The Windmill Movie
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Montage 7hj"Xeeai"Z_l[hi[Yh[Wj_edi 18 Open Book 19 Music,Taken Personally 20 Off the Shelf 23 Diaghilev and His Geniuses 24 Mnemonic Masks 26 Chapter and Verse XWi[Zedj^[Z_Whoe\ W 9ebed_Wb c_Zm_\[ j^Wj)&&j^7dd_l[hiWho Kd_l[hi_jo Fhe\[iieh BWkh[bJ^WjY^[hKbh_Y^ [nfekdZ[Z_d^[h'//& Xeeae\j^[iWc[dWc[$ O[j j^[h[ mWi ed[ ÓbcHe][himWid[l[h WXb[jeÓd_i^"Z[if_j[ (& o[Whi e\ i^eej_d] WdZYebb[Yj_d]\eejW][" ckY^ e\ _j Y[dj[h[Z ed^_iemd\Wc_boWdZ Filmmaker j^[>Wcfjedijemde\ The Windmill Movie Alexander Olch MW_diYejj"m^[h[j^[o in his studio ^WZWikcc[h^eki[$ on Mott Street ?jmWib[\jje^_iijk# in Manhattan, JmeÓbccWa[hiYebbWXehWj[WYheiij^[]kb\X[jm[[db_\[WdZZ[Wj^$ doors away Z[dj7b[nWdZ[hEbY^ from where his Ê// He][hi jWk]^j 9H7?= B7C8;HJ Xo mentor, Richard ÓbccWa_d]\ehcWdo Rogers, lived and worked. o[WhiWj>WhlWhZWdZ ^[bWj[\_bccWa[hH_Y^# \hecWH[lebkj_ed '//'" m^_Y^ \ebbemi mWi Z_h[Yjeh e\ j^[ WhZHe][hiÊ,-";Z$C$Ê-&"m^e f^eje]hWf^[hIkiWdC[_i[bWi";Z$C$Ê-'" <_bcIjkZo9[dj[hjeYh[Wj[J^[M_dZc_bb Z_[Ze\YWdY[h_d(&&'WjW][+-" Wii^[h[jkhdijeD_YWhW]kW'&o[WhiW\j[h Cel_[\hecj^[c_b[ie\kdYkjÓbcWdZ mWiWfWii_edWj[WdZfheZkY# ZeYkc[dj_d]j^[IWdZ_d_ijWel[hj^hem l_Z[eb[\jX[^_dZ$ÇJ^[h[mWiWl[ho]eeZ j_l[Whj_ij$>_iZeYkc[djWho e\IecepW$J^[h[m[h[b_j[hWhofehjhW_ji h[Wiedm^o^[b[jj^_ied[]e"ÈiWoiEbY^$ TÓbcihWd][\hecGkWhho'/-&"Wib_Y[#e\# b_a[^_i'/..M_bb_Wc9WhbeiM_bb_Wci"Zed[ Ç:_YaYecfb[j[Z'.Óbci"Xkjj^_imWi b_\[beeaWjoekj^iZ_l_d]"im_cc_d]"WdZ \ehF8I1gk_haoÓbcib_a[((,#',/&'/.*" j^[edboed[j^Wjh[Wbbo]Wl[^_cjhekXb[" bekd]_d]WhekdZWX[Wkj_\kbWXWdZed[Z WÇc_d_cWb_ijieWfef[hWÈZhWm_d]ed X[YWki[j^[ikX`[YjmWiedj^[ej^[hi_Z[ heYagkWhho_dGk_dYo"CWiiWY^ki[jji" Wo[WhÊimehj^e\c[iiW][iedHe][hiÊi e\j^[YWc[hW$È?d\WYj"EbY^ÊiceijXWi_Y m_j^WbWj[#'/,&iheYaiekdZjhWYaWdZ Wdim[h_d]cWY^_d[1WdZj^[^_ijeh_YWb Z[Y_i_edmWiÓ]kh_d]ekjj^Wjj^[Óbc beec_d]i^WZemie\L_[jdWc"jeF_Yjkh[i h[#[dWYjc[dje\7C_Zm_\[ÊiJWb['//," mWiWXekjHe][hi"dejMW_diYejj1_jÊiW F^eje]hWf^XoJob[h>_Yai%J^[D[mOehaJ_c[i >WhlWhZCW]Wp_d['- Magazine, Inc. at 617-495-5746 Reprinted from Harvard Magazine. For more information, contact Harvard MONTAGE Y^e_Y[He][hi^_ci[b\"m^eYedijWdjbo OPEN BOOK On the day of his sub- \h[jj[ZWXekjX[_d]jeei[b\#_dZkb][dj" ject’s ninetieth birthday, mWikdWXb[jecWa[$ May 3, Alec Wilkinson’s J^[ Óbc" m^_Y^ ef[di Wj j^[ <_bc The Bible and The Protest Singer: An <ehkc_dD[mOeha9_joed@kd['-"m_j^ Intimate Portrait of Pete dWj_edWbh[b[Wi[WdZ>8EXheWZYWijje Seeger (of the College \ebbem"j[bbi_jiikX`[YjÊijhekXb[Zb_\[ an Almanac class of 1940) will be ijeho$?jÊiWYebbW][#b_a[fehjhW_je\ÇW published (Knopf, $22). Yecf[bb_d]boY^Whc_d]WdZl_lWY_eki]ko" The book ends with Seeger’s unbending testimony before the House Un-American WM7IFMeeZo7bb[d"ÈiWoiEbY^$J^[ Activities Committee, on August 18, 1955. It begins, briskly, as follows. dedb_d[WhdWhhWj_l[ia_fiWhekdZWced] Z[YWZ[i\hecj^['/(&ijej^[fh[i[dj1 t was the ambition of the singer and which included Woody Guthrie. The j^[Z_h[YjehjhWYa[ZZemdf[efb[m^e songwriter Pete Seeger as a child, in name derived from there being in most ^WZ\eejW][e\He][hiWdZi^ejd[m\eej# the 1920s, to be an Indian, a farmer, working-class homes two books, a Bible I W][^_ci[b\"_dYbkZ_d]iYh_fj[ZiY[d[i a forest ranger, or possibly an artist, and an almanac, one for this world and m_j^WYjehMWbbWY[I^WmdÊ,+"j^[bWj[ because he liked to draw. He went to one for the next. The Almanac Singers ÓbccWa[hÊi\h_[dZ$EbY^mhej[WdZh[WZ Harvard [1936-1938], joined the tenor appeared mainly at strikes and at rallies banjo society, and studied sociology in supporting the rights of laborers. Seeger the hope of becoming a journalist, but says that the band was “famous to read- It’s a collage-like at the end of his second year he left ers of the Daily Worker,” the newspaper of the Communist Party. The Alma- portrait of “a Pete Seeger, shown sing- nac Singers broke up in 1942, after ing in an undated photo, Seeger was drafted. Following the compellingly charm- travels light, always ready war, Seeger performed on his own to make music. for a while, then became a member ing and vivacious of the Weavers, whose version of “Goodnight, Irene,” by Huddie Led- guy, a WASP better, called Leadbelly, was, for thir- teen weeks in 1950, the best-selling Woody Allen.” record in America. The Weavers quit j^[le_Y[#el[hdWhhWj_ed"jWa_d]ed^_i playing in 1952, after an informant c[djehÊif[hiedW$>[YecfWh[ij^[cel# told the House Un-American Ac- _[ÊiijhkYjkh[jeWHkii_Wdd[ij_d]Zebb$ tivities Committee that three of the ?dZ[[Z"J^[M_dZc_bbCel_[kd\ebZied four Weavers, including Seeger, were cWdob[l[bi$J^[h[ÊiWikcc[hj_c[feh# Communists. (Seeger knew students jhW_je\Wm[Wbj^o>WcfjediYecckd_jo" at Harvard who were Communists, m_j^j[dd_i"im_cc_d]feebi"fh_lWj[ and, with the idea in mind of a more X[WY^[i"WdZimWdaYeYajW_bfWhj_[iedW equitable world, he became one for bWmdm_j^WicWbbm_dZc_bb"m^_Y^]_l[i several years, too.) Following the j^[Óbc_jij_jb[$J^[h[ÊiWZoi\kdYj_edWb# informant’s testimony, the Weav- \Wc_bodWhhWj_l[Ô[i^[ZekjXo_dj[hl_[mi ers found fewer and fewer places m_j^He][hiÊiZoif[fj_Ycej^[hWdZfW# to work. Seeger and his wife, Toshi, jh_Y_Wd\Wj^[h"m^ei^ejÓbc\eejW][_d decided that Seeger should sing for j^['/(&ij^WjEbY^_dYbkZ[i$>[cWhl[bi any audience that would have him. j^Wj_jjeeaÇj^h[[][d[hWj_edijecWa[ They printed a brochure and sent j^_icel_[$ÈJ^[h[ÊiWdWXiehX_d]feh# before taking his exams and rode a bi- it to summer camps, colleges, schools, jhW_je\He][hiÊicWii_l[boi[b\#ZekXj_d]" cycle west, across New York State. If he churches, and any other organizations i[b\#Yh_j_YWbf[hiedW"fbWo[Zekjm_j^_d encountered a group of people making that they thought might be sympathetic. ^_i[dl_WXb["m[bb#Wffe_dj[Zb_\[ijob[WdZ music on a porch or around a fire, he Seeger began engaging in what he calls PETE AND TOSHI SEEGER ^[Yj_Y"d[Whbo\WhY_YWbi[nkWbWdZhecWdj_Y added himself to it and asked them to “guerilla cultural tactics.”…[H]e grew b_\[$>_ih[bWj_edi^_fm_j^j^[Y[b[XhWj[Z teach him the songs. He was tall and accustomed to pickets with signs saying CW]dkcf^eje]hWf^[hC[_i[bWiifWdd[Z thin and earnest and polite. To eat, he “Moscow’s Canary” and “Khrushchev’s ceh[j^Wd)&o[Whi"Xkj"Wij^[Óbci^emi" made watercolor sketches of a farm Songbird.” In How Can I Keep from Sing- j^[h[m[h[fWii_edWj[_dj[hh[]dWm_j^ from the fields, then knocked on the ing, a biography of Seeger, David Dun- ej^[hfWhjd[hi1j^[Yekfb[ÓdWbbocWhh_[Z farmhouse door and asked to trade the away writes that a poll conducted dur- d[Whj^[[dZe\He][hiÊib_\[$ drawing for a meal. ing the period by Harvard said that 52 J^[d j^[h[ _i j^[ [cX[ZZ[Z c[jW# In the early 1940s, Seeger belonged percent of the American people thought cel_[WXekjÓbccWa_d]"_dYbkZ_d]j^[ to a group called the Almanac Singers, that Communists should be put in jail. l[hocel_[m[Wh[mWjY^_d]$M[i[[He]# '.CWo#@kd[(&&/ Magazine, Inc. at 617-495-5746 Reprinted from Harvard Magazine. For more information, contact Harvard MONTAGE Stills from Olch’s film show Richard Rogers at his editing console, watching footage of his mother, and a photograph of Rogers filming. 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