<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=3>In a message dated 1/16/03 11:43:04 PM Central Standard Time, Paigevan@cs.com writes:<BR>
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<BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">As to Kenton, he appears to have been a racist. Gary Giddins wrote a <BR>
hilarious analysis of Kenton on Visions of Jazz which, among other things <BR>
indicates that Kenton favored George Wallace's presidential candidacy and <BR>
that Kenton's followers used to send out notices of his appearances etc with <BR>
the initials KKK (for Keep Kenton Kicking) as a return address. </BLOCKQUOTE><BR>
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Appears to have been a racist? Conjecture by Gary Giddins is not enough reason to print rumors like this. I never heard anything of Kenton being a racist and I've known guys who played with him. I seriously doubt the KKK thing and if it did happen, Kenton had nothing to do with it. I"ve never heard of any jazz fans or musicians anywhere doing something like that. <BR>
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As has been pointed out, Paige, Leonard Feather started the bogus race accusations against Kenton.<BR>
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Jim Beebe</FONT></HTML>