In Memory of Louis Gossett Jr. and his song Handsome Johnny

 

By Steve Halpern

This morning I read the obituary of the Academy Award winning actor Louis Gossett Jr. who passed away at the age of 87. The obituary was written by the Associated Press reporter Beth Harris. 

When we think of the Hollywood environment Louis Gossett Jr. lived and worked in, we think of the glamor, affluence, and celebrities of the motion picture industry. Beth Harris’ obituary of Gossett gives us an unvarnished view of the underbelly of the reality of Hollywood.

In 1961, Gossett went to Hollywood and received critical acclaim for his role in Lorraine Hansberry’s play A Raisin in the Sun. This was before the civil rights movement forced the government to pass the Civil Rights Act. As a result, Gossett roomed in a cockroach-infested motel.

In 1968, Gossett returned to Hollywood and had a room in a Beverly Hills hotel. Universal Studios rented a car for him with a convertible top. Driving back to the hotel, Gossett was stopped by a sheriff’s officer. The officer told him to turn down the radio and put up the car’s roof. Then eight sheriff’s officers stopped him again and called the car agency to see if the car was stolen.

After his dinner at the hotel, he went for a walk. I’m no lawyer, but I don’t think going for a walk is against the law. Then again, this is the United States of America where the government claims there is liberty and justice for all.

A police officer stopped Gossett and informed him that it was against the law to walk in Beverly Hills after 9:00 PM. Then, officers chained Gossett to a tree for three hours. This is what Louis Gossett Jr. had to say about those experiences.

“Now I had come face-to-face with racism, and it was an ugly sight.” “But it was not going to destroy me.”

Richie Havens and Handsome Johnny

In Beth Harris’s obituary, she neglected to mention that Louis Gossett Jr. wrote a song with Richie Havens titled Handsome Johnny. In my opinion, this was one of the most powerful antiwar songs ever written.

The song is about an imaginary soldier called Handsome Johnny. In the song we follow the horrors of Handsome Johnny in the wars at Concord, Gettysburg, Dunkurk, Korea, and Vietnam. 

Then the song made an unexpected, but logical detour with the following words”

Hey, look yonder, tell me what you see 

Marching to the fields of Birmingham

Looks like handsome Johnny with his hand rolled in a fist

Marching to the Birmingham war, marching to the Birmingham war.

This section of the song is about the civil rights battle in Birmingham in the 1960’s. There police and firemen unleashed attack dogs and fire hoses on children who demanded equal rights in the United States of America. 

The song Handsome Johnny concludes with the following words:

“Hey, what’s the use of singing this song

Some of you are not even listening

Tell me what it is we got to do

Wait for our bullets to start whistling 

Wait til the bombs start balling

Hey, yea, hey, here comes the hydrogen bomb

And, here comes the guided missile

Here comes the hydrogen bomb

I can almost hear it whistle 

I can almost hear it whistle

Yea, yea, yea”

Today, as the world witnesses the Israeli organized genocidal campaign against Palestinians, the song Handsome Johnny by Richie Havens and Louis Gossett takes on new meaning. People from all over the word are protesting against this unimaginable horror. So, I believe we can all imagine how Handsome Johnny is now marching in the streets demanding Ceasefire Now.

Rest in peace Louis Gossett Jr.

Below is a link to a Youtube recording of Louis Gossett Jr. and Richie Havens singing their song Handsome Johnny. Handsome Johnny