Live from New York!
In October 1984, following his first Presidential campaign, Jesse hosted “Saturday Night Live. “. He showcased comedic flair in the opening monologue when he spoke of public perceptions of his campaign and addressed superficial business hiring practices.
Later in the program, he skewered the economic policies of the Reagan Administration as host of the game show, “The Question is Moot.” Not only are the scenes weepy funny, in light of present day Presidential actions, they are more poignant and painful. Indeed, were the “game show” aired today, the re-cast host likely would be the 47th President. Can you imagine? The question is moot.
READ MORE: “The Question is Moot” Opinion
Jesse’s third and most endearing appearance was his 1991 return to “Saturday Night Live” in a cameo eulogizing recently deceased author Theodore Geisel, pen-named “Dr. Seuss.” Rev. Jackson’s impassioned reading of Suess’ “Green Eggs and Ham” on “Weekend Update” is legend.
READ MORE: The Cultural Significance of “Green Eggs and Ham” Reading
Jesse’s World: A Stage
While these performances expanded Rev. Jackson’s global appeal, his persona and speaking patterns were ripe for satirical impersonation and inspiration on stages closer to home. I watched one. Performed on others.
Before becoming a national phenomenon, Rev. Jackson was a political and juggernaut in his adopted hometown of Chicago where I’d moved in the early 1980s. He established the not-for-profit community agency, People United to Save Humanity (better known as Operation PUSH) program); and his voice was instrumental in the push to elect Harold Washington mayor of Chicago, a position no African-American had ever held.
Once elected, Washington’s agenda was frequently stymied by a block of 29 aldermen whose opposition became known as “Council Wars,” a handle coined by a friend, actor Aaron Freeman, as the title of his long-running solo comedy show. Aaron cast Washington and his antagonists embroiled in a “Stars Wars” battle. Washington was dubbed “Harold Skytalker.” The Jackson-takeoff he named, “Jesse Jetstream.”
“When “Council Wars” extended into the ’84 Presidential season, Aaron’s “Jesse Jetstream” waxed poetic presenting his policies in a speech entitled, “I Have a Scheme.” The climax, Aaron recently reminded me, “Me at last! Me at last! Please God Almighty, vote for me at last!”
On Jesse’s Wavelength
An occasional component of “Council Wars” featured “Jesse Jetstream” in a debate with the President. Reagan. Reagan was played by Jim Winter, a former high school English teacher-turned-improvisational actor. Jim had been honing his impersonation in a show called, “Rapmaster Ronnie.”
A few years afterward, during Reagan’s second term, Jim founded an improvisational acting troupe called Wavelength to present motivational comedy to educators across the nation. He reprised his Reagan. I was hired as part of the ensemble a few years later. When Jim noticed I did voice impressions, we played modified versions of the Q & As he did with Aaron. Not “Jesse Jetstream,” but my own character. Whereas Aaron’s interpretation seemed based on Jackson’s personality, I played more with replicating Jesse’s vocal patterns. My riffs off his South Carolian “patois.” Besides rhymes, certain words elicit their own laughs.
Another friend of Jim’s, Craig Semetko, was an actor and writer with Wavelength. Occasionally we roomed on tours. Sometimes goofing around my “Jesse” would come out. Craig wrote monologues for a fuller “Jesse,” and by the time of the “W” Bush administration, “Rev. Jesse” had evolved to deliver the closing “speech” of our main revue. The goal: address touchy educational issues, inspire teachers to “keep hope alive,” and remind them that, regardless of what the public, or they themselves say, “You are, somebody!”
That’s how we finished.
Oh, and did I say be funny?
Black History: A Personal Journey 
Leave a comment