Friday, February 03, 2012

Somebody Else, Somewhere Else: The Raymond Andrews Story

The Madison-Morgan Cultural Center and the Morgan County African-American Museum are collaborating to present Somebody Else, Somewhere Else: The Raymond Andrews Story, an independent documentary film by Jesse Freeman, about the life of Georgia writer Raymond Andrews (1934-1991). The film will be shown at the Madison-Morgan Cultural Center auditorium on Sunday, February 12 at 2:00 pm. A question and answer session with the filmmaker and a reception will follow the screening. There is a suggested donation of $5.00 at the door.

Andrews is best known for his novel, APPALACHEE RED, a riotous tale of racial redemption set in the fictional Muskhogean County, a location modeled after Andrews’ birthplace, Morgan County, Georgia. APPALACHEE RED was followed by ROSIEBELLE LEE WILDCAT TENNESSEE and BABY SWEET'S. All three novels, known collectively as the Muskhogean Trilogy, are available from the University of Georgia Press. Andrews other works include a memoir, The Last Radio Baby, and a collection of novellas called Jessie and Jesus and Cousin Claire.

Raymond Andrews was one of ten children born into a sharecropping family in Morgan County. He was part of the great intellectual migration of African Americans away from the rural South to the urban North. After fighting in the Korean War, Andrews studied at Michigan State University and later moved to New York City. Raymond Andrews was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame in 2009.

Somebody Else, Somewhere Else features archival footage of interviews with the writer, as well as original interviews with his friends, family members, fellow writers, and literary scholars. The film includes an interview with Raymond’s brother, Benny Andrews, who was a renowned visual artist. Benny and Raymond shared a close but complicated relationship that informed each of their bodies of work. Other interviewees include the novelists Philip Lee Williams, Terry Kay, Tony Grooms, Richard Bausch, and Gary Gildner.

The Madison-Morgan Cultural Center is a non-profit performing and visual arts center located at 434 S. Main Street in historic Madison, Georgia.

Other resources on the life and work of William Andrews include the New Georgia Encyclopedia and a special issue of the Georgia Review published to coincide with "Once Upon a Time in Athens," the journal's two-day appreciation of Andrews in fall 2010.