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 The hungry i
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RUN FOR YOUR LIFE
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PAT McCASKY is keeping the flag flying for all lovers of great folk music (see below about his new CD). He shares here a random assortment of hungry I recollections, some of his Dad, the I's legendary emcee, STAGG McMANN.
My father, who played harmonica and did a comedy act, worked at the hungry i off and on for many years as an emcee. My first memory is of ALVA BESSIE. He appeared on so many recordings made there as the voice who would introduce the performers by saying, "Good evening ladies and gentlemen. The Hungry i is proud to present..." The thing I remember is my father telling me that Alva found work there as a sound and light man, but that his profession was as a writer, and that he was ruined by the HUAC hearings under Joe McCarthy. I also remember how decades later they put him on the cover of "Rolling
Stone."
Close by was the club the PURPLE ONION. Various folk and variety performers also worked there. In between the two clubs was a hamburger place called CLOWN ALLEY, and many of the people from the North Beach clubs would hang out there before, after, and in- between shows. ENRICO BANDUCCI owned Clown Alley (along with the hungry i, and several other clubs). I remember that my father said that Enrico did not think that the SMOTHERS BROTHERS were very talented, and that he would not book them, so they played in San Francisco at the Purple Onion. I remember an evening when my father, the LIMELITERS (LOU GOTTLIEB., ALEX HASSILEV., AND GLEN YARBROUGH) and the Smothers Brothers were all sitting in Clown Alley (where I worked during the summers) and Enrico came in and sat at the counter. TOM SMOTHERS simply went up to the counter and sat next to Enrico just to bug him.
The Hungry i often painted the wall outside the club like a billboard with the headliner's name. This then would appear on the cover of record albums.
Some names from the roster of singers and comics I enjoyed at the hungry i and/or Purple Onion include: The Limelighters, TOM POSTON, DON KNOTTS, LOUIE NYE, JONATHAN WINTERS, THE KINGSTON TRIO, STAN WILSON, JOSH WHITE JUNIOR, BARBRA STREISAND (upstairs first in the lounge before she made the main room), PROFESSOR IRWIN CORY, MIKE NICHOLS AND ELAINE MAY, BOB NEWHART, PETER PAUL AND MARY.
A couple of stories:
Lou Gottlieb was fighting off bill collectors when the first album hit for the Kingston Trio (the one with Tom Dooly on it). One of the songs on the album (“Saro Jane”) was written by Lou, and I remember my father saying how that first royalty check was a life saver. My father also offered advice to the three groups (Kingston Trio, PP&M and the Limeliters) when he worked with them. He didn't think that the first two had much of a future, but that the Limeliters were sure to become a big hit. We can't all be right. Lou had an advanced degree (PhD) in music. He was also a great actor. Those who remember his delivery of lines in "Have Some Madera M'dear" and his brief appearance in the movie "Alice B Toklas" will attest to this. My father tried to arrange for me to take guitar lessons from Alex Hassilev, but it didn't work out. This past year I briefly met with Glen Yarbrough in Harrisburg, PA, where he was doing his first show after throat surgery.
I recently read the note on this site about BUD AND TRAVIS and LENNY BRUCE, and remember that the first coffee house where I ever performed (with TERRY ROSS) was in Mill Valley, and I think that I was told then that BUD DASHIELL had an ownership interest there.
One night my father came home and told us about the unbelievable "girl singer" upstairs (not in the main room) at the hungry i. I remember him talking about how "good her pipes were." Her name was Barbara Streisand.
Then there were all of the crazy antics surrounding Jonathan Winters. Dad worked with him at several different places. He seemed to be truly a bit off. He did climb the mast of a ship in the bay claiming that the Martians were coming. I used to have several tapes of him. One was of him bringing my dad back on stage for another bow (after opening for him in Berkeley), and joking with him about his stage name. The other tape was made at the hungry i one day when the club was closed. It was hilarious, and totally unprintable due to the language. Both Lenny Bruce and GEORGE CARLIN would have been proud of Jonathan that day.
Anybody who saw Professor Irwin Cory perform would know that he was one of the funniest entertainers alive. He would open his act with at least 5 minutes where he did not say a single word. By the time he yelled, "HOWEVER" into the mike the audience was rolling in the isles.
Pat McCasky
August 2004
 Pat McCaskey
Pat McCasky refers to himself as a “folk singer from the old school,” and can be heard live regularly, particularly in the Pennsylvania area. To be treated to some samples from his latest CD, “McCaskey,” check out http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mccaskey.
After his early singing days in the sixties around the Bay Area - and later Pennsylvania and Boston areas, Pat suffered an accident which prevented him from playing the guitar, but went on to a career as a professor. Only in 2002 did he start singing again, and incredibly, discovered that his fingers had discovered new nerve pathways, and he was able to play guitar once more - better than ever!
Visit his website at www.patmccaskey.com
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  CONTENTS
Clubs
Cosmo Alley by Barbara Dane
Terrea Lea on The Garret
Dolan Ellis on Portofino's
The Troubadour by Dian James
The Cellar Door by Betty Mann
The hungry i by Pat McCaskey
The Golden Bear, Huntington Beach
the Iopan, Santa Barbara
Cosmo Alley by Don Gold
Ice House, Pasadena
People/Groups
Stan Wilson by Travis Edmonson
Bonnie Dobson on Morning Dew
Lenny Bruce by Travis Edmonson
.... And Everything Else
Hootenanny" Show by Dian James
 For More of the best in 1960s entertainment, Click the logo above to check out the ultimate illustrated guide to "I Spy" with Robert Culp and Bill Cosby at www.l23.org
 You might not have realized that Gateway Singer Travis Edmonson was also one half of the ground-breaking duo Bud & Travis, and that all their great albums were remastered to the highest standard, and are available for purchase on Travis' official site www.travisedmonson.com
Keep the Bud & Travis legacy alive. A must visit for all Gateway fans!
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