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I think it's funny as hell. If he was at parties with Errol Flynn and the likes would have had to know, and just didn't care. It just goes to show, it isn't really about skin color. It's about personality. If someone's an asshole, they're an asshole, regardless of color.
My sister modeled for the Korla Pandit album "Love Letters" in 1961. Her name was Billie Harden. She was a model in San Fransisco back in the late fifties and early sixties. Sadly she passed in 2019.
I took a few one on one organ lessons with Korla about 50 years ago. I still recall him , playing "Happy Birthday" during one of these lessons when I turned 20. He was a unique talent, a product of his times, and a thrill to watch on a large theater organ. I think some of his playing can be heard here on TH-cam. Give it a listen.
My mom is 87 and remembers him. I said “Hey, as it turns out, he’s not Indian. He’s Black.” My mom said, “yeah, I knew!” Her friends had told he probably was.( she was a teacher in Oakland, CA; for 40 years. And nearly all of her teacher friends were Black. As were most of her students.) She also said she knew that Rock Hudson was Gay back in the 1950s. She said a lot of people knew and didn’t care.
@@lindseycarribean5113 He was Black. He portrayed his character in “Purple Rain” as biracial. And, at least in the 80s, claimed that he was “Italian”. He also didn’t date or marry Black women. He only dated biracial, Latina, and White women. I’m not sure if you were being facetious. But I do remember when he passed, his one full sister, Tykka, made a point of saying he was Black.
@stephanie Brittney He was Parsi Indian. Parsi are from Iran and they migrated to India. They are Zoroastrian and fled Iran when it was conquered by Arab Muslims. So Freddie’s background was Persian/Iranian and not Indian.
@@katrinaolsen2444 parsis actually have Indian mothers because they carry haplogroup M maternally. Their paternal ancestry is Iranian So yes, Freddie Mercury is an Indian because Freddie Mercury doesn't count as Indian, then neither do north indians who are paternally R1a and maternally M also. Indian means anybody with Indian ancestry paternally or maternally. Parsis are maternally Indians more than many upper caste who are maternally foreign also.
@@richardharden4437 Yes!...I have seen the movie--I had remembered his little proto-music videos that he was in, during the mid-1950s on local TV in Seattle...these vids were sold by him to various outlets in those days, and used as "filler" in the afternoon programming schedules. He was a fascinating guy, mysterious looking, staring at the camera while his hand would glide suggestively over the B3 Organ...it turns out that tens of thousands of housewife-types constituted his fan base....It was a revelation to find out that, instead of being some exotic fella from India, he was some semi-dark skinned Afro American, who was a good player in nightclubs, moved to LA, met his pretty, White wife, who worked for Disney as an illustrator...Together, they invented his TV image, using makeup on his naturally sexy-looking, large eyes, wearing that cool turban!...He was successful into the mid 1960s...but eventually he and his wife moved to BC Canada, to avoid having their sons drafted into the VietNam debacle...What good parents!
There is also a man of sicilian heritage that passes as black and was a jazz musician and also made movies for the african american audiences where he usually portrayed a black cowboy
Good for him! Pulling that charade off for so many years. After all, what is TV and Hollywood? It’s people portraying themselves as something other than what they really are. I hope that he laughed all the way to the bank!
Saw Korla at the Veterans Home in Yountville, California sometime in the 90's. My friend and I went for a laugh, but it wasn't a bad show. The older audience loved it.
From 1963 to 1966, I spent weeks at at time, daily, at the Pandit family home in San Anselmo CA -- with my friend Karom "Chris" Pandit. "Chris" and I were 10 years old when we met. That household became a lifelong inspiration. If "Chris" knew of his father's ruse, he said nothing about it. Korla was a generous and dignified person -- never treating me or his sons like children. Mrs. Pandit was equally gracious. (Highlight: On one of many similar occasions, I was invited to go to a local movie theater to see The Days Of Wine And Roses with the family. Two thins about that: 1] I learned plenty about dealing with alcoholics, that has served me well 2] When we got back to their house, "Chris" played things from the whole soundtrack score on the livingroom Steinway, from memory.) Korla lived what Hollywood taught him and while there wasn't much racism in our hometown in the 1950s-1960s, Korla had the perfect trick for subverting that kind of thing. I never heard a bad word spoken about him. Brilliant.
Had no idea he was a black man. Watched him frequently in the 1950s on L.A. television. Met him personally many years later when he had a booth at a large exposition in the L.A. area. He performed and sold his albums. Seemed like a nice guy and spoke perfect English. Still wearing his turban and jewel.
This is my take on the Korla Pandit story. While the reasons for the ruse certainly are tragic and don't speak well for the state of society at the time, I believe Korla was truly able to turn his experience into something good. In addition to creating some fascinating music, Korla also made it a point to spread a positive message of love, peace and spiritualism. I think he studied Hindu culture and took it to heart. It might not be a stretch to say that he effectively became what he wanted people to believe he was. His story certainly demonstrates the silliness of pigeonholing people based on their ethnicity. That's the lesson I'd like to take from all this.
Look, Hollywood and Music are all about reinventing yourself into a Larger-than-Life persona. John Robert Redd, a lighter-skinned black man born in St. Louis, Mo. and spent his boyhood in Hannibal (my birthplace and boyhood home also). His wife worked at Disney, and helped him in his makeover into Korla Pandit. Come on, man. Man was a freaking genius on keyboards. Let him have his moment!
I am 77 years old now, in my younger days, me and my neighbors got together around the TV in the afternoon, to watch and hear the magic of Koria Pandit. I don't remember what the year was, or how old I was but we enjoyed the show.
At least 3 times the author shows a photo of Sabu…which is insulting. His wife Beryl did not work as an animator at Disney, her father did (most notably on Pinocchio). Beryl worked in the makeup department. Also, he did not forget a lot of English. When he wasn’t performing or out in public he was himself, John Redd, and always had a family member (niece or nephew) with him. Yes, lots of folks knew…especially his entire family & extended family, with a couple of exceptions. He was a cousin of mine and I’m one of his biographers.
@@sitzar Though born under the term "Negro", he is,plausibly, of mixed heritage?One may assume he has African and French,even Irish,forebears in New Orleans. I meant Creole in the French Caribbean sense,a heritage my grandfather shared.
@@MrResearcher122 He was not Creole, nor of French ancestry. His paternal line was from Virginia slaves. His maternal line was from Missouri slaves whose Langford ancestry was part Caucasian, from England.
Korla Pandits story is a reason why Critical Race Theory needs to be taught. You guys act like he made a theatrical choice when in reality he passed as NOT Black in the 1950s for survival reasons. John Roland Redd couldn't make the same type of living playing a mysterious and SEDUCTIVE BLACK MAN and be accepted to the same degree in society at that time. Why you all are dancing around this reality is incredible to me.
@@curbozerboomer1773 its not whining at all... read the comments..everyone is talking about how he wasnt really indian but NO ONE is talking about why that was and if they do its more along the lines of a some kind of theatrical choice like Marion Robert Morrison changing his name to John Wayne...except Marion Robert Morrison didn't say he was John Wayne a person from a completely different racial group because his own real racial group closed doors for him. Stop deluding yourself about REAL American history.
@@nic-tv4090 It IS whining. This is 2021, not 1950. My grandmother had to pass and I know the toll it takes. That's the way it was then, not now. We've moved on. I might suggest you do the same.
@@MissCane9 if you know the toll it takes on a person to pass then stop acting like Korla Pandit was some persona he took on because he was goofing around. Again READ THE OTHER COMMENTS and see how people delude themselves about the realities of how American society was then... And miss me with that "just move on" bs...the subject is about a man who in the 50s had to litterally change who he was just to live a life as a musician. The time period was what it was...I'm just CORRECTING people who believe that man faked his life as some kind of light hearted entertainment trip. Thats not the case now if they just understand and accept that we can all MOVE ON.
As a child I loved watching his show, and yes his eyes were mesmerizing. A shame that this video didn’t include a note of his playing. Would have added a lot.
What is odd here is the photo of him with the famous Yogananda. HE would surely have known that Korla was not from India. Makes you wonder. Did he just go along to get some of the limelight?
Why would Paramahansa Yogananda judge John Redd for his act? Some would say he had quite an act himself. I don't know about that, I tried to read his "Autobiography Of A Yogi" and let's say I wasn't convinced.
Except in a Documentary by John Turner abased on an article by a R.J. Smith in Los Angeles Magazine. In fact, I met Korla in 1985 at a performance he did in El Segundo for largely Senior Citizens who were his original fans decades ago. Korla was staying with a friend Mike Copner a movie theater projectionist and publisher of Fanzines of old Hollywood, etc. I told him I believed I could help bring Korla before a Hipster youth audience and he was very interested. So I dedicated a year of my life seeking out possible venues, Co-Producers etc. eventually bringing Korla to an infamous underground/ alternative bookstore in Silverlake called AMOK where I visited before and became acquainted with owners Stewart Sweezy and Brian King the proprietors. As a sideline they were very successful at creating and promoting large Hipster events on the edgy, exotic side. Over a breakfast at a local greasy spoon coffee shop I had them sold. The L.A. Times read their press releases and ran a story on Korla and his upcoming performance in 1987 at the Park Plaza Theater (Several months later our template was copied by someone else who had an “Exoticon”there) . It was a real seat of the pants effort with a skeleton crew but a huge success. Two of the Cramps a big name L.A. Punk Band and Mike Kelly (a world famous L.A. Artist ) showed-up to name a couple of celebrity curiosity seekers. I the years that followed, I was Korla’s driver to a radio show, I got him into a band where I worked as a puppet accompaniment to him, baby sat him In friend’s apartment so he wouldn’t slip away from a recording session, drove him to lounges and interviews, and made a fake product and many posters and t-shirts of him. I knew his Son Jon as well. It was a great time of my life and I miss him deeply.
This was a really fascinating story. He certainly was an extremely good looking man and I tip my hat to him for doing what he did. Made a lot of money, had fame and popularity. I have subscribed to your channel . The way you covered this interesting story was tasteful and respectful Cheers Pat in New Jersey
At 7:05 and 11:35, the photo shown is not of Korla Pandit, but of Sabu, another exotic (and actually Indian) actor. I think it's great how Korla flipped off racist society by fooling people with his Mexican, and then Inidan persona!
People still do this even today, in Saudi Arabia Afro Saudis dress up as African Americans speak their slang or do Hip hop to be "cool" over there and be accepted some Arabs have complained about it.
Korla Pandit. The first time I saw him was in the film Ed Wood. It was interesting to see his hands playing that organ and then the camera moving in on his face. I’d say that he weaved his way through the entertainment industry during those times with the skills of a ninja. He was all action and he let his talent do the talking. If you closed your eyes and just listen and let the music move you, it didn’t matter what race or ethnicity, or even orientation an artist was. He changed a few times from black to Mexican to Eastern Indian. I guess he respected these cultures and learned from the styles in each of these musical genres. A truly talented man he was.
Wow , brutha man , you dive deep and I like it a lot . Yrs an yrs ago on the utube I seen this guy playin 2 organs with a belly dancer dancin around , whilst woolly bully played...it was cool as heck . Got interested in korla an looked him up...He led a very interesting life...tyvm 4 this
I remember this guy on TV. We had a 10" black&white TV with a magnifier bubble attached. There were not many viewer options at the time coming out of Los Angeles, I believe KTLA Channel 5 was one of the first stations available.
I find it ironic that a Black man was passing as an Indian, and yet, Merle Oberon, who was of Indian descent, hid her Indian background, ie she passed herself off as White, for the same reasons it was the same with another Indian actor, Boris Karloff. It is odd that John Redd could only succeed by pretending to be Indian and yet Merle Oberon and Boris Karloff couldn't succeed as an authentic Indians? It would be interesting to see a video on Merle Oberon at some point, a great video as per usual. UK
Merle Oberon and Boris Karloff were Anglo-Indian like me. Merle was born in horrible circumstances. It turned out that her older sister was actually her mother. They were definitely Anglo-Indian with perhaps Irish as well. Boris Karloff was born William Henry Pratt in England. His mother was Anglo-Indian and his father was Anglo-Egyptian. He was a cousin of Anna Leonowens, who "Anna and the King of Siam" is based on. Yes she was an olive complexioned Anglo-Indian always played by white actresses. Both Merle Oberon and Boris Karloff wouldn't have had careers if they admitted they were mixed background.
Not every 50s housewife was fooled. My great-aunt used to watch his show. One day, she was on the phone with her sister. I remember them laughing. When she hung up I asked if Mr Pandit was "passing" could we go on the porch and watch him go by. She paused & looked the way grownups do when you ask them a question they aren't going to answer and gave me 50¢ from her purse. "In case the Mr. Softee truck goes by first." My Aunt Gertie was no dope. She always had a big smile on her face when she watched Liberace too.(Something tells me she and @Katrina's mother would have gotten along great.) Thanks for these videos of "vintage" celebrities. They always remind me of auld lang syne, which takes the sting out of the idea I know who these people are 😉☮️ & 💟
As the entertainment industry is nothing but smoke and mirrors should we be surprised. Reminded me of Iron Eyes Cody who passed himself off as an American Indian where is in real life he was Italian. Smoke and mirrors.
How sad that a person of his talent and brilliance had to masquerade as a character. And how brilliant he was to pull it off his entire life. Way to go Korla!
I have seen a documentary about him...but they did not mention his family troubles, or his eventually dumping his wife!...He did not look so hot as an older guy...I wonder how he did with the ladies at that point!
@@curbozerboomer1773 Beryl Pandit was a very good-looking woman in her prime, and their son Shari was a total heartthrob and also a musician. He died young, only age 50.
Hi there - I was friends with both brothers, and Shari even stayed for a brief while with me in the 1990s. May I talk to you about him sometime? Thanks...
Brilliant video you guys. I always thought that Liberace was the first entertainer to look directly into the camera, from the documentaries I've watched about him. Mr Pandit was the one. Anyhoo. Thank you Age of Vintage I really enjoyed this video 👍👍👍🙌🙌
Lot of Light Skin African Americans Passed for Anything but Black it was not Unusual or Unheard of in our Communities and Yes we Knew his Scret just like we knew (Carol Channing) was Biracial Lena Horne was told by the Studio MGM to say she was Anything but Black but she Refused to do so.
Well, I don't blame him. He did what he had to do when you take into account the blantant racism towards African-Americans that pervaded the entertainment industry during the 1950s.
From Zappa's Excentrifugal Forz "There's always Korla Plankton Him 'n me can play the blues An' then I'll watch him buff that Tiny ruby that he use He'll straighten up his turban An' eject a little ooze Along a one-celled Hammond Organism Underneath my shoes"
Reminds me of the many 'Asians' that weren't in old films. White Hollywood & the US in general wasn't much familiar with or particularly nice to Asians of any kind beyond CA and NYC - and they generally weren't treated very well there either.
I'm Anglo-Indian, first the people of India originated in Africa, there is a straight line from Africa to India to Australia. Second Africans often went to India and were very successful in India. There is no such thing as race, there is only one race the human race. Unfortunately too many people don't want to think we are all related. I don't blame him for trying to survive in a very openly racist age. BTW, Hindus and Muslims do wear turbans. For Sikhs it's a religious obligation. For Hindus and Muslims its strictly cultural. My dad taught me how to tell the difference between Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs by how they wear their turbans.
AHHHHHHHHHH!!! My Gaaaawd. These videos. Reiterate the same sentence over and over dropping a hint of something new each time it circles around . Hurting my brain!
At least three times in this video you showed a photo of Sabu "the elephant boy" as he appeared in Alex Korda's 1940 movie "The Thief of Baghdad." Sabu really was Indian.
As a longtime theatre pipe organ fan, I never thought Korla's playing came anywhere close to that of the top performers in his time. He probably wouldn't have become as well known had it not been for his weird persona.
i'm almost 70, don't remember ever hearing of him, and don't remember my mother ever watching him, either. she had a huge and eclectic musical taste, had the sterio playing continually, and never got rid of a single record. when going through her stuff after she died, i never found a single record by him.
That photo on the right makes me think of the late Paul Mooney. Wow! I swear it's still hard for me to accept he's gone. It still feels odd to say his name as 'past tense.' He truly was one of a kind! I pray he's happy in the afterlife!
I like the fact, that he sometimes featured his very pretty wife, either lounging seductively on the organ, while staring at him...or dancing around like a showgirl...I was shocked to hear that Korla abandoned his family at some later point...His wife lived in BC for many years, while Pandit would make trips to California, to play a variety of lower-paying gigs...this would be in the 70s....I wonder just how much money he actually made, over the years.
When he moved to California in the 1940s, he was not allowed to join the Musician's Union if black. So he created the Juan Rolando name. Then he married his wife in Mexico, because even then in California only whites were allowed to marry whites. They co-created the Korla Pandit image as more-interesting and cool, which it was - more exotic than being Mexican. It worked well. Many people have done this: Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Elton John, Slash, Bono Vox, Marilyn Manson, Axl Rose - it's a show-biz thing to make a new name and inhabit that persona with "a look" that you weren't born into. It works.
At one point, He had an amazing huge old home in Marin County, CA, which he was forced to destroy, it was condemned. The racist folks wanted him gone. There was some speculation as to his race by locals. My mother got to visit and said it was full of beautiful things.
As a movie fan and a bit star struck especially for stars of the golden age, although it was before my time I appreciate your videos. But as in today's vid I would have loved to hear about of his music I'm sure it is very hard to find. Thanks for your work and research
Some have said that his sons didn't find out until after his death, and didn't accept it even after that. But, who can really say? John Pandit, where are you?
@@BillboardPenguin Knowing Karom ("Chris") I can assure you, he would not want to have anything to do with a public spectacle of any kind about any of this. Even when we were 10-11 years old, "Chris" had already learned to find things like TV and popular radio ridiculous. It all interfered with his sense of himself -- for better or worse. And yet he was one of the most generous people I've ever known, while being equally acerbic. There's a lot of irony in how the whole family disdained pretentiousness. Like, "Pick a mask and never lift it, but own up to the choice you made." As if living behind a mask was more worthy than living in denial, somehow.
Fantasy was a jazz label. This wasn’t the only time they veered away from that. In the seventies they released Creedence Clearwater Revival. On very crappy vinyl as I recall.
Phenomenal, Amazing! What a man! Hard to except he lived a lie, not wanting to be known as a black man , but still, Amazing! What’s not to love!!!!!!!!
thats not true... John Roland Redd took on a persona to get WORK because as a black man he couldn't perform as he did as Pandit. Don't mistake survival for making a theatrical choice.
Him never speaking in hia early career, would be the major tip off to educated and showbiz black people he was passing for another ethnicity. But it was another time and place, when blacks would have stayed quiet about it. I'm sure some blacks suspected and others knew. He would have tried to limited his 'tells', but the fear of being found out by others would have been his greatest fear. It's silly for some to claim, he was "the first black person to have his own T.V. show", when he hide his background when living. This subject reminds me of Rita Hayward and Iron eyes Cody.
I could tell he was black. He reminds me of singer Johnny Mathis ("Chances Are") only Mathis is lighter. During the 1930s, my grandmother also had to pass when she was widowed and had to provide for her son. It takes a toll.
Wow! What a great angle to make money! Being a sicilian- american, my DNA mix is like a halloween treat bowl....anybody need a specialized ethnic performer, i guarantee ive got at least 1% of that DNA!!! Lol😄
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I think it's funny as hell. If he was at parties with Errol Flynn and the likes would have had to know, and just didn't care. It just goes to show, it isn't really about skin color. It's about personality. If someone's an asshole, they're an asshole, regardless of color.
My sister modeled for the Korla Pandit album "Love Letters" in 1961. Her name was Billie Harden. She was a model in San Fransisco back in the late fifties and early sixties. Sadly she passed in 2019.
I took a few one on one organ lessons with Korla about 50 years ago. I still recall him , playing "Happy Birthday" during one of these lessons when I turned 20. He was a unique talent, a product of his times, and a thrill to watch on a large theater organ. I think some of his playing can be heard here on TH-cam. Give it a listen.
That is just SO great!!
My mom is 87 and remembers him. I said “Hey, as it turns out, he’s not Indian. He’s Black.” My mom said, “yeah, I knew!”
Her friends had told he probably was.( she was a teacher in Oakland, CA; for 40 years. And nearly all of her teacher friends were Black. As were most of her students.) She also said she knew that Rock Hudson was Gay back in the 1950s. She said a lot of people knew and didn’t care.
At the beginning, I thought it was Prince, a black man.
@@lindseycarribean5113 me too. Just without so much eye liner.
@@lindseycarribean5113 He was Black. He portrayed his character in “Purple Rain” as biracial. And, at least in the 80s, claimed that he was “Italian”. He also didn’t date or marry Black women. He only dated biracial, Latina, and White women. I’m not sure if you were being facetious. But I do remember when he passed, his one full sister, Tykka, made a point of saying he was Black.
@stephanie Brittney He was Parsi Indian. Parsi are from Iran and they migrated to India. They are Zoroastrian and fled Iran when it was conquered by Arab Muslims. So Freddie’s background was Persian/Iranian and not Indian.
@@katrinaolsen2444 parsis actually have Indian mothers because they carry haplogroup M maternally. Their paternal ancestry is Iranian
So yes, Freddie Mercury is an Indian because Freddie Mercury doesn't count as Indian, then neither do north indians who are paternally R1a and maternally M also. Indian means anybody with Indian ancestry paternally or maternally. Parsis are maternally Indians more than many upper caste who are maternally foreign also.
OMG this needs to be made into a movie. Very interesting story.
"Korla" Korla is a documentary about a television pioneer, a spiritual seeker, and the godfather of exotica music, the organist Korla Pandit.
@@richardharden4437 Yes!...I have seen the movie--I had remembered his little proto-music videos that he was in, during the mid-1950s on local TV in Seattle...these vids were sold by him to various outlets in those days, and used as "filler" in the afternoon programming schedules. He was a fascinating guy, mysterious looking, staring at the camera while his hand would glide suggestively over the B3 Organ...it turns out that tens of thousands of housewife-types constituted his fan base....It was a revelation to find out that, instead of being some exotic fella from India, he was some semi-dark skinned Afro American, who was a good player in nightclubs, moved to LA, met his pretty, White wife, who worked for Disney as an illustrator...Together, they invented his TV image, using makeup on his naturally sexy-looking, large eyes, wearing that cool turban!...He was successful into the mid 1960s...but eventually he and his wife moved to BC Canada, to avoid having their sons drafted into the VietNam debacle...What good parents!
I wish they had made a movie with Sal Mineo as Korla.
Cast Trever Noah as Korla!
There is also a man of sicilian heritage that passes as black and was a jazz musician and also made movies for the african american audiences where he usually portrayed a black cowboy
Good for him! Pulling that charade off for so many years. After all, what is TV and Hollywood? It’s people portraying themselves as something other than what they really are. I hope that he laughed all the way to the bank!
We assume he made some good coin...but not so much as an older man...he would often play for smaller amounts of money, as his career faded.
Saw Korla at the Veterans Home in Yountville, California sometime in the 90's. My friend and I went for a laugh, but it wasn't a bad show. The older audience loved it.
From 1963 to 1966, I spent weeks at at time, daily, at the Pandit family home in San Anselmo CA -- with my friend Karom "Chris" Pandit. "Chris" and I were 10 years old when we met. That household became a lifelong inspiration. If "Chris" knew of his father's ruse, he said nothing about it. Korla was a generous and dignified person -- never treating me or his sons like children. Mrs. Pandit was equally gracious. (Highlight: On one of many similar occasions, I was invited to go to a local movie theater to see The Days Of Wine And Roses with the family. Two thins about that: 1] I learned plenty about dealing with alcoholics, that has served me well 2] When we got back to their house, "Chris" played things from the whole soundtrack score on the livingroom Steinway, from memory.) Korla lived what Hollywood taught him and while there wasn't much racism in our hometown in the 1950s-1960s, Korla had the perfect trick for subverting that kind of thing. I never heard a bad word spoken about him. Brilliant.
Thank you for sharing your recollections.
Had no idea he was a black man. Watched him frequently in the 1950s on L.A. television. Met him personally many years later when he had a booth at a large exposition in the L.A. area. He performed and sold his albums. Seemed like a nice guy and spoke perfect English. Still wearing his turban and jewel.
This is my take on the Korla Pandit story. While the reasons for the ruse certainly are tragic and don't speak well for the state of society at the time, I believe Korla was truly able to turn his experience into something good. In addition to creating some fascinating music, Korla also made it a point to spread a positive message of love, peace and spiritualism. I think he studied Hindu culture and took it to heart. It might not be a stretch to say that he effectively became what he wanted people to believe he was. His story certainly demonstrates the silliness of pigeonholing people based on their ethnicity. That's the lesson I'd like to take from all this.
and part of his charade was that he claimed he was born to a french opera singer and an Indian Brahmin🤍
Look, Hollywood and Music are all about reinventing yourself into a Larger-than-Life persona. John Robert Redd, a lighter-skinned black man born in St. Louis, Mo. and spent his boyhood in Hannibal (my birthplace and boyhood home also). His wife worked at Disney, and helped him in his makeover into Korla Pandit. Come on, man. Man was a freaking genius on keyboards. Let him have his moment!
No genius...except for promoting himself...but I did like his style of music!
I am 77 years old now, in my younger days, me and my neighbors got together around the TV in the afternoon, to watch and hear the magic of Koria Pandit. I don't remember what the year was, or how old I was but we enjoyed the show.
At least 3 times the author shows a photo of Sabu…which is insulting. His wife Beryl did not work as an animator at Disney, her father did (most notably on Pinocchio). Beryl worked in the makeup department. Also, he did not forget a lot of English. When he wasn’t performing or out in public he was himself, John Redd, and always had a family member (niece or nephew) with him. Yes, lots of folks knew…especially his entire family & extended family, with a couple of exceptions. He was a cousin of mine and I’m one of his biographers.
Was he Louisiana creole, originally, brother? I have a family friend just like him, and as a kid they took me to be Indian, even Indians:)
@@MrResearcher122 His maternal grandfather was from New Orleans but wasn’t Creole.
@@sitzar Though born under the term "Negro", he is,plausibly, of mixed heritage?One may assume he has African and French,even Irish,forebears in New Orleans. I meant Creole in the French Caribbean sense,a heritage my grandfather shared.
@@MrResearcher122 He was not Creole, nor of French ancestry. His paternal line was from Virginia slaves. His maternal line was from Missouri slaves whose Langford ancestry was part Caucasian, from England.
@@sitzar Anglo-,African. Might have had native too. I am from England too.
Korla Pandits story is a reason why Critical Race Theory needs to be taught. You guys act like he made a theatrical choice when in reality he passed as NOT Black in the 1950s for survival reasons. John Roland Redd couldn't make the same type of living playing a mysterious and SEDUCTIVE BLACK MAN and be accepted to the same degree in society at that time. Why you all are dancing around this reality is incredible to me.
No one is dancing around that reality! That is the way things were...not that way anymore...stop whining!
@@curbozerboomer1773 its not whining at all... read the comments..everyone is talking about how he wasnt really indian but NO ONE is talking about why that was and if they do its more along the lines of a some kind of theatrical choice like Marion Robert Morrison changing his name to John Wayne...except Marion Robert Morrison didn't say he was John Wayne a person from a completely different racial group because his own real racial group closed doors for him. Stop deluding yourself about REAL American history.
@@nic-tv4090 It IS whining. This is 2021, not 1950. My grandmother had to pass and I know the toll it takes. That's the way it was then, not now. We've moved on. I might suggest you do the same.
@@MissCane9 if you know the toll it takes on a person to pass then stop acting like Korla Pandit was some persona he took on because he was goofing around. Again READ THE OTHER COMMENTS and see how people delude themselves about the realities of how American society was then... And miss me with that "just move on" bs...the subject is about a man who in the 50s had to litterally change who he was just to live a life as a musician. The time period was what it was...I'm just CORRECTING people who believe that man faked his life as some kind of light hearted entertainment trip. Thats not the case now if they just understand and accept that we can all MOVE ON.
He was passing for WHITE. Back then Indians were considered "caucasian" (ethnic white).
As a child I loved watching his show, and yes his eyes were mesmerizing. A shame that this video didn’t include a note of his playing. Would have added a lot.
Trance Dance was used as the theme music for Chandu the Magician.
What is odd here is the photo of him with the famous Yogananda. HE would surely have known that Korla was not from India. Makes you wonder. Did he just go along to get some of the limelight?
I thought the same thing! Of all the photos I've seen of Paramahansa, I've never seen that one.
Probably
Why would Paramahansa Yogananda judge John Redd for his act? Some would say he had quite an act himself. I don't know about that, I tried to read his "Autobiography Of A Yogi" and let's say I wasn't convinced.
Intetesting story. Never heard of him.
Esoteric information not easily found anywhere else. Thank you.
Except in a Documentary by John Turner abased on an article by a R.J. Smith in Los Angeles Magazine.
In fact, I met Korla in 1985 at a performance he did in El Segundo for largely Senior Citizens who were his original fans decades ago. Korla was staying with a friend Mike Copner a movie theater projectionist and publisher of Fanzines of old Hollywood, etc.
I told him I believed I could help bring Korla before a Hipster youth audience and he was very interested.
So I dedicated a year of my life seeking out possible venues, Co-Producers etc.
eventually bringing Korla to an infamous underground/ alternative bookstore in Silverlake called AMOK where I visited before and became acquainted with owners Stewart Sweezy and Brian King the proprietors.
As a sideline they were very successful at creating and promoting large Hipster events on the edgy, exotic side.
Over a breakfast at a local greasy spoon coffee shop
I had them sold.
The L.A. Times read their press releases and ran a story on Korla and his upcoming performance in 1987 at the Park Plaza Theater (Several months later our template was copied by someone else who had an “Exoticon”there) .
It was a real seat of the pants effort with a skeleton crew but a huge success.
Two of the Cramps a big name L.A. Punk Band and Mike Kelly (a world famous L.A. Artist ) showed-up to name a couple of celebrity curiosity seekers.
I the years that followed, I was Korla’s driver to a radio show, I got him into a band where I worked as a puppet accompaniment to him, baby sat him In friend’s apartment so he wouldn’t slip away from a recording session, drove him to lounges and interviews, and made a fake product and many
posters and t-shirts of him. I knew his Son Jon as well.
It was a great time of my life and I miss him deeply.
This was a really fascinating story. He certainly was an extremely good looking man and I tip my hat to him for doing what he did. Made a lot of money, had fame and popularity. I have subscribed to your channel . The way you covered this interesting story was tasteful and respectful Cheers Pat in New Jersey
At 7:05 and 11:35, the photo shown is not of Korla Pandit, but of Sabu, another exotic (and actually Indian) actor. I think it's great how Korla flipped off racist society by fooling people with his Mexican, and then Inidan persona!
People still do this even today, in Saudi Arabia Afro Saudis dress up as African Americans speak their slang or do Hip hop to be "cool" over there and be accepted some Arabs have complained about it.
This would make a great movie 😎
Korla Pandit. The first time I saw him was in the film Ed Wood. It was interesting to see his hands playing that organ and then the camera moving in on his face.
I’d say that he weaved his way through the entertainment industry during those times with the skills of a ninja. He was all action and he let his talent do the talking. If you closed your eyes and just listen and let the music move you, it didn’t matter what race or ethnicity, or even orientation an artist was.
He changed a few times from black to Mexican to Eastern Indian. I guess he respected these cultures and learned from the styles in each of these musical genres.
A truly talented man he was.
He had more changes than David Bowie 😝 excellent episode!
I remember seeing Korla Pandet regularly at The Granda Theater in West Seattle in the1960's. This was fascinating background on the man.
I'm a pro musician (pianist and teacher) and never heard of Korla Pandit until right now! (I'm in Canada, mind you). Hafta seek out some of his music.
I'm sure you've heard the song OD Israelites
Tremendously entertaining and informative. Thank you.
Thank you so much Darrien! 🙂
Wow , brutha man , you dive deep and I like it a lot . Yrs an yrs ago on the utube I seen this guy playin 2 organs with a belly dancer dancin around , whilst woolly bully played...it was cool as heck . Got interested in korla an looked him up...He led a very interesting life...tyvm 4 this
I remember this guy on TV. We had a 10" black&white TV with a magnifier bubble attached. There were not many viewer options at the time coming out of Los Angeles, I believe KTLA Channel 5 was one of the first stations available.
There should be a movie on this man! That would be cool!
I find it ironic that a Black man was passing as an Indian, and yet, Merle Oberon, who was of Indian descent, hid her Indian background, ie she passed herself off as White, for the same reasons it was the same with another Indian actor, Boris Karloff. It is odd that John Redd could only succeed by pretending to be Indian and yet Merle Oberon and Boris Karloff couldn't succeed as an authentic Indians? It would be interesting to see a video on Merle Oberon at some point, a great video as per usual. UK
It does look indian though.
Well. Oberon was a few years ahead of the societal changes...and Karloff was not handsome...that counts for a lot!
89
Merle Oberon and Boris Karloff were Anglo-Indian like me. Merle was born in horrible circumstances. It turned out that her older sister was actually her mother. They were definitely Anglo-Indian with perhaps Irish as well. Boris Karloff was born William Henry Pratt in England. His mother was Anglo-Indian and his father was Anglo-Egyptian. He was a cousin of Anna Leonowens, who "Anna and the King of Siam" is based on. Yes she was an olive complexioned Anglo-Indian always played by white actresses.
Both Merle Oberon and Boris Karloff wouldn't have had careers if they admitted they were mixed background.
Have his records & loved watching Korla on KTLA!
He was talented.
Not every 50s housewife was fooled. My great-aunt used to watch his show. One day, she was on the phone with her sister. I remember them laughing. When she hung up I asked if Mr Pandit was "passing" could we go on the porch and watch him go by. She paused & looked the way grownups do when you ask them a question they aren't going to answer and gave me 50¢ from her purse. "In case the Mr. Softee truck goes by first."
My Aunt Gertie was no dope. She always had a big smile on her face when she watched Liberace too.(Something tells me she and @Katrina's mother would have gotten along great.)
Thanks for these videos of "vintage" celebrities. They always remind me of auld lang syne, which takes the sting out of the idea I know who these people are 😉☮️ & 💟
I’m glad they didn’t have the internet or twitter back then. He would’ve been dragged like they do today.
As the entertainment industry is nothing but smoke and mirrors should we be surprised. Reminded me of Iron Eyes Cody who passed himself off as an American Indian where is in real life he was Italian. Smoke and mirrors.
"A scam works -until it doesn't work anymore."
Elizabeth Warren
@@robertgiles9124 Fortunately for these two the smoke didn't clear until after they had gone.
Raymond Burr was another famous actor who made up a life out of smoke & mirrors!
I wonder if Korla and Iron Eyes Cody ever met. Now THAT would have been interesting!
This man did what he had to to make. Living and be treated with respect
How sad that a person of his talent and brilliance had to masquerade as a character. And how brilliant he was to pull it off his entire life. Way to go Korla!
It's not because he was brilliant. It's because people are ignorant.
I was good friends with Korla's son Shari in high school in San Anselmo. It was an unhappy family, sadly, at least at the time.
I have seen a documentary about him...but they did not mention his family troubles, or his eventually dumping his wife!...He did not look so hot as an older guy...I wonder how he did with the ladies at that point!
@@curbozerboomer1773 Beryl Pandit was a very good-looking woman in her prime, and their son Shari was a total heartthrob and also a musician. He died young, only age 50.
Hi there - I was friends with both brothers, and Shari even stayed for a brief while with me in the 1990s. May I talk to you about him sometime? Thanks...
I think he was wonderful.
Brilliant video you guys. I always thought that Liberace was the first entertainer to look directly into the camera, from the documentaries I've watched about him. Mr Pandit was the one. Anyhoo. Thank you Age of Vintage I really enjoyed this video 👍👍👍🙌🙌
Thank you! 🙂 Liberace video is coming soon! 😉
People of color must be believed...
I'd heard of this cat a long time back...thanks for fillining in the gaps.
The picture with Lux and Ivy, wow! Korla Pandit and the Cramps!!!
Lot of Light Skin African Americans Passed for Anything but Black it was not Unusual or Unheard of in our Communities and Yes we Knew his Scret just like we knew (Carol Channing) was Biracial Lena Horne was told by the Studio MGM to say she was Anything but Black but she Refused to do so.
Yes you are right
Thank you!
Well, I don't blame him. He did what he had to do when you take into account the blantant racism towards African-Americans that pervaded the entertainment industry during the 1950s.
From Zappa's Excentrifugal Forz
"There's always Korla Plankton
Him 'n me can play the blues
An' then I'll watch him buff that
Tiny ruby that he use
He'll straighten up his turban
An' eject a little ooze
Along a one-celled Hammond Organism
Underneath my shoes"
Frank Zappa was always so intelligent, sharp... or maybe he was just another fucking snob.
Reminds me of the many 'Asians' that weren't in old films. White Hollywood & the US in general wasn't much familiar with or particularly nice to Asians of any kind beyond CA and NYC - and they generally weren't treated very well there either.
Pagri.... its called a pagri and turbans are indeed very much apart of Indian culture.
I should point out that the photo at 2:36 is actually Sabu and not Pandit.
I noticed that too! Jungle Book was one of his popular films!😂♥️🎇💕❤️
I'm Anglo-Indian, first the people of India originated in Africa, there is a straight line from Africa to India to Australia. Second Africans often went to India and were very successful in India. There is no such thing as race, there is only one race the human race. Unfortunately too many people don't want to think we are all related. I don't blame him for trying to survive in a very openly racist age.
BTW, Hindus and Muslims do wear turbans. For Sikhs it's a religious obligation. For Hindus and Muslims its strictly cultural. My dad taught me how to tell the difference between Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs by how they wear their turbans.
Saw him play in San Diego and Los Angeles. He was old I was young but he flirted with me anyway. He was still beautiful.
He was my grandfather’s older brother
AHHHHHHHHHH!!! My Gaaaawd. These videos. Reiterate the same sentence over and over dropping a hint of something new each time it circles around . Hurting my brain!
...into their dens...fondue pots! Lol. Ok, ok. That's amazing! Haha, all's forgiven. Lol
So many of his schtick sound like Prince. The insane musical genius as well.
At least three times in this video you showed a photo of Sabu "the elephant boy" as he appeared in Alex Korda's 1940 movie "The Thief of Baghdad." Sabu really was Indian.
This is ALL news to me.
I love IT
💚💚💚💚
The electricity grid use go down every afternoon his radio show came on, and the magic finger vibrators got all fired up.
😂😂😂😂
As a longtime theatre pipe organ fan, I never thought Korla's playing came anywhere close to that of the top performers in his time. He probably wouldn't have become as well known had it not been for his weird persona.
I’ve never heard of him before. Thank you for posting.
i'm almost 70, don't remember ever hearing of him, and don't remember my mother ever watching him, either. she had a huge and eclectic musical taste, had the sterio playing continually, and never got rid of a single record. when going through her stuff after she died, i never found a single record by him.
WHAT EVER WORKS, MY MOM LIKED HIM
I have never heard of him!
That photo on the right makes me think of the late Paul Mooney. Wow! I swear it's still hard for me to accept he's gone. It still feels odd to say his name as 'past tense.' He truly was one of a kind! I pray he's happy in the afterlife!
1:56 The prototype of the rock band keyboard player.
Its a hustle like everything else especially when u dont have to talk brilliant 😂
Great Video, Great story!!
Who is that couple at 3.14? Is it the Cramps?
I like the fact, that he sometimes featured his very pretty wife, either lounging seductively on the organ, while staring at him...or dancing around like a showgirl...I was shocked to hear that Korla abandoned his family at some later point...His wife lived in BC for many years, while Pandit would make trips to California, to play a variety of lower-paying gigs...this would be in the 70s....I wonder just how much money he actually made, over the years.
When he moved to California in the 1940s, he was not allowed to join the Musician's Union if black. So he created the Juan Rolando name. Then he married his wife in Mexico, because even then in California only whites were allowed to marry whites. They co-created the Korla Pandit image as more-interesting and cool, which it was - more exotic than being Mexican. It worked well. Many people have done this: Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Elton John, Slash, Bono Vox, Marilyn Manson, Axl Rose - it's a show-biz thing to make a new name and inhabit that persona with "a look" that you weren't born into. It works.
"...of the 50s"? Of all time, more like. Great stuff
A Great, artist! It’s just very sad, that He had to do such a thing.
At one point, He had an amazing huge old home in Marin County, CA, which he was forced to destroy, it was condemned. The racist folks wanted him gone. There was some speculation as to his race by locals. My mother got to visit and said it was full of beautiful things.
so sorry to hear that, actually this is the first time I have heard of Korla Pandit but amazing story.
Absolute b******* back that up with some records
I vaguely remember him.
Korla could pass for Janet Jackson's mysterious father.
Awesome
As a movie fan and a bit star struck especially for stars of the golden age, although it was before my time I appreciate your videos. But as in today's vid I would have loved to hear about of his music I'm sure it is very hard to find. Thanks for your work and research
@13:12 " . . . cultural ignorance of the American people . . ." _not much has changed_ USA
Well, certainly his family knew.
If I remember, his mid-western family members did not hear from him for many years...I suppose he would worry that they would "out" him.
When I knew the Pandit family -- 1963-1966 -- they said nothing about the ruse.
Some have said that his sons didn't find out until after his death, and didn't accept it even after that. But, who can really say? John Pandit, where are you?
@@BillboardPenguin Knowing Karom ("Chris") I can assure you, he would not want to have anything to do with a public spectacle of any kind about any of this. Even when we were 10-11 years old, "Chris" had already learned to find things like TV and popular radio ridiculous. It all interfered with his sense of himself -- for better or worse. And yet he was one of the most generous people I've ever known, while being equally acerbic. There's a lot of irony in how the whole family disdained pretentiousness. Like, "Pick a mask and never lift it, but own up to the choice you made." As if living behind a mask was more worthy than living in denial, somehow.
The Hilaria Baldwin of his time
I live in Columbia, Missouri, where his family apparently lived for a time. No one here has ever mentioned this "famous son."
I think he looks like Hallie Berry. LOL! If she had to, she would have done the same as Pandit!
Really..... If you could today....youd do it, but even a Weeeve won't hide a face like yours.
Just a brother from St. Louis 😂🤣🤣🤣😂😅
And that's ok.
Fantasy was a jazz label. This wasn’t the only time they veered away from that. In the seventies they released Creedence Clearwater Revival. On very crappy vinyl as I recall.
First I've heard of him - now to hunt out kola pandit's music for a listen.
Phenomenal, Amazing! What a man! Hard to except he lived a lie, not wanting to be known as a black man , but still, Amazing! What’s not to love!!!!!!!!
thats not true... John Roland Redd took on a persona to get WORK because as a black man he couldn't perform as he did as Pandit. Don't mistake survival for making a theatrical choice.
Merle Oberon passed for white her whole life never admitting she was Anglo-Indian.
Him never speaking in hia early career, would be the major tip off to educated and showbiz black people he was passing for another ethnicity. But it was another time and place, when blacks would have stayed quiet about it. I'm sure some blacks suspected and others knew. He would have tried to limited his 'tells', but the fear of being found out by others would have been his greatest fear.
It's silly for some to claim, he was "the first black person to have his own T.V. show", when he hide his background when living.
This subject reminds me of Rita Hayward and Iron eyes Cody.
This is how change takes place in society...by degrees, over time...not all at once. He did what he had to do, and was brave for doing it!
I could tell he was black. He reminds me of singer Johnny Mathis ("Chances Are") only Mathis is lighter. During the 1930s, my grandmother also had to pass when she was widowed and had to provide for her son. It takes a toll.
Great vid!!!!
Wow! What a great angle to make money! Being a sicilian- american, my DNA mix is like a halloween treat bowl....anybody need a specialized ethnic performer, i guarantee ive got at least 1% of that DNA!!! Lol😄
oh my god! so rad! you did it🤍
thank you so, so much sir🤍
Thank you so much Holly for the suggestion! 🙂 I hope you enjoyed the video.
i did🤍
i always always always enjoy your videos. your style and
your voice are perfect:)
Seriously anybody still alive that heard about the song the Israelites
Is there a connection to this video?
He was a great talent.
Interesting. I grew up in MO, and never heard of him.
One of the biggest male sex symbol of the 50s...I learn so much from TH-cam.
Nice pic with Ivy and Lux
Look up the song Oh Israelites
Creepy dude.
He lived a lie.
@@Penelopepitstop50 he was happy with it.
@@Penelopepitstop50 Many thousands of women bought his stuff!
gave the thumbnail a quick look and at first I thought it was an older Sabu wrong !!!
The image with the feather ornament instead of pendant does look to be Sabu
I thought the same!
Desmond Dekker & the Aces "Israelites"
that was a very interesting story. thanks.
Thank you James! 🙂