Wally Amos founded Famous Amos Cookies in 1975 and was somewhat of a hero in Black communities. He was famous, and as far as everyone knew, he was successful. Amos told the panel of investors on the television show Shark Tank, “I’m a damn good promoter, but I’m not a business guy and my focus was not on how much money I was gonna make, I just wanted to have a good time,” explaining what happened when Amos sold his business and the rights to his cookie name in 1988. His 2016 pitch to the Shark panel for an investment in a new cookie brand, received a pass from all investors.
Amos is most remembered for his cookie brand, but he was also the first Black talent agent, moving from the William Morris Talent agency mailroom to representing talents like Simon & Garfunkel and the Supremes. Baking was his way to achieve calm, particularly as he ventured to open his own talent agency. He often took cookies to meetings, leading to demand, which he happily answered by opening his first Famous Amos location on Sunset Boulevard. His venture would be supported by initial investments from Marvin Gaye and Helen Reddy.
Amos, always seen with a smile, a hat, and a kazoo, made people happy with his cookies. Wally Amos passed away August 13th at his Honolulu home, at the age of 88.
August 2nd would have been James Baldwin’s 100th birthday. In recognition of the author’s sustaining impact on art and culture, another iconic artist released a new album. No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin is Meshell Ndegeocello’s 14th album and the result of her deepened relationship to Baldwin formed during the pandemic. As certain as Ndegeocello’s tribute to Nina Simone, Pour Une Ame Souveraine lifted the legendary artist back into our musical rotation, this new work lays down the musical backdrop to Baldwin’s work that draws us deeper into his words.
This year also marks the 60th Anniversary of Baldwin’s Broadway debut of Blues for Mr. Charlie and Baldwin’s Amen Corner continues to be produced in theaters nationwide. Among the dozens of essays, books, and plays written by Baldwin, some of his lesser-celebrated works are rare treasures. Harlem Ghetto Essay, Sonny’s Blues, and The Evidence of Things Not Seen, each display a unique dimension of James Baldwin’s sensitivity and humanity in contrast to his regular commentary on the brash realities that define America.
If you’ve seen Ndegeocello perform over the course of the past year, or viewed her Tiny Desk Concert, you’ve likely heard cuts from her musical homage to one of America’s most gifted literary and theatrical greats. Along with words by poets Audre Lorde and Staceyann Chinn, No More Water notes writing credits to Baldwin on at least half the tracks.
James Baldwin (1969), by Allan Warren; courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
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