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Playwright James H. Chapmyn on Working the Chitlin Circuit

Chapmyn was homeless, surviving on garbage and sleeping in vacant buildings in the '80's. A suicide note he began writing to his mother inspired him to write the play "Our Young Black Men Are Dying and Nobody Seems to Care," which became a big hit on the so-called chitlin circuit. He went on to write other plays on social issues facing the African-American community., making a name for himself as a playwright and a social activist.

42:54

Other segments from the episode on March 10, 1997

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, March 10, 1997: Interview with James H. Chapmyn; Review of the CD box set "Count Basie: The Golden Years."

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