Anti-Gambling Movement Leaders in 1952 Phenix City

Present discussions regarding gambling here in Alabama are reminiscent of a time in the state’s past when Phenix City allowed many forms of gambling and state government officials looked the other way. Phenix City’s past was the subject of my documentary, “Up from the Ashes: The Rebirth of Phenix City.” I did the documentary, which was nominated for an Emmy Award, ten years ago. There has been renewed interest in Phenix City’s story recently because the state of Alabama is currently involved in a vigorous debate regarding bingo. Higher forms of gambling are forbidden here by state law, but bingo in various forms has been allowed for several years. Bingo began in Alabama as a way for non-profit organizations to raise money, but has escalated into big business in some locations. The governor has created a special task force which has taken action to end bingo operations, but the attorney general has ruled that the bingo operations are within the law. It appears that many people in the state would like to have an opportunity to vote on the issue.

Phenix City is located across the Chattahoochee River from Columbus, Georgia. It grew primarily as a bedroom community for the larger city of Columbus. The people of Phenix City worked in Columbus but were frequently the first workers to be cut when jobs had to be thinned. There just weren’t enough jobs for the people of Phenix City. Further, the town did not have a tax base large enough to support basic services. Gambling operations were proposed as a solution and they put it to a vote.

"They voted to authorize gambling to come in, illegally, of course, and they collected revenue in the form of licenses of illegal gambling operations," explains former Alabama governor John Patterson. "This was a conscious decision that the city fathers made."

The gambling operations provided jobs for the people of Phenix City and money for the city’s coffers. Since Columbus is home to Fort Benning, a large military operation, the customer base for Phenix City’s gambling was largely military men.

It started with a lottery, called "the Bug." On one occasion the building housing the lottery operation became so full of excited people that it literally collapsed. The lottery was just the beginning and Phenix City ultimately became the home of a powerful crime syndicate. The streets were lined with casinos. Alabama state law prohibited such operations, but state officials took no action either because they were paid off or because they were afraid of retaliation.

A few brave citizens in Phenix City banded together and managed to get local candidates to run on a platform opposing gambling. The gentlemen in the photo above were leaders in that movement. They were beaten outside the polling place on election day in 1952. As more people rallied to fight the crime, there were more beatings. There were bombings. And there was a murder. The murder of Phenix City attorney Albert Patterson following his election to the position of state attorney general brought national attention to the crime in Phenix City. Alabama’s governor took action, declaring marshall law. The National Guard took over the town and cleaned everything up in 1954. In 1955, Phenix City was awarded LOOK magazine’s All-America City award, given to cities that had been turned around by citizen involvement. Today it is a beautiful, thriving city.

For more about my documentary, visit http://maxshores.com/phenixcity

DVDs of “Up from the Ashes: The Rebirth of Phenix City” may be purchased for $21.00 each by calling 1-800-463-8825.

Max Shores.

Sunset over Kudzu

I was searching for a documentary topic when I called a friend to pick his brain. “You could do a documentary on kudzu,” he said and I was drawn into a field of tangled vines that hold me to this day. That conversation was in 1994 and in it I learned that my friend’s mother made baskets by weaving kudzu vines.

With the help of a student research assistant, I found fascinating people making things from kudzu, determined people trying to kill kudzu, and I unraveled the almost too strange to be true history of the kudzu plant in the US.

“The Amazing Story of Kudzu” was broadcast in Alabama in 1995 and distributed to PBS stations nationwide in 1996. I was interviewed by BBC Radio just before the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. They wanted to prepare visitors to Atlanta for the large areas of green vines they would witness. I have joked ever since about being one of the world’s leading scholars on kudzu.

The image of sunset over kudzu above was captured by cinematographer Greg McNair. I found what I thought would be the perfect spot to shoot it not knowing that Greg would have to stand in an ant bed. We used three thousand watts of light to illuminate the leaves in the foreground. The image has been used in textbooks and in brochures. It was also used as the backdrop for a conference on invasive plant species in China.

The simple web presence I created to promote this documentary remains popular today and I continue to get email questions about “the vine that ate the South.”

For more about kudzu, visit The Amazing Story of Kudzu.

Max Shores.

It was announced on December 30th, 2009 that "Songs Inside The Box," the cigar box guitar documentary won an Honorable Mention award from the Los Angeles Reel Film Festival. Despite the name, this isn’t a real film festival because it doesn’t include screenings of the selected films. It’s simply an awards competition, but I’m still quite honored that my work has been recognized.

According to the festival website:
"The Los Angeles Reel Film Festival was founded by a group of industry professionals whose aim is to seek out, acknowledge, and award the many talented independent filmmakers and screenwriters who may not get the recognition they deserve through many of the more political and commercial film festivals. The LARFF recognizes filmmakers and screenwriters who demonstrate exceptional achievement in craft and creativity. All genres of film, music videos and scripts are accepted by The LARFF and each will be judged thoroughly by accomplished award winning directors, producers and industry executives."

"Songs Inside The Box" is a really fun documentary and I’d like for as many people as possible to see it. If you haven’t yet, look for it on your PBS station in 2010. When I know dates, I’ll post them here.

The people who are in the documentary are the reason it has won several awards and I would like to thank them for sharing themselves through the documentary.

For more about "Songs Inside The Box," go to SongsInsideTheBox.com.

Pictured above: Robert Hamilton with Shane Speal, King of the Cigar Box Guitar

Max Shores.

Hill Country Troubadour
This film on Memphis street musician Richard Johnston won several film festival awards in 2006 & 2007, was screened in Germany and the United Kingdom in 2008, and was a featured film at the 2009 Deep Blues Film Festival. An early 2010 Paris screening is planned. You can subscribe to updates of this website for information on future opportunities to see this documentary. Click for more… Holy Smoke Over Birmingham
A mouth-watering survey of nine top barbecue restaurants in Birmingham, this documentary aired on Alabama Public Television in 2006 and was screened at the 2008 New York City Food Film Festival while New Yorkers dined on southern-style barbecued pork and chicken. This was my second barbecue documentary! Click for more…

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Max Shores.

The American Spiritual Ensemble
The American Spiritual Ensemble tours the world performing stirring renditions of traditional African-American spirituals. My associates and I recorded them in Tuscaloosa and their stunning performance aired on Alabama Public TV. Click for more…

The Chief: Calvin McGhee and the Forgotten Creeks
The Creeks Indians of south Alabama lived in isolation and poverty until Calvin McGhee came along. Despite treaty promises, they had been abandoned by the federal government. A farmer with only a fifth grade education, McGhee fought tirelessly for his people. Through court battles and meetings with government officials in which he wore traditional plains Indian clothing, McGhee brought the forgotten Creeks of the southeastern states to national attention.

The Ghosts of Selma
“History Lives in Selma,” says a local Chamber of Commerce brochure, and some folks there say they have seen people from Selma’s history come alive in the form of ghosts. Hear the stories of ruined banker John Parkman who opens doors at Sturdivant Hall; Miz Eliza, who greets guests at Grace Hall Bed and Breakfast; and Jeffery, who haunts Kathryn Tucker Windham, a Selma resident and author of ghost stories.

Holy Smoke over Birmingham
Public broadcasting consultants TracOne Media took note when Alabama Public TV aired this documentary featuring nine Birmingham BBQ restaurants. They suggested other stations follow the example by creating programs about local foods and the people who make them. Click for more…

How Sweet the Sound
Hard-driving rhythms and sweet harmonies from the ninth annual American Gospel Quartet Convention held in Birmingham during January of 2001. (This program is not available for sale.)

La Boheme at UA
The University of Alabama produced the first full-length opera for television in 1955. In 2005, the University celebrated the golden anniversary with a special concert which I edited for television. Click for more…

Miller’s Pottery — Turning For Generations
The Miller family has been making pottery in Alabama since the end of the Civil War. They supplied much-needed churns, jugs, and pots to customers of the past, and now their products appeal to collectors of folk art. Follow Eric Miller and his son Steve through the process of making Southern Stoneware, from digging the clay to firing the kiln in Brent, AL. Excerpts from this documentary are included in the Encyclopedia of Alabama.

A Taste of Hog Heaven
Public TV viewers in Alabama were treated to a tour of some of Alabama’s finest BBQ restaurants in this documentary. I actually got to sample the food, but they had to settle for mouth-watering images when “A Taste of Hog Heaven” aired on Alabama Public TV. Click for more…

DVDs may be purchased for $21.00 each
using Visa, MasterCard, or Discover by calling:
1-800-463-8825
(Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Central Time)

Mail orders send check or money order to:
University of Alabama Center for Public Television & Radio
P. O. Box 870150
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0150

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Max Shores.

Boomtown
Chronicles the explosive growth of Childersburg, Ala., when a World War II ammunition plant was located there. Includes extensive film footage from the 1940s and interviews with people who worked at the plant.

Bridges to the Past
Covered bridges served vital needs in the days of horse drawn transportation. Today they provide picturesque recreational attractions which give visitors insight into how people lived in the past. “Bridges to the Past” documents Alabama’s eleven remaining historic covered bridges which are open to the public. All were built from 1850 through the 1930’s. A few are still in use for motor traffic today, but most are limited to foot traffic. Click for more…

From Territory to State
The constitutional convention held in a Huntsville cabinetmaker’s shop paved the way for Alabama to become a state in 1819. The reconstructed shop is one of several buildings which make up Alabama Constitution Village, a living history museum where 1819 life is demonstrated by interpreters dressed in period attire. This study guide includes a glossary, discussion questions, and a concise summary of Alabama’s move to statehood. Click for online study guide…

In Search of DeSoto’s Trail
Traces the march of the Spanish explorer through Alabama and the Gulf states and highlights the work of Alabama archaeologists in documenting the history of his explorations.

On The Azalea Trail
Mobile, Alabama is widely known as “The Azalea City,” but the evergreen azaleas for which it is famous are not native to the area. These oriental plants with brilliant spring blooms were imported during the 1920s to create a tourist attraction known as the Azalea Trail. From the 1930s through the 1950s, tourists flocked to Mobile to see azaleas in bloom. Although the Azalea Trail’s attraction to tourists has declined in the ensuing years, its legacy still can be seen at Bellingrath Gardens, in the rise of Mobile’s horticulture industry, and at Mobile’s annual Festival of Flowers.

Sweet Home Alabama
The nineteenth-century homes featured in this program stand as monuments to a forgotten way of life that shaped the way we live today. Ranging from simple dogtrot cabins to elegant mansions, twenty rural and small-town homes are featured in short essays on topics such as architectural styles, the people who built them, or the people who care for them now. Based on the book, “Silent in the Land” by Chip Cooper, Harry Knopke, and Robert Gamble.

Up From the Ashes: The Rebirth of Phenix City
Phenix City had a reputation as being “the wickedest city in America” until the National Guard crushed a crime syndicate there in 1954. This program looks at the resurrection of Phenix City and shows how a group of boys fulfilled the vision of their ancestors and restored respect to their hometown by winning the national Little League Baseball championship in 1999. Click for more…

White Gold
Visit the historic salt works that supplied this valuable mineral to the Confederacy during the Civil War and tour modern industries that use Southwest Alabama salt to make products ranging from chlorine bleach to rocket fuel.

DVDs may be purchased for $21.00 each
using Visa, MasterCard, or Discover by calling:
1-800-463-8825
(Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Central Time)

Mail orders send check or money order to:
University of Alabama Center for Public Television & Radio
P. O. Box 870150
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0150

Return to Films Page

Max Shores.

Return to Films Page

Max Shores.