I’m always delighted when fresh information allows
a new entry to be placed in my timeline of Guaraldi’s activities ... and even
more pleased when said information simultaneously solves a mystery.
My good buddy Doug — a frequent contributor to
this blog — has been investigating Dave Brubeck of late, via various archives
that included expanded subscription access to Newspaper.com, a fabulous site
that I frequently consulted while researching my Guaraldi bio. My (roughly)
year with Newspapers.com was back in 2010 and ’11; the nifty thing is that the
site continuously expands, as more digitized publications are added to the
archive. Thus, when Doug also indulged a whim to investigate Guaraldi a bit, he
came across several items I’d not seen before.
The first is a TV program description. The
Thursday, April 20, 1961, issue of San Rafael’s Daily Independent Journal, in writer Hal Case’s “Checking the
Channels” column, includes this paragraph:
Another KQED
attraction [Friday] night, at 10:30, will be a one-time-only battle of talent
between three artists in different fields: illustrator Don Freeman, jazz
pianist Vince Guaraldi, and pantomimist Bernard Bragg. The trio will challenge
each other to ad lib performances.
In an earlier Independent
Journal issue (Saturday, April 15), the actual TV listing titles this
half-hour special Trio, with a brief
explanation that reads “artist Don Freeman, pianist Vince Guaraldi and
pantomimist Bernard Bragg.”
The program likely was broadcast live from San
Francisco’s KQED Channel 9 studio, and there’s no evidence that a recording has
survived. (More’s the pity.)
Freeman died back in 1978, after a successful
career as an author and illustrator of children’s books; his best-known title
likely is Corduroy. His son has
mounted a loving tribute website. Bragg had a long and successful career as a
performer, playwright, director and poet; his website is filled with
information, photos and video clips.
But here’s the really
cool part:
The first printing of my book incorrectly identified
the individuals in this photo, on Page 162, as Guaraldi, director Lee Mendelson
and animator Bill Melendez. Several people quickly pointed out the error,
including Mendelson himself (which once again demonstrates the folly of relying
on a single, so-called “authority” for information, and the need to double- and
triple-source everything). Subsequent
printings corrected that error, but nonetheless left me clueless regarding the
identities of the other two men. Well, early 1960s photos of Bragg and Freeman
have left no doubt: This photo, reprinted above, must’ve been taken at KQED either before or
after the show. From left, we’re looking at Guaraldi, Bragg and Freeman.
And, so, another mystery yields to determined
investigation. Way to go, Doug!
