Bob Brackin
Vaudeville Blues, a novel set in Chicago in 1938, involves a young man whose mother, now deceased, had been in vaudeville. He grew up mostly with another family, because his mother was often on the road. In the beginning of the book he meets a young actress, is drawn to her, but is afraid of involving himself too deeply with someone who’s in the theater. The story develops that relationship, explores his coming to terms with his past, and also introduces us to Vaudeville Blues, the book’s namesake.
Bob Brackin lives in Orlando, Florida. He’s a 1975 graduate of the University of Central Florida, with a B.A. degree in English.
1
The two girls at the first booth next to the door were engrossed in their conversation. The talk was earnest, but low-keyed. Richard had been watching them for the past twenty minutes from the counter seat at the back of the diner where he and Marc sat eating their customary bowl of “Special – Today Only” chili. He had first become aware of the brown-haired girl because of the unusualness of her manner. She was oblivious to those around her, but not in the typical callous way Chicagoans were. There was neither the callousness of hard core city people, nor the pretentiousness of a newcomer to the city, with an air of significance, of being in a hurry to get to some predetermined appointment, which would in turn, rocket them off to some greater goal that was yet to be conceived. Instead, she continued in the casual, but earnest conversation with her luncheon friend.
Richard continued watching them and between spoonfuls asked Marc with a forward nod of his head, “Who are the two girls? Young hopefuls?”
Marc glanced over his left shoulder in the girls’ direction, smiled to himself and resumed eating. “Yeah. The one facing us got a bit part in the Christian play that starts over at the Strand in three weeks.” There was a pause. “She’s one of the lion victims they drag across the stage in the third act.”
“A lion victim, huh?”
“Yeah.”
