Friday,

22 November 1963, 12:30pm

Almost everybody still knows where they were when they first heard of the attacks on 9/11. The same count for most Americans, when they heard John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Gordon Novel has always said he was in Toots Shors restaurant in New York, having lunch with Mike Todd, Jr, Elizabeth Taylors stepson. During that period in 1963, Mr. Novel was preparing for the opening of the Lousiana-state-sanctioned pavilion at the New York Worlds Fair, called Bourbon Street.
JFK in Dealey Plaza, 1963

Toots Shor's Restaurant was a restaurant owned and operated by Bernard "Toots" Shor. In 1959, it had moved from 51 West 51st Street in Manhattan to 33 West 52nd Street. It was a New York landmark at the time, being frequently visited by celebrities. Todd was going to place his racially-integrated minstrel show America, Be Seated at the pavilions recreation of the old French Opera House, which was intended satirical and antiToots Shor's Restaurant, 33 West 52nd Street bigotry. The show was given some extra media-attention, while it was a big show and was intended satirical and anti-bigotry. During the opening of the world fair, several civil rights protests were staged. While some members of the NAACP mistakenly understanding "minstrel-style" to be demeaning to African Americans, they intended to target the Louisiana pavilion for a protest as well. However, the protesters never enter the pavilion, while it was still closed because its opening was delayed due to the unfinished construction and financial problems. The actual show was closed after 2 days, citing a low visitor count caused by its remote location and exceptional charge, with Todd commenting: "There's no use throwing Mike Todd, Jr. & Elizabeth Taylor good money after bad".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Novel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1964_New_York_World%27s_Fair#Federal_and_state_exhibits http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Todd,_Jr. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Taylor http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toots_Shor's_Restaurant http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Opera_House

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