Waiting in Line at the Drugstore and Other Writings of James Thomas Jackson - Softcover

Jackson, James Thomas

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0929398505 ISBN 13: 9780929398501

Publisher: University of North Texas Press, 1993

Synopsis

A black man's struggles from the Thirties through the Seventies provide the focus for this collection of essays, articles, fiction, and poetry. As a charter member of the Watts Writers Workshop, Jackson gained the attention and respect of Budd Schulberg for the stories of his childhood in Houston and his service in the army. A high school dropout, Jackson dedicated his life to writing, a habit that kept him in poverty; he worked at odd jobs until his death at age 59.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

Jackson was a hard worker. He did construction work, house-painting, and other odd jobs, like sweeping out a neighborhood bar. He had to work hard to support his all-consuming habit - writing. Charles Champlin of the Los Angeles Times says that Thomas wrote "irregularly, idiosyncratically, entertainingly, personally and, above all, passionately.... His opinions, forceful but fair, were measured against a life that had never been easy but that had seemed to leave him, despite all, with a profound philosophical optimism that better days were coming". From a black perspective, Jackson's work forms a particular and important testimony, both positive and negative, about life in the United States from the 1930s through the 1970s, and about life in the Army during the 1950s. One of Thomas's friends, noted producer and playwright Ned Bobkoff, wrote upon learning of the publication of the collection: "There is an indelible connection between the Watt's Riots, the Rodney King incident - the outbreak of pain in L.A. - and the sudden renewed interest in James's work... The cycle is with us again. James had a real vision about time and place that may be the important contribution of his writing".

About the Author:

James Thomas Jackson left Houston for the promise of Los Angeles about the time of the Watts Riots, joined Budd Schulberg's Watts Writers Workshop and began writing for the Los Angeles Times Sunday arts magazine. From a black perspective, Jackson's work forms a particular and important testimony, both positive and negative, about life in the United States from the 1930s through the 1960s. Jackson died in 1985.

About this edition

• Publisher: University of North Texas Press
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0929398505
• ISBN 13: 9780929398501
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 277