Yesterday afternoon, about three hours before the cameras went on, I spotted Crosby Kemper III sitting at his usual table overlooking the Central Library's Nine Muses Café. Legs crossed. Eyes pitched down at some reading. I figured he must be cramming some last minutes facts about his first interview subject for the KCPT Channel 19-produced series, Meet the Past With Crosby Kemper III.
Last year, the library director earned the institution a regional Emmy Award nomination when he interviewed local scholar Bill Worley as notorious political boss Tom Pendergast. That initial event has grown into a full-blown series this year, raising a handful of local historical celebrities from the dead to sit opposite Kansas City's library director, Oprah Winfrey talk-show style.
Wondering if he'd spent the afternoon delving into the life of his pending subject, Langston Hughes, I caught up with Kemper a few minutes before the taping. I should have known that his preparation was far more extensive than a café cram session. He'd read the poet's collected works, his autobiography and all 820 pages of Arnold Rampersad's two-volume biography.
He'd met with the Hughes re-enactor, Charles Everett Pace, too. Not to script the conversation or rehearse but to outline the subjects they'd discuss. "It's all about the spontaneity," Kemper said.
So are you nervous, I asked, knowing this guy loves an audience.
"Of course," he said. "Very."
Kirk Hall wasn't packed to capacity, but the 300-plus crowd watched with rapt attention. Kemper did seem nervous at first; he had to sheepishly switch chairs when the camera crew signaled that he'd sat in the wrong one. But Charles Everett Pace was cool and comfortable from the minute he stepped onto the stage.
The banter got rolling quickly. They both indulged in jabs at topographically challenged Kansas. They interrupted each other on occasion. Kemper teased Hughes about the poet's legion of women. Pace feigned indignation and asked Kemper, jokingly, who had done his research.
But the substance was there, too. The library director threw out provocative insights and quotes from the poet's past. Pace answered many of the questions with the slow contemplation of somebody considering the queries for the first time. It led to revelations about Hughes' family, his political views and the poet's creative process.
But it didn't drag like a force-fed history lesson. I left feeling like I'd just read the best 20 pages of all those volumes about Hughes and his work -- only I'd actually been kicking back with a glass of wine and letting the professionals do the work for me.
Not being a television watcher myself, I don't know how well it will translate to the small screen. But the live event is well worth the free entry and complimentary snacks. Next Tuesday, Ann Birney plays Amelia Earhart. On April 28, Ray Starzmann portrays Harry Truman.
In the meantime, Kemper is taking on another role: comedic actor. Next Wednesday, he'll appear at the Plaza Library with the Tantrum improv troupe. And, yeah, he's a little nervous about that gig, too.
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