Pam Grier Recalls A Troubadour Incident

[Norbert K]

"At the Oscars rehearsal, they asked me to join them to see the Smothers Brothers -- John Lennon, Harry Nilsson, and Peter Lawford. I'd never been to the Troubadour. The Smothers Brothers were coming on, and everybody said, "John, be quiet." They start the show, and he turned to me and said, "They're f*cking boring." And I went, "Shhhhh!" The manager came up, and said, "John, come on. No one would do this to you. Please." The manager walks away, and John says, "Pam, c'mon, let's sing!" And I went, "No, John, please don't sing! I'm the only black person in this whole club. I cannot do this." So he started singing, and the manager comes up again, and the next thing you know, chairs were thrown, legs and fists were flying, and I'm in the middle of it. I had to fight my way out of there."

-- Pam Grier, in a New Yorker intervew