Connie Williams (Trinidadian)

Connie Williams was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad. She was a restaurateur, culture-bearer, and community organizer.[1] She opened the Calypso Restaurant in Greenwich Village, New York City, in 1943.[2] The restaurant, first located at 146 MacDougal Street, served West Indian cuisine in an ambiance of music from Trinidad. Her restaurant later moved to 51 MacDougal Street. Among the early integrated establishments in the Village,[3] It sponsored costume balls and galas throughout the 1940s and early 50s, often at Irving Plaza, off Union Square.[4] it served as a Bohemian gathering place[5][6] where intellectuals and artists could hear West Indian music and eat West Indian food.

Williams was a mentor for the young James Baldwin,[7] who worked for Williams when he was 19 years of age, after moving from Harlem to Greenwich village when his stepfather died.[8] In the early 1960s,after relocating to the West Coast, she opened Connie's Restaurant in the Haight-Ashbury section of San Francisco. She later moved her restaurant to the Fillmore District, San Francisco, after the Hippie movement in the Haight-Ashbury provided limited clientele.[7]

Biography

Little is known about Williams's early years in Trinidad. A devotee of calypso, she published a booklet in 1959 entitled "12 Songs from Trinidad" which included two songs about the British West Indian labour unrest of 1934–39 oilfield strike in Trinidad: 'King Flecky' and another based on the World War I calypso "Run Your Run Kaiser William".[9]

In 1943 the Calypso Restaurant opened and James Baldwin was hired as a busser and dish washer. Early in Baldwin's career at the Calypso he met artists, writers, and activists such as Beauford Delaney (the modernist painter who introduced James Baldwin to Connie Williams in 1943), Marlon Brando (then an acting student), and labor organizer Stan Weir (academic). With the encouragement and support of Williams and Delaney the young Baldwin developed as a writer and intellectual.[8] Williams remained friends with Baldwin throughout his life, hosting a birthday party for him on 20 May 1963 at her San Francisco restaurant on Fillmore Street.[1][10] Connie took the young James Baldwin 'under her wing'.[11][12][13][14] Other artists, performers, and intellectuals who frequented The Calypso included Henry Miller, C. L. R. James, Tennessee Williams, Eartha Kitt, Paul Robeson, Richard Wright (author), Grace Lee Boggs, and Paul Robeson.[6][15][16]

During and after the U.S. calypso boom which peaked during WWII, Williams promoted many prominent calypsonians and bandleaders in New York City—Gerald Clark, MacBeth the Great, Lord Invader, Wilmoth Houdini, The Duke of Iron, and others—whom she hired to play at holiday dances and carnival balls. These events also featured dancers such as Ismay Andrews and Pearl Primus. [17]

In 1962 Connie founded Connie's West-Indian Restaurant in San Francisco's Haight Ashbury. The restaurant was a favorite for black intellectuals and, like her West Village restaurant, was frequented by James Baldwin when he came to San Francisco.[18]

In 1969, Connie's Restaurant relocated to 1909 Fillmore St in San Francisco after the Hippie "invasion" of Haight-Ashbury.[19]

In 1976 Connie organized the first carnival in San Francisco.[20]

Connie was the founder of Carijama Oakland Carnival, a San Francisco Bay Area carnival begun in the 70s. She was also one of the founders of the Carnival West Coast Caribbean Association.[2][21][22][23]

Quotes

In 1979, in an interview, Williams talked about her experience with artists and people she met. “All the people I met…were bohemians…and I guess I was too. That's why I've never had any money.

“To look at me now, you'd think I was born fat but I wasn't. I used to pose for these young artists. Fifty cents an hour. Then I'd take the money and buy food and cook it for them. That would happen two, three times a week.”

References
  1. Nation, Big Drum. "CONNIE WILLIAMS: Restaurateur, Social Worker, Storyteller, and Author". Bigdrumnation.com. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  2. "Disc 1 | The "Extra-Illustrated" Calypso Craze". Calypsocraze.wordpress.com. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  3. "caribnet/2005/11/07/awards". Caribbeannewsnow.com. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  4. "BigDrumNation – Lady Beginner, First Lady of Grenada Calypso". Bigdrumnation.org. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  5. Harris, R.L.; Terborg-Penn, R. (2008). The Columbia Guide to African American History Since 1939. Columbia University Press. p. 176. ISBN 9780231138116. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  6. "Greenwich Village Walking Tour". Travel Studies. Archived from the original on 26 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  7. "Connie Williams: Pioneer of calypso, Trini cuisine in the US". 25 September 2022.
  8. "Literary ManhattanPlace | | the Calypso". Archived from the original on 26 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  9. Cowley, John (1998). John Cowley, Carnival, Canboulay, and Calbyps. ISBN 9780521653893. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
  10. Weir, Stan (25 February 2018). Singlejack Solidarity. U of Minnesota Press. ISBN 9781452906720 – via Google Books.
  11. Young, J. (2014). James Baldwin's Understanding of God: Overwhelming Desire and Joy. Palgrave Macmillan US. ISBN 9781137454348. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  12. Leeming, D. (2015). James Baldwin: A Biography. Arcade Publishing. ISBN 9781628724691. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  13. Schwarz, B.; Kaplan, C. (2011). James Baldwin: America and Beyond. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 9780472027613. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  14. Harris, T. (1996). New Essays on Go Tell It on the Mountain. Cambridge University Press. p. 6. ISBN 9780521498265. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  15. "Meetings with James Baldwin". Libcom.org. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  16. Boggs, G.L. (1998). Living for Change: An Autobiography. University of Minnesota Press. p. 138. ISBN 9781452903309. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  17. "Calypso in America, Pioneer of Trini Cuisine".
  18. "If You're Going to San Francisco…. : Ruth Reichl". Ruthreichl.com. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  19. "Summer Of Love Look Back: Mayor's Hippieland Trip To 'Connie's Restaurant'". Hoodline. 28 July 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  20. "The Birth of Carnaval on the Streets of San Francisco". FoundSF. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  21. "Center for the Study of Political Graphics". Collection-politicalgraphics.org. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  22. "New Page 3". Carnaval.com. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  23. "Who's Who In Carnaval San Francisco". Carnaval.com. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
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