Tuesday, December 13, 2005

one of kay powell's gems from atlanta

you should read kay powell's obituary for Michael Hart, a successful black businessman who videotaped oral histories that detail atlanta's contemporary black history. the obit was printed in the atlanta journal-constitution on tuesday, dec. 13.

she celebrates hart's intellect, his business savvy and his desire to tell the history of black atlanta from the perspective of prominent black atlantans. instead of making a buck on the project, he made his tapes available to the public at a research library.

as a member of the atlanta-fulton library board of trustees, he complained enough about the condition of libraries in black neighborhoods to effect improvements.

and kay, as always, found a quirkier accomplishment for which hart will be remembered. she writes:

In the kitchen, his specialty was gumbo, which he made a competitive sport against his friend Dr. Jasper Session's bouillabaisse. They had ongoing debates about how to make the best roux.

this moment in black history brought to you and me and everybody else by the great kay powell.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Dear Kay:
U were always the best, and u still are the best.
Love always, Henry (cuban)