tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11380345.post4012780513233216560..comments2024-03-17T12:16:42.048-07:00Comments on Civic Center: "Champion" at SFJAZZCivic Centerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12362422142667230626noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11380345.post-2773354630628195082016-02-29T22:44:27.949-08:002016-02-29T22:44:27.949-08:00Nice review and some good insights here. Thanks, M...Nice review and some good insights here. Thanks, Mike. Hattiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13297404386730167834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11380345.post-10989504003842761882016-02-29T18:56:14.754-08:002016-02-29T18:56:14.754-08:00Thanks for the additional info, Eddie. While doing...Thanks for the additional info, Eddie. While doing a little research, I was surprised to find that Emile Griffith had a major career late into the 1970s, and then became a trainer to world champions Wilfred Benítez and Juan Laporte, and even did a stint as the coach of the Danish National Boxing Team in 1979-1980. In other words, he was more interesting than the opera's depiction of him as a Gay Victim. I used to play in the San Francisco Gay Softball League in the 1970s-1990s with a lot of black guys, some on the down-low and others like former Dodgers/A's baseball pro Glenn Burke who was way out of the closet. None of them seemed to have any problem with the idea of being gay.Civic Centerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12362422142667230626noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11380345.post-46589281860693533882016-02-29T17:05:41.523-08:002016-02-29T17:05:41.523-08:00Excellent review, Michael. I grew up watching Grif...Excellent review, Michael. I grew up watching Griffith box and recall piecing together the amazing story of his life—first the tragedy of the Bennie Paret fight and much later the facts about his personal life. I agreed that the libretto did not always jibe with what I found to be Griffith's surprisingly carefree attitude about being out. Things really changed for the better after he befriended Bennie Jr. Another tragic element of the Paret fight was the curse it placed on referee Ruby Goldstein, who always was haunted by his failure to stop the fight before Paret was permanently concussed. Anyway, I found the show very moving in parts, and agree that the jazz sections were more spot-on (Marcus was great) than some of the orchestral passages. But a very worthwhile show!<br /> Eddiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08806017650099202535noreply@blogger.com