If Mark Twain were a Black street pimp, he would have been Iceberg Slim
Amazon.com
Welcome back to the show and your patience during the time of my
Internet Fasting.
What I am going to touch on today is what came about during some time spent soul searching and pondering on what direction to travel in regards to this publication and brand.
I have know for some time that there would come a time where a post on this particular subject matter would become absolutely necessary, and we have arrived at this point as of March 26, 2009.
The relevance of this novel, for me at least, cannot be overstated, and due to the current popularization and perhaps exploitation of the term PIMP, this post should do what is necessary to preserve the integrity of the subject matter.
A brief history of the author can be found at the link below.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iceberg_Slim
The key areas of focus, which makes this post of extreme importance is that this particular author was writing about his experiences during his time spent in the streets of Chicago and life as a
Gentleman Of Leisure, and history has recently shown that someone with a similar experience was able to use his talents to achieve what many would have considered wishful thinking until the signs showed otherwise.
It also shows that this particular individual who by most popular accounts of his character type would be considered as loathsome, gives accounts his experiences with individuals , and how they reacted to the scenario of how a person of his pedigree actually possessed an above average I.Q.
With an I.Q. of 175,[1] Beck studied at Tuskegee Institute until he dropped out in 1937. Beck started to pimp at age 18 in the brutal Chicago underworld, soon becoming rich and successful in the trade
Following a familiar pattern as well, Robert Beck a.k.a. Iceberg Slim actually left “The Life” after growing tired of incarceration and other side effects of The Game, decided to SQUARE UP, and made his way to Los Angeles in an attempt to reconnect with his mother.
In 1962 he got a job selling insecticide for $70 a week. He had been a natural salesman all of his life. While making a sales pitch to a college professor, he mentioned that he had been a pimp. The professor suggested that he write an autobiography. Beck wrote the book, Pimp: The Story of My Life, in three months.
During my time spent conducting self analysis and inventory, I often wonder if what has been stated by others regarding my stance is true, which is that I have some gripe or bone to pick regarding individuals who tend to use things from black or minority culture as a source of entertainment through the use of mockery and in some cases for monetary gain. The facts are, that, these assessments are absolutely correct, and it is simply due to the fact that my knowledge and awareness of the astronomical value of that which is made a mockery of, which actually leads to decadence of ones cultural heritage.
What is also important to note is that while this trend disturbs me, I do not hold the individuals who behave in this way accountable, but rather the individuals who themselves are a by product of the culture ,who do not effectively demonstrate its value do to their own selfish pursuits of fame and fortune.
It is for that reason, that I take responsibility as well as the initiative to provide a solution for the problem.
The fact is that a majority of things that one may find attractive and intriguing in regards to Hip Hop culture actually have their roots in this novel of discussion as well as other discourses of expression from the days prior to when a thing known as Hip Hop culture even existed. Everything starts off somewhere, and it is up to individuals to pay homage to the source in order for the integrity to be preserved.
With that said, I hereby declare, the following stance.
Party like a rock star. yet rock stars have been shown to desire to party like rappers, and rappers have been shown to desire to party like Pimps.
As For Pimps, its a REAL LIFE activity, which in actuality AINT EASY, EVEN ONLINE!
Examples are shown through various public figures.
Ice T who’s name and image are by products of Ice Berg Slim Literature as well as Ice Cube and many others whom are notable in Pop Culture can be counted in the equation.
Interestingly enough, this particular novel has been one of controversy in Los Angeles intellectual property circles, as the rights for a screenplay development of this story have been highly coveted for many years.
In 1973 one of his reality novels, Trick Baby, was adapted as a blaxploitation movie of the same name, directed by Larry Yust.
A movie adaptation of Pimp has been planned for a long time. There were announcements of a movie directed by Bill Duke and staring Ice Cube; that project was put on hold. In 2004 rapper Pras acquired the rights to produce a movie based on the book
For those of your who may have an interest in this and other works of the author, thanks to the Internet, it is no longer a challenge to locate and acquire the work as it once was in times past, yet for me individually, it was part of the intrigue of this type of literature as one of the most popular distribution outlets for the novel was in the form of Prison Libraries across the U.S. as it is known as a Jail House Classic.
In closing, the most important part of the scenario for me, is in regards to the fact that while the novel was created with the intention of steering individuals away from the lifestyle being described, it is a known fact that it has turned many individuals on to the actual lifestyle with disastrous results for many over time.
Out of all the pieces of literature that I have read, I can now confirm that this is the one that has had the greatest influence on me as a motivating factor in exploring the power and value of written and spoken word, which is what you are experiencing in the form of this online publication with a similar name.
Like anything else in life, I believe that nothing is truly inherently good or bad, but rather the intention and application of and by the individual taking the action and holding the desire .
The title of the novel is
PIMP- The Story Of My Life.
Due to the fact that it was brought into existence upon the recommendation of a college professor, I question whether or not it is to say he (Robert Beck) wrote a story of his life as a PIMP, or if it was his decision to PIMP his life story.
A different perspective to consider.
