Leadbelly

NOTES:

The scenes from the re-enactments of Leadbelly's story are striking. The March of Times Newsreel production makes me think of a term I'm not sure is correct: the term, exceptionalism, where narratives that are few and far between are tactically used to dispel certain harsh realities amongst the public consciousness. It seems that Leadbelly's story may have been especially fascinating to the American newsreel viewers because it is a narrative that is dramatic enough to fit within the racial narrative of the time - he is characterized, understood, and made comfortable within White American media. The snapshot of the stage scene where Leadbelly says his lines, acting as "himself," to the patriarch character, Alan Lomax, is especially fascinating. The composition of the frame exposes the dynamic while keeping it hidden in plain view. What else is hidden in plain view?