Arts and Culture

Bay Area’s Bobby Mardis – Creative On and Off the Screen

Published

7 years ago

August 25, 2017

Bobby Mardis made his mark on the film industry in the ’80s and ’90s with some of the most recognizable African American filmmakers of the times. In Keenan Ivory Wayans’ 1988 action comedy parody, “I’m Gonna Git You Sucka,” Mardis portrayed an O.G..

In Robert Townsend’s satirical comedy film, “Hollywood Shuffle,” he played the roles of an audition actor and basketball player.

“Starring in the rags-to riches tale of a singing group in “The Five Heartbeats,” he portrayed one of The Midnight Falcons.
Mardis says his co-stars were also his partners in crime off screen and on in “Robert Townsend and His Partners In Crime,” an HBO series featuring Bobby McGee, Jimmy Woodward and Roy Fegan, on and off the screen. “We were all friends and after the success of

“The Five Heartbeats”, Woodward thought we were stars.” Mardis says he laughed because he understood early on how unpredictable the entertainment industry could be.

Statistically, Mardis says of all the actors on the market, only 3 percent are making a real living, while the other 97 percent are working regular jobs such as serving in restaurants and driving for car services. “So many out-of-work actors are either working at Starbucks or driving for Uber,” he said. “But a man’s true character is determined by what he does in conflict situations.”

The multi-talented Mardis survived the lulls in the industry with stand-up comedy and singing gigs in clubs. He even sang a popular hit single produced by Kashif, “ Keep On.”

Originally from the Bay Area, Mardis attended San Mateo High School, and graduated from UCLA. In 2009, Mardis found himself back in town to assist his ailing mother, Lavera Gillespie who had a triple bi-pass and needed a kidney. “My mom is my everything and relocating to the Bay Area eight years ago was a natural occurrence,” he said. In between doctor’s appointments and spending quality time with his mother, Mardis has continued to sharpen his creative edge.

“I write every day,” he said. “I’ve got seven or eight scripts, a mini-series, and several books in the can.”

Mardis is excited about nearly completed documentary entitled, “Black Male: An Endangered Species.” Filmed on location in the Englewood community areas of Chicago, Mardis describes the project as a psycho-sociological film that speaks to the current era plaguing the Black community today.”

“The documentary has a “Black Lives Matter” element to it and offers solutions to problems plaguing the community and Black men,” he said.

“My documentary is solution-oriented because I believe there’s a solution to most problems, no matter how complicated,” he said.

Mardis also believes in creating opportunities in the industry and for the next generation. His latest project is “Journey to Green City,” a book and curriculum designed to teach youth about the environment and protecting it. “I am now trying to connect with green companies to purchase books for schools, libraries, and any organizations serving children that are in need of books. The objective is to build a mindset in the children to be green conscious.”

Throughout his life, Mardis has come to the realization that what is done early in life, affects the future, but most of all “I am driven to

make a positive mark on this earth while I am here.”

Bobby Mardis can be reached at the following links: www.bobbymardis.com; bobmardis2@yahoo.com

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Arts and Culture

Faces Around the Bay Dr. Carl Blake, Pianist

Born in Liberty, Missouri, Carl Blake, a virtuoso and respected pianist, made his most recent migration to the East Bay in 1999. One might have seen him performing recently at Noontime Concerts in San Francisco, or at the Piedmont Center for the Arts in Oakland. He is Director of Music at The Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco. He was also co-organizer and collaborative pianist at Herbst Theater for The Majesty of the Spirituals concert in 2022 and has held several church positions in the Bay Area.

Published

3 days ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Dr. Carl Blake

By Barbara Fluhrer

Born in Liberty, Missouri, Carl Blake, a virtuoso and respected pianist, made his most recent migration to the East Bay in 1999.

One might have seen him performing recently at Noontime Concerts in San Francisco, or at the Piedmont Center for the Arts in Oakland. He is Director of Music at The Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco. He was also co-organizer and collaborative pianist at Herbst Theater for The Majesty of the Spirituals concert in 2022 and has held several church positions in the Bay Area.

Blake obtained a Bachelor of Music from Boston University and continued post-baccalaureate studies in Jamaica before earning a Master of Arts in Music at San Jose State University. He was the recipient of two Fulbright residencies in Honduras and completed a third residency at the University of St. Petersburg in Russia. He has a Doctor of Musical Arts from Cornell University.

At age 19, Blake, then an undergraduate piano major at Boston University, was “discovered” by Impresario Dr. W. Hazaiah Williams, who is the Founder and Director of Today’s Artists/Four Seasons Arts.

Williams honored Blake by awarding him the first Marian Anderson Young Artist Award. Anderson personally presented the award at the Masonic Auditorium in S.F. Subsequently, Blake was presented by Dr. Williams in his San Francisco debut at The Herbst Theatre. Williams subsidized a year of study abroad for Blake at the Paris Conservatory of Music. Additionally, Williams sponsored Blake’s New York Weill Hall debut, where he has performed twice since. Blake performed several times at the Yachats Music Festival in Oregon.

Blake continues to perform nationally and abroad. His hobbies are reading, baking and travel. He says, “I’m still pumping ivories, as Belgian pianist Jeanne Stark described the disciplined practice of concert piano.”

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Arts and Culture

Oakland Jazz Great Offers Master Class as City Declares “John Handy Day”

World-renowned jazz master saxophonist John Handy, a McClymond’s High School graduate, was presented with a Mayor of Oakland Proclamation declaring Feb. 12, as John Handy Day in the city. Handy is most notably known as the featured saxophonist for Charles Mingus on “Goodbye Pork Pie Hat” from the album “Mingus Ah Um” (1959) and on “Hard Work” from his own album “Hard Work” (1976).

Published

2 months ago

February 24, 2024

Oakland Post

(L-R) Del Handy, John Handy, Roger Glenn, and Joe Warner celebrate John Handy Day at Geoffrey’s Inner Circle, Oakland. Photo by Lady Bianca.

By Conway Jones

World-renowned jazz master saxophonist John Handy, a McClymond’s High School graduate, was presented with a Mayor of Oakland Proclamation declaring Feb. 12, as John Handy Day in the city.

Handy is most notably known as the featured saxophonist for Charles Mingus on “Goodbye Pork Pie Hat” from the album “Mingus Ah Um” (1959) and on “Hard Work” from his own album “Hard Work” (1976).

“John Handy is a jazz icon and an inspiration to musicians everywhere,” said Ayo Brame, a 16-year-old Oakland tenor saxophone player who is enrolled at the Oakland School for the Arts.

In celebration of this day, the reception in downtown Oakland at Geoffrey’s Inner Circle was a gathering of artists, young and old, coming together in his honor and celebrating his 91st birthday.

Handy presented a Saxophone Colossus free masterclass for musicians. This class afforded a rare opportunity to learn about the saxophone from an aficionado. The class was free and open to all – saxophonists, vocalists, aficionados, students, and casual listeners.

“As a longtime friend for over 60 years, and fellow musician who has had numerous opportunities to share the stage with John, it has always been a pleasure performing with him and hearing his creative interpretations of the music and his gift of ease inspiring the next generation of jazz musicians,” said Roger Glenn, a multi-instrumentalist.

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Arts and Culture

Musical Chronicling Life of Betty Reid Soskin Set for Bay Area Debut

Betty Reid Soskin’s storied 102 years includes time spent as a WWII defense worker, activist, business owner, songwriter, National Park Service park ranger and so much more. Now the Richmond icon is the subject of a musical based on her incredible life.

Published

2 months ago

February 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Betty Reid Soskin. Photo courtesy of Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond.

The Richmond Standard

“Sign My Name to Freedom,” a San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company (SFBATCO) production which will focus on the life, music and writing of Ms. Soskin, will premiere at San Francisco’s Z Space Friday, March 29 and continue through Saturday, April 13. Tickets range from $15–$65 and can be purchased online at https://www.sfbatco.org/smntf

The musical is directed by Elizabeth Carter, while playwright Michael Gene Sullivan integrates Ms. Soskin’s own music throughout dialogue between what SFBATCO calls “The Four Bettys” as they progress through a century of experiences of this awe-inspiring American woman.

The cast of “Sign My Name to Freedom” features Tierra Allen as Little Betty, Aidaa Peerzada as Married Betty, Lucca Troutman as Revolutionary Betty and Cathleen Riddley as Present Betty Reid Soskin, according to Artistic Director Rodney Earl Jackson Jr. and Managing Director Adam Maggio. Other casting will be announced in the future.

Jackson said that having Soskin’s blessing to steward her life’s story is an honor and career highlight for him and that her journey stands as “a beacon for Black Americans, women and people of color all across the world [and] is a testament to the strength of the human spirit.”

San Francisco’s Z Space is located at 450 Florida St. in San Francisco. Check out the trailer here at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-ap9N2XBB0