The Young Savages - Harlem Red Wings Verses the East Harlem Viceroys gang

Legend has it, that in the movie "The Young Savages" (starring Burt Lancaster and Deana Merrill, 1961), The Italian "Thunderbirds" were loosely based on the "Italian Red Wings" and the Puerto Rican gang the Horsemen were the Viceroys in East Harlem, New York.

The boy (Michael Farmer) was stabbed to death in Highbridge park pool by the gang called the Egyptian Dragons around 1957. The boy was thought to be a member of the rival (The Jesters) gang. Eventually seven Dragon members were convicted & sentenced.


http://www.stonegreasers.com/greaser/newyork.html

Neil Burstyn's character was based on the the true story of Salvador Agrón an Hispanic juvenile delinquent known as "The Capeman" who made national headlines when he mistook some boys in a schoolyard for rival gang members and stabbed them to death. Burstyn's character is called "Batman" (IIRC). Paul Simon wrote a Broadway musical based on the Salvador Agrón story entitled "The Capeman." It closed after less than a week of performances.

John Davis Chandler, the actor who played "Arthur Reardon," the leader of the The Thunderbirds, died last year. He was a lifelong bhakti yogin. Neil Burstyn who played "Capeman" committed suicide in the '70 after splitting from his wife Ellen Burstyn. Stanley Kerstein, who played "Danny Dipache," either changed his name or his profession because his trail goes completely cold after the release of The Young Savages in l962.

The Young Savages soundtrack was composed by David Amram who starred with Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and Gregory Corso in Robert Frank's underground movie Pull My Daisy. Amram is still around and has written three books about his life as a jazz composer, performer and beatnik. Offbeat is the title of his 2003 book about collaborating with Kerouac.




By WhoDareSwings

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Burt Lancaster
• Shelly Winters
• Deana Merrill
• red wings gang
• viceroys gang
• michael farmer
• Italian Harlem

[27846Street]

Your right it was about the redwings and the viceroys. Like in westside story Lancaster got his haircut in russo's barbershop on a hun7&8 on first ave. I was a redwings

[ChicagoJoe57]

@27846Street Please read your messages . With respect!

[ridgerunner721601]

@spacepatrolman LOL....That's true. Probably in their late '60s or '70s now.

[spacepatrolman]

@ridgerunner721601 are they still alive to watch reruns ?

[ridgerunner721601]

@spacepatrolman I didn't realize that. But I wonder what those gang members from the early '60s think when they see themselves in old reruns of 'The Young Savages'.

[spacepatrolman]

@ridgerunner721601 The director frankemheimer was a wisenheimer he thought it would be more authentic to have actual gang members acting parts as gang members but those scenes were actually boring the actor chris robinson played scare faced savatini pored glue all over his face for makeup

[27846Street]

Forget that address footreads@yahoo.com

[27846Street]

Who could read :) send them here Richie "Animal"

[ChicagoJoe57]

@ridgerunner721601 James Remar, the Warriors, played a lot of roles like John and has made a good living doing it.

[ridgerunner721601]

@ChicagoJoe57 Kind of makes me wonder if John, or really anybody who has been a perennial bad guy on TV and in the movies, would prefer to be put in the role of a good guy sometimes.