know I don't like her.

722. What, you say you don't like Stacey?

723. Yvette, it's Yvette I don't like.

724. I don't like her anything.

725. Her clothing, her attitude, her look...

726. What's wrong with the way she dresses?

727. I think she dresses nice.

728. Besides, Cheryl, she wants you.

729. So? I don't care if she wants me.

730. I'm into dating women with mental health right now.

731. See, that's what's wrong with you.

732. I think Yvette's got it goin' on with a bip and a bang.

733. You'd go for that.

734. Annie, you got a cigarette?

735. I'm going out to have a break.

736. - Sure, I'll join you. - All right.

737. Oh, honey, I'm gonna have to see some ID with this.

738. Cheryl, Tamara, did either of you

739. take an order for Diana Rolland?

740. - Who? - Rolland, this is a new account.

741. I just got a call from Big Black Productions,

742. and they don't have "Bald Black Ballbusters."

743. The rest of her order is here.

744. But when you get a chance, would you give her a call

745. and let her know that that title is unavailable,

746. but Big Black Bob is?

747. Sure.

748. "Bald Black Ballbusters."

749. Isn't that funny, Tamara?

750. Hysterical.

751. You said he never checks that stuff.

752. I know he knows I ordered them under her name.

753. He usually doesn't, but, "Bald Black Ballbusters"?

754. Tamara, what's up with that?

755. Okay, I was like, curious to see

756. what they'd look like without hair.

757. Hi, can I help you?

758. Oh, yeah.

759. Thank you.

760. Miss Rolland.

761. Uh, most of the tapes you ordered have come in,

762. but one of them was unavailable.

763. They didn't have...

764. Cheryl?

765. Yeah, sorry, here.

766. They didn't have this title.

767. Oh... bummer.

768. Okay, well, um, I guess I'll just take

769. the rest of them then.

770. - Can I charge it? - Sure.

771. Thank you.

772. Tamara, would you get that?

773. Uh, I'm busy.

774. We're all set here, Miss Rolland.

775. Uh, can I give you a bag or a hand?

776. Uh, no bag, but maybe a hand?

777. Bob, it's some woman who says she's your girlfriend.

778. yeah, I'll take it, thanks.

779. Cheryl, would you help her out?

780. Thanks. Bye, Diana.

781. So, uh, you need a hand, huh?

782. Yeah.

783. Okay.

784. Look, look, I'm really sorry about what happened back there.

785. I mean, it's just a way for us to get free tapes.

786. Free, huh?

787. I mean, we just special order them under any customer's name,

788. and then we, you know, preview them and return them.

789. Who's "we," some ballbuster you work with?

790. That's just another employee.

791. I mean, I'm really sorry about all this.

792. Well, it looks like if you want to see the videos,

793. you're gonna have to come to my house

794. because they are mine now.

795. What's your—what's your address and phone number?

796. Look it up, you have my account information.

797. - Well? - What happened?

798. She wants me to come and get the tapes.

799. Score!

800. I do need a name tag if it's that easy.

801. Honey, if a dog collar didn't do it for you,

802. a name tag won't either.

803. So, tell me more about this project you're working on.

804. Is it for school?

805. Do I look like I'm a student?

806. I don't know, you could be.

807. I'm a filmmaker.

808. Oh, a filmmaker.

809. Uh, you got a big space here,

810. and a lot of it, too.

811. Yeah, I just moved in.

812. New account, remember?

813. You know, I actually used to study film in Chicago.

814. Well, I studied film.

815. I studied art, I studied art history,

816. I studied law, and then I just...

817. - You just gave up, right? - Right.

818. I needed to figure some shit out

819. before I wasted more time at school.

820. What—what shit is that?

821. Like what I want to do with my life.

822. You know, I want to do it all.

823. Do you know what I mean?

824. You know, I really wanted to talk to you the other day

825. at the, um, produce truck, but things were kind of crazy.

826. Well, your girlfriend was giving me

827. these, like, looks from hell, you know?

828. She's not my girlfriend.

829. I meant to say friend.

830. Your friend was giving me, like, all these strange looks, and...

831. Do you wanna stay for dinner?

832. I'm actually cooking some food.

833. Okay, yeah.

834. Great, come in, sit down.

835. Okay.

836. Irene, we'll be late.

837. Haven't you had enough of that white powder?

838. How could you, Irene?

839. You know how hard it was to find these films?

840. It's like one of the few race films that she ever starred in.

841. Really?

842. Uh, do you mind if I smoke?

843. No, go ahead.

844. You know what's so weird about this setup?

845. What?

846. I don't know, it just feels like...

847. you know, a setup, like...

848. I don't know, you know,

849. all this dinner and...

850. And... what?

851. And friendly conversation.

852. Well, I have to confess that I am a little—

853. no, I'm very attracted to you.

854. What?

855. Um, I was just gonna say

856. that you're really a cute woman.

857. I know that.

858. I heard what your friend said

859. at the video store.

860. - You heard us? - I've had the hots for you

861. since the minute I saw you shelving tapes.

862. Can I have a cigarette?

863. Sure, help yourself.

864. Is the, um, fire in there, too?

865. Uh, yeah, but it's in a lighter.

866. So, um...

867. Now that we know that we're attracted to each other,

868. what do we do?

869. - Um... - Don't you think we should kiss?

870. You're a no-good lying tramp, that's what you are!

871. Committing a sin that will surely send you to hell.

872. I am going to hell, but not for being a tramp,

873. but for being poor and living on the streets like I've had to do.

874. Why can't I be happy fitting into their world?

875. God made me this color, and He did it for a reason.

876. I ain't afraid of where you come from

877. I ain't afraid of where you been

878. I ain't afraid of what you're givin' in

879. I ain't afraid of skin

880. I ain't afraid of where you come from

881. I ain't afraid of where you been

882. I ain't afraid of what you're givin' in

883. I ain't afraid of skin

884. Between the fury and the moment,

885. between the time and my confessions,

886. between everything and everything else,

887. between the vision and the madness,

888. between something and something like that,

889. between what I mean and what I say,

890. between the stroke and the luck,

891. between exactitude and vagueness,

892. between skepticism and curiosity,

893. between the container and the content,

894. between the book and the cover,

895. between the music and the sheets...

896. I ain't afraid of where you come from

897. I ain't afraid of where you been

898. I ain't afraid of what you're givin' in

899. I ain't afraid of skin

900. I ain't afraid of where you come from

901. I ain't afraid of where you been

902. I'm still in shock over the whole

903. having sex with Diana thing.

904. I've never done anything like this before,

905. let me assure you.

906. The hip, swinging lesbian style isn't my forte.

907. You remember the Yvette thing?

908. I'm just an old fashioned girl

909. trying to keep up with the times

910. but Diana just threw me for a loop.

911. I mean, she's not my type

912. but I liked it.

913. I don't know what to say next.

914. Maybe it all has to do with this film project

915. which is finally coming together.

916. Hollywood, The Watermelon Woman,

917. Fae Richards, and Diana?

918. Well, look who it is, folks.

919. Hollywood's popular Fae "The Watermelon Woman" Richards.

920. Taking a break from the cameras and the lights,

921. Fae's back in her hometown, Philadelphia,

922. to organize a benefit for the city's chapter

923. of the National Association for the Advancement

924. of Colored People.

925. And get this, folks.

926. While in the city, Ms. Richards spoke

927. with J. Liberty Wells, the famous film director

928. and president of Liberty Motion Pictures,

929. about his upcoming black-cast gangster picture.

930. Wouldn't this be the icing on the cake for Ms. Richards

931. who has been in search of a studio

932. to make her a star.

933. Well, actually, the mammy figure, um,

934. is a great favorite of mine,

935. particularly Hattie McDaniel's

936. brilliant performance in "Gone With the Wind."

937. I really am distressed with a lot of the tone

938. of recent African American scholarship.

939. It tries to say about the mammy that—

940. that her largeness of figure is desexualizing,

941. degrading, dehumanizing,

942. um, and this seems to me so utterly wrong.

943. Where the large woman is a symbol

944. of abundance and fertility

945. is a kind of goddess figure,

946. even the presence of the mammy in the kitchen,

947. it seems to me, has been misinterpreted.

948. Uh, "Oh, the woman in the kitchen is a slave,

949. a servant, a subordinate."

950. Well, my grandmothers, my Italian grandmothers,

951. never left the kitchen.

952. In fact, this is why I dedicated my first book to them.

953. And Hattie McDaniel in "Gone With the Wind"

954. is a spitting image of my grandmother

955. and her style and her attitude,

956. her ferocity and so on,

957. brings tears to my eyes.

958. The watermelon seems to me another image that has been

959. misinterpreted by a lot of black commentary.

960. The great extended family Italian get-togethers

961. that I remember as a child

962. ended with the men bringing out a watermelon

963. and ritualistically cutting it

964. and distributing the pieces to everyone,

965. almost like the communion service.

966. And I really dislike this kind of reductionism,

967. of a picture, let's say, of a small black boy

968. with a watermelon, him smiling broadly over it,

969. looking at that as negative.

970. Why is that not instead a symbol of joy and pleasure

971. and fruitfulness,

972. and after all, a piece of watermelon has the colors

973. of the Italian flag, red, white, and green,

974. so I'm biased to that extent.

975. But I think that, um,

976. if the watermelon symbolizes African American culture,

977. rightly so,

978. because look what white middle class feminism

979. stands for: anorexia and bulimia.

980. Well, I've heard of Martha Page before.

981. Okay, well, what about Fae Richards,

982. The Watermelon Woman?

983. If she's in anything after 1960, don't ask us.

984. We haven't covered women in the Blaxploitation movement yet.

985. Okay.

986. The Watermelon Woman, Fae Richards,

987. was lovers with Martha Page,

988. this white woman director.

989. Does...

990. Uh, wait a minute, the actress was lovers

991. with this famous direc—

992. - Yes. - Well, first of all,

993. I'm stunned to hear that, um, that the director

994. was lesbian or bisexual.

995. This is news to me in the first place, all right,

996. but the idea of any kind of, um,

997. an interracial relationship at this time,

998. it's mind-boggling

999. because we can see decades after World War II

1000. in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner,"

1001. you can see how charged the question of any sort

1002. of interracial relationship was.

1003. So, um, it seems to me

1004. an astounding discovery that you have made.

1005. Oh, well, I guess I'll just, uh, keep on pursuing it.

1006. Well, good luck to you.

1007. Well, thank you, Professor Paglia.

1008. Thank you very much.

1009. Stacey doesn't like that Campari either.

1010. What do you mean "either"?

1011. I mean, I don't think that Stacey likes Diana.

1012. I walked in there and they were being all quiet and shit.

1013. Oh boy.

1014. Guess it's time for Plan J.

1015. Oh, excellent, Stacey loves to smoke.

1016. A little before dinner smoke, ladies?

1017. Oh, thank God.

1018. Let me have a hit.

1019. Then I said to him, "Well, who do you think I am,

1020. your slave?"

1021. That beats Cheryl's story of having to call

1022. this snobby white woman customer a nigger.

1023. - Yeah, it does. - So, Diana,

1024. what brings you to our fair city?

1025. Work, school?

1026. Um, no, I just decided to move.

1027. I got sick of Chicago and I decided to move to Philly,

1028. the City of Brotherly Love.

1029. And sisterly affection.

1030. Late night phone calls

1031. What?

1032. And sisterly affection.

1033. Brotherly and sisterly affection, right, Stac?

1034. Anyway, Diana, if you, uh, came to Philadelphia

1035. to escape the cold Chicago winters,

1036. don't expect it to be any better here.

1037. Oh, I didn't leave to escape the cold,

1038. I needed a mental health break.

1039. Good answer, Cheryl likes her women to have

1040. that mental health thing going on.

1041. Well, I like my women a little crazy

1042. like you, darling.

1043. So, um, Cheryl tells me you're in school.

1044. Business, right?

1045. I'm getting my MBA from Wharton.

1046. My father went to Wharton.

1047. - Really? - Mm-hm.

1048. Yeah, but when he got out, he couldn't get a job

1049. and so he decided to join the diplomatic corps.

1050. He hated it but my mom loved it.

1051. We traveled everywhere.

1052. I was born when we were stationed in Jamaica.

1053. - You were born in Jamaica? - Yeah.

1054. I love telling people where I was born.

1055. But we lived everywhere, we lived in Germany

1056. and California

1057. and Iceland.

1058. Iceland?

1059. Iceland, Bangladesh, Tel Aviv.

1060. I've lived just about everywhere.

1061. I see. Well, honey, I gotta tell you,

1062. I was born and bred in the U.S. of A.

1063. Cheryl, how's your project going?

1064. I hear The Watermelon Woman's gettin' pretty ripe.

1065. Yeah, it is, Tammy.

1066. But, uh, the project's doing well.

1067. Tell Stacey how you're gonna make your big move

1068. to Hollywood with this project.

1069. I almost forgot, I have awesome news.

1070. - What? - My brother's mother-in-law

1071. used to know this famous casting agent.

1072. - And? - And they know the Page family,

1073. as in Martha Page.

1074. - You're kidding? - No, I'm serious.

1075. Six degrees of separation

1076. but here it's only two.

1077. Anyway, I called Mrs. Page-Fletcher

1078. and, um, she would love to talk to us

1079. about Martha and her life and the movie.

1080. Us? I thought this was Cheryl's project.

1081. That's great, Diana.

1082. You're so sweet.

1083. - Cheers. - So why does Cheryl always

1084. hook up with these typical white devil types?

1085. She doesn't always date white women.

1086. And when she does, they're just so...

1087. You know what the most distressing thing is

1088. about this project?

1089. It's Tamara.

1090. I mean, in the past she'd been—

1091. I mean, we've been friends,

1092. we've been friends for a long time.

1093. I mean, we've been friends for years.

1094. She got me the job at the store,

1095. we've done everything together,

1096. we're running buddies.

1097. But somehow, on this project,

1098. something's going on between the two of us

1099. that's just not working out.

1100. Something is different.

1101. I mean, something's changed.

1102. I don't know if it's me, I don't know if it's her.

1103. It's just really upsetting.

1104. I say I'm proud to be black,

1105. I'm labeled the racist

1106. I can't be proud of who I am

1107. for I am black woman,

1108. black woman I am

1109. - I've been abused... - Damn, she's cute.

1110. Tamara, that's what you've been saying about all of them.

1111. Why don't you focus on the performer for a while?

1112. Isn't that why we brought Little Orphan Annie along?

1113. Besides, I'm getting footage for my video project.

1114. Come on, Tamara, we're working.

1115. Cheryl, I help you with your stuff.

1116. Besides, who could resist capturing all these fine,

1117. and I mean fine, black women on film?

1118. what I can and cannot do

1119. After all the shit you done put me through

1120. Honey, quiet down

1121. Hey, isn't that my Native Studies teacher, Greta?

1122. Oh, and I bet that's her girlfriend too.

1123. Cheryl, are you seeing this?

1124. Annie, you supposed to be videotaping the performer,

1125. not your friends.

1126. - Sorry. - Tamara, why don't you

1127. focus on the performer, okay?

1128. This is the last act.

1129. You're doing a great job, Annie.

1130. - Thanks, Cheryl. - Shh!

1131. I think she's about to finish.

1132. You tell me it's not my fault

1133. For being who I am

1134. For I am black woman,

1135. black woman, yes

1136. I am black...

1137. So...

1138. what's up with you and Annie?

1139. What do you mean what's up with me and Annie?

1140. I don't like her.

1141. Obviously, you treat her like shit all the time.

1142. I mean, she's just a kid who was trying to help us out.

1143. Help us out?

1144. She got paid, didn't she?

1145. I mean, she gets on my last black lesbian nerve

1146. with all that piercing, hair dyed business.

1147. You gonna smoke that joint, Bogart?

1148. Uh, Tamara...

1149. you know, we're different too,

1150. so what's up with that?

1151. Yeah, but see, we're not different

1152. amongst a group of ritzy black folk.

1153. I mean, we were there...

1154. to get their business and to be professional, all right?

1155. We weren't there to look like a bunch

1156. of hip hop, multicultural mess.

1157. I mean, Cheryl, look at what she was wearing.

1158. She's just all weird.

1159. I mean, that dog collar, her hairstyle, her age.

1160. I just can't get with it.

1161. Damn, man, that's a good roach, I wanna save that!

1162. I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

1163. I'm sorry.

1164. No, thank you.

1165. No, I don't want any.

1166. I'm sorry, Cheryl, okay?

1167. I guess this stuff going on with Stacey's

1168. got me a little bit stressed.

1169. What's up with you and Stacey?

1170. Nothing. I mean, she's gone frigid on me.

1171. Zilch.

1172. Well, don't you think that Stacey's—

1173. I don't know what to think.

1174. I mean, listen to me for a second.

1175. Don't you think that Stacey is

1176. A, going to school,

1177. B, working all the time,

1178. and C, you know, might just be stressed out?

1179. I mean, what do you expect?

1180. A little nookie once in a while.

1181. Okay, we've been going out for a while now

1182. and I don't even have a key to her place.

1183. - Really? - Yeah.

1184. Diana gave me the keys to her place last week.

1185. I did not invite you over here to talk about

1186. your wannabe black girlfriend.

1187. Tamara, Diana doesn't want to be black.

1188. I mean, I'm getting into her, can't you see that?

1189. All I see is that once again you are going out

1190. with a white girl acting like she wants to be black

1191. and you are being a black girl acting like she wanna be white.

1192. I mean, what's up with you, Cheryl?

1193. You don't like the color of your skin nowadays?

1194. Tamara, I'm black; I mean, who's to say

1195. that dating somebody white doesn't make me black?

1196. I mean, who's to say anything about who I fuck

1197. in the goddamn first place, okay?

1198. Well, Stacey says she thinks Diana's into chocolate.

1199. I mean, come on, Cheryl, she lives in that big loft

1200. all by herself and volunteers.

1201. "Volunteers."

1202. At, like, some agency that works with

1203. not only poor kids but poor black kids.

1204. What's up with that, Cheryl?

1205. Tamara, you're just so fucked up.

1206. - You're just so fucked up. - See?

1207. - I'm sick of you. God. - Hey.

1208. Hey, Cheryl, there were all these mad cuties there.

1209. You should have been there, it was a really fun place.

1210. Hey, look, Cheryl. They set up dyke archives

1211. I was telling you about in New York.

1212. - Oh, wow. - I went there when I went

1213. to that rave last weekend.

1214. Oh, great.

1215. So you're gonna go all the way to New York

1216. to find out that they only have stuff

1217. on white lesbians, right, Cheryl?

1218. Actually, you know, Tamara, there's a really great

1219. black lesbian collection.

1220. - See, there it is. - Oh, wow, here it is.

1221. - Really good for your project. - Yeah, she's right.

1222. They have a whole black lesbian collection.

1223. - You're so helpful. - Hey, no problem, and, you know,

1224. I'm going up there next weekend too.

1225. If you need a ride, I can give you one.

1226. You're so helpful, Annie.

1227. I mean, you probably know a place

1228. to get a good clit piercing, don't ya?

1229. Tamara, why don't you lay off her, okay?

1230. - What's it to you? - Don't worry about it, Cheryl,

1231. she's just jealous.

1232. Oh, right.

1233. Look, Tamara, just because you and I are different

1234. doesn't mean you have to treat me like shit all the time.

1235. I'm sorry, did I hurt your poor little feelings?

1236. You suck.

1237. Hear that, Cheryl? I suck.

1238. - What is the problem here? - Oh, nothing.

1239. Um, I'm just here talking to Tamara

1240. about the work schedule

1241. 'cause I'm gonna go to the archives

1242. with Annie on Friday

1243. and she's gonna work for me, right, buddy?

1244. Yup, and Cheryl— we worked it out—

1245. Cheryl is gonna work for me both Saturday and Sunday.

1246. Right, buddy?

1247. Well, Heckle and Jeckle, it doesn't matter to me

1248. who is working for who

1249. as long as you remember we open late Sunday.

1250. Are they giving you grief?

1251. No, don't worry about it, Bob.

1252. All right, are you learning the Bob system?

1253. Bob, I've been here for months now.

1254. Time does fly, doesn't it?

1255. Yeah, Bob, time does fly

1256. and people do change.

1257. I want to love you constantly

1258. But you keep neglecting me

1259. And treating me...

1260. Hey, sister, how ya doin'?

1261. You, uh, been to the archives before?

1262. Psst, Annie, uh-uh,

1263. leave the sister alone.

1264. Come over here and work the camera.

1265. I think it's about time we, you know, get started.

1266. I think MJ is ready for us.

1267. All right.

1268. Welcome to the Center

1269. for Lesbian Information and Technology.

1270. Actually, we're very disorganized here

1271. but it's because we're just a volunteer-run collective

1272. and you know how hard it is, things take time.

1273. But, you know, someday we're gonna have a great system

1274. where people are gonna donate materials

1275. and then they're gonna be logged,

1276. they're gonna be categoried,

1277. they're gonna be sorted,

1278. they're gonna be stored.

1279. But right now they're just in boxes.

1280. Well, um, I came to find out about the black collection

1281. on lesbians.

1282. Is that a separate collection or...?

1283. It's very separate.

1284. We received a very generous gift

1285. from the Foundation

1286. but they wanted it to be used exclusively

1287. for African American lesbians

1288. so if we have any photographs that there are white people in,

1289. we just cross them out.

1290. Now come with me and I'll show you the files.

1291. For example, you might find this very interesting.

1292. Now, here we have— let's see—

1293. all kinds of really great things.

1294. Oh, look. Here's a map.

1295. This is a map of the most popular

1296. lesbian and gay hot spots of Manhattan

1297. in the '20s and '30s.

1298. - It's just incredible. - Wow.

1299. Hm, looks like there were more dyke bars then

1300. than there are now.

1301. Actually, there were no exclusively female bars.

1302. It was mostly mixed speakeasies

1303. and then the young white debutante crowd.

1304. You know, they'd race uptown at midnight

1305. for a big plate of yardbirds and strings.

1306. What?

1307. Fried chicken and spaghetti.

1308. And then they'd wash it all down with a big, cold,

1309. frosty glass of 100 proof iced tea.

1310. Doesn't that sound great?

1311. I'd really like to have one right now.

1312. I mean, you know, I'm in recovery and everything

1313. but there's nothing wrong with remembering

1314. the way things used to be.

1315. Well, anyway, let's just keep it anonymous.

1316. Um, do you have anything on black lesbians,

1317. say, in Philadelphia?

1318. Yes, we do!

1319. We have a whole box.

1320. Now, let me just show you—

1321. Whoa, baby. Thank you, MJ.

1322. Well, this is a little disorganized

1323. 'cause, you know, we are an all volunteer collective

1324. and these things take time.

1325. But there's a lot of fascinating material

1326. and I hope you'll enjoy yourself.

1327. These are photos of The Watermelon Woman,

1328. Fae Richards!

1329. Oh my God.

1330. Look, it says, "To June Walker, a special friend."

1331. Get that, Annie, get that.

1332. Excuse me, you do not have permission to photograph this.

1333. This is confidential.

1334. This is a safe space.

1335. Yes, yes, I'm very sorry.

1336. Um, but I'd like to find out how—

1337. like, can I find out who donated the stuff?

1338. I have to discuss it with the collective.

1339. We meet every other month.

1340. And if we come to consensus, I'll call you and let you know.

1341. - Okay. - In the meantime,

1342. respect your sisters.

1343. Yes, sisters.

1344. R-E-S.

1345. But this has to be documented,

1346. I'm sorry.

1347. Get it, Annie, get it all.

1348. This is great, I'm so glad we're here.

1349. - Aren't you glad we came? - I am so glad we came.

1350. Get it all.

1351. I told you this was confidential!

1352. Give me that!

1353. It's time to go.

1354. We got all we need.

1355. Great, Annie, let's go.

1356. Looks like I'm not the only one interested

1357. in this stuff.

1358. A new book on Hollywood lesbians

1359. has appeared at Giovanni's Room,

1360. our lesbian and gay bookstore,

1361. and Hollywood Lesbians...

1362. by Doug McKeown.

1363. I wonder if he's a lesbian.

1364. Anyway, there's a section on director Martha Page

1365. and Fae's name comes up.

1366. I wanna show you this picture

1367. 'cause this is the killer.

1368. "Some folks even say that she was once

1369. head over heels in love with The Watermelon Woman

1370. who starred as the help

1371. in most of these early 1930 women's films."

1372. I wonder what kinda help she offered.

1373. I wonder if Fae was into Martha

1374. or Martha was into Fae.

1375. Hm, you know?

1376. I just think that Fae had to have something else

1377. going on in her life, you know?

1378. Something more— somebody else.

1379. What you're watching now is footage from an interview

1380. Diana arranged with Mrs. Page-Fletcher,

1381. Martha's younger sister.

1382. The whole thing was quite disturbing.

1383. First, she started by describing Fae all wrong.

1384. She started talking shit about Fae

1385. and all those "coloreds" her sister employed.

1386. If that wasn't bad enough,

1387. she made it seem like Fae was just another actress

1388. her sister Martha had worked with.

1389. She said...

1390. Martha was doing very well in Hollywood

1391. and she encouraged some of her former cast

1392. to come to audition for her new picture.

1393. My story's all wrong.

1394. You're not trying to infer that something went on

1395. between the two of them?

1396. Cheryl's doing a video documentary

1397. about Fae Richards who was in—

1398. And who was lovers with your sister.

1399. My sister was not that kind of woman.

1400. I've told every writer—

1401. I think Diana knew what was up

1402. but she kept quiet most of the time.

1403. I wasn't gonna be quiet, no way.

1404. I went off on that old woman.

1405. Come on, Mrs. Page-Fletcher.

1406. Look, we know that Martha and Fae were intimate.

1407. What? Have I, um, you know, scared you with some truth?

1408. I mean, come on, everybody knew that Martha was that way.

1409. I mean, every book and every article I read

1410. has said this fact.

1411. Cheryl.

1412. It got messy after that.

1413. She asked us to leave.

1414. I can't believe she was so oblivious

1415. to the fact that her sister was lovers with this woman.

1416. I mean, come on!

1417. It was almost like Fae never existed.

1418. Is there some problem, ma'am?

1419. This is a mess.

1420. Excuse me.

1421. Cheryl.

1422. Mrs. Page-Fletcher, I'm sorry.

1423. When you're near me

1424. You're truly, truly scrumptious

1425. What's that, uh, "The Sound of Music"?

1426. No, silly, it's "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang."

1427. - Sing another one. - I can't just sing something

1428. off the top of my head.

1429. Oh, come on, I love the way you sing.

1430. Okay.

1431. Love

1432. La-la-la together

1433. Wait, wait, wait, wait, where did you learn that one?

1434. Wasn't that the theme song at your prom?

1435. Diana, darling, remember I'm black

1436. and the, uh, theme song at my prom

1437. was "Sail On" by the Commodores.

1438. My boyfriend was black and he knew all the words.

1439. - You had a black boyfriend? - I had two.

1440. No, actually, I had three black boyfriends.

1441. What did your parents say?

1442. Nothing, they're liberal hippie types.

1443. Actually, my father's sister's first husband

1444. was an ex-Panther.

1445. His name was Tyrone Washington.

1446. What is so funny?

1447. You're such a mess, that's all.

1448. What does that mean?

1449. Nothing.

1450. I have to go work on the project.

1451. The project can wait, Cheryl.

1452. First tell me what you meant by that.

1453. I don't know what I meant.

1454. I just have to go work on the project, okay?

1455. This project is really becoming a crutch.

1456. Diana, if you want me to stay,

1457. you don't have to mention the project.

1458. Just go.

1459. I'll talk to you later.

1460. Niggas catchin' flips off brother lips

1461. Niggas gettin' blitzed by their second hits

1462. Smoke flows from their spare stick

1463. Because that first little shit

1464. ain't quite equipped

1465. You grab it like a bitch, don't even got an itch

1466. Come back in 15 minutes, I'll tell ya what ya missed

1467. Who fried your eyes, I thought brothers don't cry

1468. But niggas know how to lie, it's just a high

1469. I'm in no pain, I get no gain,

1470. I stay high to keep me sane

1471. Part of the I flow through the snow

1472. And if I can't flow, I let ya ass know

1473. Lips so thick I might swallow it

1474. Take me away, take me away to a holiday

1475. Or to the blackest—

1476. Looks like one of our crackhead friends.

1477. What are you doing?

1478. - Just minding my business. - Minding your business?

1479. Boy, don't you know this is private property?

1480. Hey, where'd you get that camera?

1481. I'm not a boy and the camera's mine.

1482. Well, you look like one, you little crackhead freak.

1483. - Come up with some ID. - I don't have any ID.

1484. No ID and possible stolen property?

1485. Hello, is this June Walker?

1486. I got your name from the CLIT archives.

1487. My name is Cheryl and I'm a filmmaker.

1488. Yes.

1489. Yes, I'm a sister.

1490. Yes.

1491. A video project about Fae Richards' life.

1492. I was wondering if you had information on her, like—

1493. She's what?

1494. Oh, yes.

1495. You were together with her for over 20 years?

1496. Yes, yes.

1497. Look, do you think I could come over and talk to you,

1498. maybe even interview you for this project?

1499. What?

1500. I used smoked turkey wings

1501. not pork, why do you ask?

1502. Okay.

1503. Yes, ma'am.

1504. Okay, eleven o'clock.

1505. With lunch in hand.

1506. Bye.

1507. If you're looking for Ms. June,

1508. she's not there.

1509. Yeah, I was supposed to meet her today for lunch.

1510. Oh yeah, she told, you're the girl who puts,

1511. um, turkey wings in her greens, right?

1512. Yeah, yeah, will she be back soon?

1513. Uh, no, the ambulance came yesterday

1514. and took her off to the hospital.

1515. No!

1516. - Yeah. - No, what happened?

1517. She'd been having, like, heart pains all this week, so,

1518. I had to go over there and—

1519. you know, I had to call the ambulance for her.

1520. But, um, she told me to give you something.

1521. Okay, uh... you gonna be able to carry that?

1522. Yeah, I got my bags and stuff.

1523. - Okay. - But could you take these?

1524. - No, that's— - Oh, come on. Please?

1525. Have you ever tasted greens with smoked turkey wings?

1526. No.

1527. Okay, great, thank you.

1528. Well, you wanna come in and join me?

1529. I can't, I can't.

1530. Um... do you know what hospital they took her to?

1531. No, but she said she's gonna call me tonight though

1532. and let me know.

1533. Well, can you take my number and, um...

1534. let me know where she is so I can give her a call, okay?

1535. And please don't forget to call me, okay?

1536. All right.

1537. Thank you so much for your help.

1538. - Okay, thank you. - You're welcome.

1539. - Enjoy, okay? - All right.

1540. Yeah, yeah, it's me.

1541. You don't sound like yourself.

1542. Guess what? Stacey and I are going away for the weekend

1543. to the Poconos.

1544. Can you work for me?

1545. I don't know, but, you know, I went to visit—

1546. I went to visit Fae's lover, right?

1547. Yeah, but did you hear the part about Stacey and me?

1548. Tamara, you're not listening to me.

1549. I went to visit Fae's lover.

1550. Kool and the Gang, Cheryl, I heard you.

1551. Anyway, her name is June and she was in the hospital

1552. and I went there and it was just fucked up,

1553. just totally fucked up, man.

1554. I just...

1555. She left me this note.

1556. Read it quick, Bob's here clocking me.

1557. - Get off the phone. - All right.

1558. - Um, just come by the store. - Tamara.

1559. Hi, how can I help you?

1560. Do you have "New York, New York"?

1561. - Sure. - No-no, no, no.

1562. Take this to the back.

1563. Can I help you?

1564. I just want to get that movie.

1565. - Do you want a job? - Sure.

1566. Did you

1567. look out the window

1568. since yesterday?

1569. Did you think you could

1570. drink those hours another way?

1571. Yeah

1572. Did you dance,

1573. did you dance like we did last night?

1574. "Dear Cheryl,

1575. you sounded so excited over the phone

1576. that I had to write down some thoughts

1577. before they escaped me."

1578. All that talk about Fae

1579. and that white woman

1580. got me to remember some unpleasant things

1581. about the past.

1582. Things that upset me and things that had upset Fae

1583. when she was alive.

1584. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

1585. I was so mad that you mentioned the name

1586. of Martha Page.

1587. Why do you even want to include a white woman

1588. in a movie on Fae's life?

1589. Don't you know she had nothing to do

1590. with how people should remember Fae?

1591. I think it troubled her soul

1592. for the world to see her in those mammy pictures.

1593. Fascination

1594. She did so much, Cheryl,

1595. that's what you have to speak about.

1596. She paved the way for kids like you

1597. to run around making movies about the past

1598. and how we lived then.

1599. Fascination

1600. - Yeah - Please, Cheryl,

1601. make our history before we are all dead and gone.

1602. But if you are really in the family,

1603. you better understand that our family

1604. will always only have each other.

1605. I know this is a lot to be writing down

1606. but I wanted to remember it for you now

1607. so that the next time I see you

1608. we can make it right.

1609. Fascination

1610. Fascination, do-do-do-do-do-do, yeah

1611. Well, things haven't been going

1612. the way I thought they'd be going.

1613. Diana and I aren't Diana and I anymore

1614. and Tamara, girlfriend...

1615. let's just hope we can work things out soon.

1616. You know, I thought it was gonna be easy.

1617. I thought I was gonna be able to use the camera

1618. to document my search for Fae

1619. but instead I'm left empty-handed

1620. except for this package from June.

1621. You know, I wish that neighbor of yours had given me

1622. your phone number in the hospital

1623. because there were so many things I wanted to ask you

1624. face to face.

1625. I mean, I know she meant the world to you

1626. but she also meant the world to me

1627. and those worlds are different.

1628. But the moment she shared with you

1629. the life she had with Martha on and off the screen,

1630. those are precious moments

1631. and nobody can change that.

1632. But what she means to me,

1633. a 25-year-old black woman,

1634. means something else.

1635. It means hope,

1636. it means inspiration,

1637. it means possibility.

1638. It means history.

1639. And most importantly, what I understand

1640. is that I'm gonna be the one who says,

1641. "I am a black lesbian filmmaker

1642. who's just beginning

1643. but I'm gonna say a lot more

1644. and have a lot more work to do."

1645. Anyway...

1646. what you all have been waiting for.

1647. The Biography of The Watermelon Woman,

1648. Fae Richards, Faith Richardson.

1649. The first record of Fae that I could find

1650. was this photo, "Faith Richardson,

1651. winner of the Beechy Beechum Bicarbonate Jingle Contest,

1652. Philadelphia, 1922."

1653. I know that she worked as a maid for several years

1654. and I know that she danced in the chorus on South Street,

1655. but I'm not sure how she got into her first film.

1656. She must have met Martha Page at some club or something.

1657. This one is stamped, "Newark Studios"

1658. and on the back it says, "The Watermelon Woman

1659. and Sandra Vincent in 'Jersey Girl, ' 1931."

1660. I think this is Fae's first film with Page.

1661. In fact, I know it is.

1662. And from what I can tell, this is the beginning

1663. of their relationship both on and off the screen.

1664. Newark Studios' biggest hit

1665. was the 1933 film "Louisiana Lady."

1666. Martha scored with this one

1667. and got her ticket to Hollywood.

1668. Fae scored too.

1669. She was signed with Silverstar Studio

1670. and played in several of their movies,

1671. usually as a household maid or cook.

1672. "Mr. Owen Meets His Match"

1673. with Claude Thornton and The Watermelon Woman, 1937.

1674. This was a big year for Fae.

1675. In 1937, she also starred in my all-time favorite,

1676. "Plantation Memories."

1677. This one's titled, "Elsie calls on the Lord."

1678. I wrote to the studio and got these glamorous photos of Fae

1679. taken in 1938.

1680. It looks like she was trying to bust out of the mammy roles

1681. but, of course, in 1938, that couldn't really work.

1682. Oh, don't cry, missy.

1683. Master Charles is comin' back for sure.

1684. I know he is.

1685. Do you really think so, Elsie?

1686. 1939's a big year for Fae.

1687. I don't know what happened between her and Martha

1688. but she definitely moved back to Philly.

1689. She really worked hard at becoming

1690. the film star she wanted to be.

1691. Fae no longer calls herself The Watermelon Woman.

1692. In all of her films at Liberty Studios,

1693. she goes by the name Fae Richards.

1694. I am going to hell but not for being a tramp,

1695. but for being poor and living on the streets

1696. like I've had to do.

1697. Why can't I be happy fitting into their world?

1698. God made me this color and He did it for a reason.

1699. Fae worked it at Liberty Studios.

1700. J. Liberty cast her as a lead

1701. in all kinds of black-cast films.

1702. Comedies, melodramas, and even gangster pictures.

1703. Problem is, she never got her chance to be a big star

1704. because black-cast films were on their way out.

1705. So, in the '40s, Fae started singing again

1706. all over Philly.

1707. At The Standard, at The Dunbar, Pep's.

1708. She had quite a following.

1709. The next picture I have of her is not until 1957

1710. and it's kinda sad to see what happened to her

1711. because it looks like she stopped performing.

1712. But it's also kinda good

1713. 'cause she met June Walker, a special friend,

1714. who took care of her until the day she died.

1715. Don't you know it's just another day

1716. It's just another

1717. Another day you'll get over

1718. It's just another

1719. Another day you'll get over

1720. Every time it rains it begins to pour

1721. Everybody's knockin' at your door

1722. You wanna run, you try to hide,

1723. you've got to face it

1724. It ain't goin' nowhere 'til you chase it

1725. Don't you go gettin' into a slump

1726. Into a slump

1727. No

1728. 'Cause it ain't easy

1729. Something is no fun

1730. so don't you get undone

1731. You're gonna make it

1732. 'Cause it's just another day

1733. Yeah

1734. It's just another

1735. Just another

1736. Another day you'll get over

1737. Yeah

1738. It's just another

1739. Just another

1740. Another day you'll get over

1741. Baby, don't you know you get so uptight

1742. What does it take to make it right?

1743. Yeah

1744. So there you go wearin' a smile

1745. 'cause you can fake it

1746. But it ain't goin' nowhere 'til you shake it

1747. Don't you know it gets better with time?

1748. Better with time

1749. Every second, every minute

1750. Now you need to walk a little taller,

1751. you got to say something then holler

1752. Throw your hands up in the air

1753. 'cause it's just another day

1754. Oh yeah

1755. It's just another

1756. Another day you'll get over

1757. Just another day

1758. It's just another

1759. Just another

1760. Another day you'll get over

1761. Oh, yeah, yeah

1762. It's just another

1763. Just another

1764. Another day you'll get over

1765. It's just another

1766. Just another

1767. Just another day, yeah, yeah

1768. Oh yeah

1769. Oh yeah

1770. Oh yeah

1771. Oh yeah

1772. Oh yeah

1773. Oh yeah

1774. Oh yeah

1775. Oh yeah

1776. Want to say something then holler

1777. You got to talk a little taller

1778. It's just another

1779. It's just another

1780. Another day you'll get over

1781. Another day, yeah

1782. Another day, yeah

1783. It's just another

1784. Don't you know it's just another day