Close Encounters With The Mob, James Dean, Ray Charles and Lenny Bruce
Del, like most Beats of the day, was into bongos.
Bongos, a percussion instrument, were fun to play along with music and popped up as backing for poetry readings and performance artists. They were much cheaper than a drum kit, easy to learn and believe it or not, a chick magnet. So Del decided to take a class on bongos taught by an actor friendly music teacher. Bongos are cool, even if its hard to imagine today people lining up to take classes to learn to play them. To see the art of bongos, click here:
New York City was abuzz about a new actor in town named James Dean who at the time was working primarily on TV short story shows. Short stories were once in major magazines, were adapted for radio and were very popular during this time. Today short stories are rare. Movies and TV shows that have a different cast and plot either every week or a collection of stories in one film are avoided. In those days, short stories dominated.
To have a buzz on you in New York City in the 1950's without a press agent was and is unheard of to this day. James Dean was using improv in his performances (which pisses off other actors but electrifies audiences who can sense anything can happen), and even Del had heard of him and was curious.
Del walked up the stairs to the bongo classes and entered- to see James Dean sitting on the floor quietly looking at his bongos.
Del thought he looked a bit too preppy and didn't try to talk to him, but the word was out the teacher would have a party at his pad and all the students were invited.
Del made it to the party and there was Dean in the center of the party playing, and not too well, the bongos. Del went into the kitchen to make a drink, talked to people in the kitchen and went to the living room, where James Dean was still playing the bongos. Del spoke to other actors and made another drink and spoke to the teacher, and walked into the living room where Dean was still playing.
Three hours later Del decided he should go and went out to grab his jacket. In the living room. At this point several actresses were sitting around Dean intently watching him play badly. A guy walked over to Dean and he stopped playing. He rose up as the girls started to speak to "Jimmy", but he was involved with his buddy that had entered and barely acknowledged the girls. As he left Del turned to one of the party goers and said, "Another queer actor. What's the big deal?", and decided to stay for another drink.
The big deal of course, was that the "secret something" that turns actors into superstars is the ability to appeal to both men and women at the same time. And James Dean had it. To Del however, he was just an annoying jerk banging on the bongos.
Years later in Chicago Del was doing his standup act that he was trying to develop and would do heroin with Lenny Bruce. At the same time Bob Newhart was playing in Chicago ( he would go on to make the biggest selling comedy album in history- a feat which has not been topped). Bob Newhart was not into drugs or getting wasted on alcohol, but Del respected his act. This unusual trio hung out together at the Old Town Ale House while one or the other was playing Mr. Kelly's.
Here is how the bar looks now:
Heroin consciousness is not pretty. It takes about two weeks to get addicted. You know you are because you don't get sick anymore. At that point, you have spent two weeks throwing up when you shoot the drug. With many drugs you might be led to a position of being too trusting with people or situations. With heroin it's the opposite. People you don't know, you think you have figured out. Intentions the user believes are easy to figure out, and their intentions are always worse than your own. Getting high with different people or alone- you are probably going to nod out and fall asleep. Del once shot up with Ray Charles while he was in Chicago, they both shot up using Ray's limo as a table. I asked what they talked about. They didn't. They just nodded off together listening to jazz! Add to this that Del was also drinking- downer's paradise.
At this same time, the mob was "collecting" comedians. They owned the best clubs (until Hefner started the Playboy Clubs), they ran talent agencies which also subbed as prostitution fronts, they could help a comedian break from the pack. Del feared them and did not want to end up owing his career to the mob. So he would play folk venues and small neighborhood joints, avoiding nightclubs and Vegas.
One night Del did his show, and the mobster in the audience with the hot "niece" declared he "wanted the kid" and one of his flunkies went off to fetch Del.
Del realized what was happening and said once he changed he would come out and talk to them. He checked the windows and one opened. He climbed out the window and took off into the night, never to see the mobster again.
FOOTNOTE: You can watch James Dean warning about reckless driving:
