After receiving only four responses to the seventy letters he sent out asking “What the Negroes Can Do To Better Themselves in Peoria,” the Peoria Journal Star‘s Bill Conver was prompted to conduct a post-mortem on why his inquiry failed.
Peoria
A digital companion to the biography Becoming Richard Pryor
Story Of A Failure…Why Didn’t Our Negroes Answer?
Date: 11/9/1960
Citation:
Bill Conver, “Story Of A Failure…Why Didn’t Our Negros Answer?,” Peoria Journal Star, Nov. 9, 1960.
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1. Young Richard, the Fly in the Buttermilk
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Richard’s School Record
–1945-1955–Richard struggled to find his way through Peoria's schools
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Richard on a Sixth-Grade Field Trip
–3/1/1954–The great comedian-to-be in Springfield, next to a statue of the Great Emancipator
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Walter Fink
–6/1/1958–The ninth-grade science teacher whom Richard rubbed the wrong way
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Deal With Teacher Gave Pryor First Audience
–12/26/82–Sixth-grade teacher Mrs. Yingst offered a stage of sorts to the young Richard
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Classmate Recalls Pryor’s School Days
–5/10/1985–Margaret Kelch witnessed Richard's struggles at school
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2. Richard's World Under Attack
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Eight Arrested Here in Narcotics Raid
–4/8/1953–Richard's Uncle Dickie was netted in Peoria's first major drug sting in years
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8 Jailed Here in Narcotic Raid
–4/9/53–Uncle Dickie was arrested with heroin and marijuana, and under suspicion of turning women to prostitution
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Bell Captured in St. Louis on Dope Charges
–4/10/1953–Jimmy Bell, a band leader at the Famous Door, fled to St. Louis when his partner was caught in drug bust
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Bris Collins’ Tap Raided, Closed; Baseball Pool Czar Fined $1,000
–5/23/1953–“Cleaning up Peoria” meant more raids on Bris Collins' place
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State to Clear 14 Buildings Here
–7/9/1953–Richard Pryor's childhood home was demolished to make way for the Murray Baker Bridge
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Joe Eagle Indicted on Lie Charges
–7/2/1954–Joe Eagle, a fellow N. Washington St. brothel owner, was charged with perjury and tax evasion
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Harold’s Club Liquor License Revoked
–7/21/1961–Peoria's Mayor threatened the livelihood of Harold's Club by taking away its liquor license
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Day v. Illinois Liquor Commission
–1/24/1963–Mayor Day did everything in his power to shut down Harold Parker's club
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3. Peoria, Clean as a Whistle?
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Which Side Are You On?
–1951-1952–Peoria's reformers imagined they were pitted against bossism and corruption
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Eleven “All-America” Cities of 1953
–2/1954–Reformed Peoria, an "All-America" City
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All-America Cities
–2/9/1954–“Good Government” comes to Peoria
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Peoria Mayor Vows to Push Fight On Vice
–5/22/1954–Peoria's new reform-oriented mayor was undaunted by the bombing of his home
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Is it True What They Say About Peoria?
–mid-1950s–Whisper Magazine punctured Peoria's reputation as an All-American city
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Now They’re Proud of Peoria
–8/55–Feminist pioneer Betty Friedan praised World War II veterans for turning around Peoria.
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The Town That Reformed
–10/1/1955–Reform meant a new, professionalized city management, but did not go uncontested
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4. The Riddle of Black Peoria
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The Carver Center’s 10th Anniversary
–1954–Celebrating ten successful years, the Carver Center released a report on its progress.
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A Gallery of the Carver Center’s First 10 Years
–1954–Modern dance and checkers, jazz and basketball — all were on tap at the Carver Center
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Carver Center Steps Toward Expansion
–08/21/56–Pryor's time onstage at Carver was the era of its greatest expansion
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The Story Of The Negro In Peoria — Chapter 1
–04/05/1957–Sparked by the postwar surge in Peoria's black population, the Journal Star surveyed the state of black Peoria
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Housing Effort By Tenants Succeeds, Fails
–04/16/1957–A case study in white resistance to desegregated housing in Peoria
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270 Sign Up For Carter Program
–09/20/1957–The 1957 Center curriculum ranged from baton-twirling and canasta to scenery building and choir
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Carter Center Given ‘Once Over’ By Student
–10/20/1957–Reportage on the Carver Center, from the point of view of a suburban high schooler
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Human Relations Report Cites Negro Gains Here
–01/26/1959–Despite recent accomplishments, overcrowding in the “black belt” of Peoria remained a problem
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Carver Center Reports 2,558 Enrolled
–09/29/59–A quarter of Peoria's black population were enrolled in Carver Center activities in 1959
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Story Of A Failure…Why Didn’t Our Negroes Answer?
–11/9/1960 –Why did so few blacks in Peoria respond to a newspaperman's basic question?
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Teacher Gives Wisdom, Challenge To Negroes
–11/10/1960–A Peorian teacher emphasized education in the fight for desegregation
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How Much of Racial Inequity Can Negroes Overcome?
–11/11/1960–Who was to blame for low black social mobility — Peoria or blacks themselves?
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The Enchanted Cage
–11/27/1962–Carver Center teens, including later Black Panther Mark Clark, rehearsed a scene from “The Enchanted Cage”
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