Adlai E. Stevenson:
“Freedom rings where opinions clash.” In every village, if it’s a healthy one, lives a provocateur—the one who was born to stir things up intentionally with some end in mind… focusing on the issues, not personalities. James Allen, as Publisher of the Random Lengths News, has held that role in our village for 30 years. The paper never fails to stimulate response and generate discussion about the complex issues of our port town and the entire Harbor Area. Happy Birthday Random Lengths News. The Chamber of Commerce wishes you another 30! —Camilla Townsend, San Pedro Chamber of Commerce President
Arts, Culture & Entertainment and Subversive Outsider Art by: Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor
W
hen Random Lengths was forged, it was done so at thought. But it included a fair share of critiques along with a a time when the country swung extremely to the right. It was parade of counter–examples. in fact, a retrenchment of forces progressives thought they Film is one of those platforms that captures the totality of had done away with the ousting of President Nixon. Presimoments in time ranging from attitudes, to value systems dent Ford was virtual place-holder that left the crook off the caused by events that became the touchstones of a given realhook when he came into office. President Jimmy Carter was ity. These films also reflect a running conversation between supposed to be the new start progressives had been waiting competing visions of the world. Critiques were presented for, even dying for after the extent of government surveilwhen such films such as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Conan: lance and repression was revealed. the Barbarian wowed audiences with his muscle clenches, Flipping through the pages of Random Lengths during the or Charles Bronson’s Death Wish franchise reflected the fear 1980s, it is clear that the progressives that were flipping the of white male impotence as the unwashed colored masses bird at authority in the 60s and 70s, didn’t simply go away, were storming the gates. but grew up, bought homes and took an interest in the neighYet, even as it critiqued what most would simply take for borhoods around them, noting that the same battles that had granted, Random Lengths highlighted alternatives others to be fought in the 60s and 70s still had to be fought on their might well overlook. It worked to link San Pedro to its prodoorstep—against the ports, gressive roots from Upton against the gas refineries and Sinclair to the Works Project coke plants, and against the Administration workers that chemical farms. built campus structures in Dana If that weren’t enough, these Middle School and San Pedro same new home owners, new High School, not forgetting to parents and hidden progressives mention the WPA murals on found that these battles had to each campus. be fought in front of their teleIn its early days, Random vision screens, movie theaters, Lengths encouraged San art galleries, and public places Pedro’s nascent arts scene, parwhere art was displayed. ticularly those who are considSo it was that collection of ered outsider artists whose work local activists who came towould not normally be seen in gether and picked up the gauntmuseums and government let with the founding of Ransponsored galleries in the 1950s dom Lengths, pushing back on WPA murals on display at Dana Middle School. and 60s. Random Lengths regureactionary forces intent on relarly featured exhibits displayed envisioning history. Alongside its coverage of community at the Greene Line Gallery on Pacific and 22nd Street and the and political struggles, Random Lengths encouraged a critiSixth Street Gallery in downtown San Pedro, ever linking cal deconstruction of reality as reflected on television and these artists to progressive precursors such as Conner Everts, film that no one seemed to question. It did this primarily by who in the 1950s founded the Exodus Group in San Pedro highlighting challenging alternatives in its arts, culture and along with Doug MacFadden. entertainment pages, through regular book, film and music To understand the context from which San Pedro’s art scene reviews, and with feature stories on important artists (from came, Everts’ was once indicted for pornography for his dislocal to national) and venues that incubated progressive play of a painting that depicted the head of a fetus peering
Real People. Real News.
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