Letters to the Editor February 2018

Pensacola? Vout-O-Reenie! To the Editor: I’ve worked with the Public History Department at UWF in Pensacola and have helped the students do some research about local jazz musicians who have made it in the jazz world—Slim Gaillard, Gigi Gryce, and Junior Cook, to name some. Since news was segregated, too, and we didn’t have continuous black news coverage, newspaper documentation is spotty. In fact, Gaillard, the ultimate BS artist, told people he was born in Cuba to a sea-captain etc., and that got in the jazz literature and Leonard Feather fell for that too. One can go to YouTube and get a one hour BS lesson from Gaillard. He did that in England. I think the story goes that when Slim was introduced to Mickey Rooney, Slim replied, “Great, what’s your last name?” Before I knew that Slim was from Pensacola, I had a little black lady in my office for a brief exam and her name was Gaillard. I waxed eloquent about this being a famous name, etc, etc. She let me get through my recitation and said with flat expression, “Yes, he’s my brother-in-law!” Got to meet Slim briefly a couple of months before he died. We were having a jazz party in Pensacola. Family brought elderly man in suit, tie, hat. Suit seemed too large for him. Family told us who he was—we admitted him, without charge, and found him a seat. I regretted not having time to talk with him because of