The Comeback Girl

Comeback Girl was going to launch an All Points bulletin last night about the new episode of American Gangster on BET featuring Frank Lucas, infamous crime boss.

And then she was going to wax philosophical about TV One’s  smart programming (founded by Comeback Girl Cathy Hughes) with a new “Black Enterprise” show featuring: you guessed it enterprising black folks, leaders of legitimate industry inspired by the great publication. But Comeback Girl watched American Gangster and was REVITTED and INTRIGUED. And has put her “Why is BET always seduced by easy sexy demoralizing, brainless programming, when they promised to start taking the high road?” to rest for now.

(please note: I was revitted even through the subtitles and Comeback Girl gets really frustrated when subtitles are used for 21st century black Americans. But Lucas’ southern accent is at times indecipherable-amazing for his time spent up north and Comeback Girl’s ability to translate North and South Carolina circa mid 1900s-thanks Grandma.)

I combed the internet for pictures of Lucas. There are only three floating around, two of which I’ve posted. As you know Lucas hated taking photos. As the documentary recounted it was his public appearance at an Ali-Frasier fight in full pimped out mink regalia that caused cops to take notice. And when Lucas headed to sit in a front row seat ahead of mob bosses and high ranking cops-the investigation began-and his self imposed invisibility ended.

$1,000,000 a day is a large sum of money now-BUT BIG MONEY in the late 60s early 70s -and thats how much Lucas was commanding daily (fascinating given Lucas lack of ability to read or count-but he COULD weigh his money and hell has no fury like a man who’s millions come up a few pounds short). His bank account had 250 million dollars at one time. What shocked Comeback Girl even more was how he found himself doing deals  directly with South East Asia-though his role in the deal making is up for debate. Mayme Johnson (Bumpy Johnson’s wife and mentor to Lucas) has already discredited him on one major account. So its hard to know exactly what to believe. The money, the hits, the power, the resourcefulness (shipping heroin to the states in Vietnam body-bags) is verifiable.

Remember the cliche of the 80s? It went something like this:  if a drug dealer could make millions on the street imagine what he could do in a boardroom. The question is even more resounding with Lucas. 250 million in 1970s money has to be close to a billion in 2007 (factoring inflation).

Just my thoughts. I believe this movie (from the out takes and behind the scenes footage)  is BRILLIANT even with the juxtaposition of Lucas (the family man crook) and how that plays out with Russell Crow’s whorish cop character. And how Lucas’ empire slowly began to unravel.