Possum Trot: The Life and Work of Calvin Black, 1903-1972

Calvin Black was a folk artist who lived in California's Mojave Desert and created more than 80 life-size female dolls, each with its own personality, function, and costume.
Possum Trot is part of the "Visions of Paradise" series on contemporary folk artists directed and produced by Irving Saraf and Allie Light. The other four films in the series are: Angel That Stands By Me: the Paintings of Minnie Evans, Hundred and Two Mature: The Art of Harry Lieberman, Grandma's Bottle Village: The Art of Tressa Prisbrey, and The Monument of Chief Rolling Mountain Thunder. You can find information about them at www.lightsaraffilms.com.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Calvin
• Black
• visionary
• art
• artist
• outsider
• dolls
• wood
• carving
• folkstreams
• folkstreamer

[OneBadCoach]

Sometimes, patrollin' the Mojave makes you wish for a nuclear winter.

[xabixnaq]

@shf84 I don't remember any store. The closest store was in Yermo as I recall. Maybe this store was before or after my time there.

[shf84]

@xabixnaq

There was a store across from Calvin's place owned by a man named Handel I believe.

[shf84]

@sunshine021453

Haven't started the group because no one seems to be interested, I do remember the possum trot though, the red truck in the video was my dad's dodge before we got our blue D200 dodge pickup, Calvin's old Willys panel truck was broken down even back then though it did run early on.

I am in the process of researching designing a wind car that uses a Calvin Black style vertical turbine. The reason being that the car should drive no matter which way you point it.

[sunshine021453]

@shf84 just let me know if you start a Calvin Black group, because I am Calvin's niece ahere in TEnnessee

[sunshine021453]

@xabixnaq I would be so interested in your photos and any stories about Calvin and Ruby. I only find out about the film and everything November 27, 2010. I am the daughter of Calvin youngest brother,Jimmie Black, I only hear very few stories about him because I was very young.

[xabixnaq]

@amboysaltus

Have you lived in Amboy?

[xabixnaq]

I knew Cal and Ruby. I lived in the place behind them in my early twenties. You can see my old place in the areal shot at the beginning of this "trailer". The actual film is longer. The place is gone now. Only charred wood and heaps of sand. The dolls are being sold for big bucks- the last on on eBay for 93,000 dollars. Cal wanted them all burned.

He was once bitten by a rattler and lay in a coma for a month. Oh the stories and memories. I have about 2o photos of the place.

[gnatpiz]

Friends and I found Ruby back in the mid 70's and photographed her for college projects. I have a number of B&W pix of her and Possum Trot.

I also make sure that when I travel to Las Vegas, I stop and tend their grave. I took some biker friends there and at first they thought I was nuts, but they all enjoyed the story and the grave tending. I have pis of that too.

[chappybolo]

@amboysaltus haha I happened to watch this video and There you are haha.