Manhunt. Volume 2, Number 10, December, 1954
Pretty Boy
by Hal Ellson
Man, it was the most. I was flying high — until I did that crazy thing...
I don’t know what happened. I’m high on a bottle of wine and heading for the Pelican’s territory. I’m going to blast the first I see.
I never got there. I ran into Sadie. I snatched that witch and right off she asks me if I’m high again, like she don’t know.
I’m gone already. Me and her went up on the roof. I want some more, I tell her. Since it’s me she don’t care, she says. But up on the roof she gives me the line. I bang her across the face and she has to give.
Next day I’m at her house. The crowd came and we put on records and danced, then cut out to the show.
That’s where I met Zelma. I make Sadie introduce me, and Zelma says, “So you’re Pretty Boy I heard so much about. You’re mighty slim to raise all that hell gang fighting.”
I smiled and felt proud. Sadie’s mad. I let her go and ask Zelma who she go with.
“Nobody,” she says.
“Who you planning on going with?”
“I got somebody in mind right now,” she says, watching me slyly.
“But it can’t be me,” I say, “cause I just met you.”
“Yes, it’s you, but what about Sadie?”
“Don’t worry about her.”
“If I ask you, would you go with me?”
“You go with me to the show next Sunday and I’ll tell you.”
Next Sunday I hit the show, went upstairs and saw her with one of the other cats. If he was one of the Pelicans he’d be dead in his seat. It was one of my own boys. I sat down in front of her. When that other cat went for a drink, I turned and said, “Dig, girl, what you sitting with him for?”
“He made me, I didn’t want to,” she says.
“Yeah, he can’t make you do nothing. Do you or don’t you want to go with me?”
“Yeah, Pretty Boy.”
“Then get up and let’s sit over there.”
After the stage show, I took her out and she went home. Back in my own neighborhood, one of my boys comes up and says, “Did you know Zelma’s coming down here tonight?” I didn’t but I was waiting for her at the subway that evening. When she came up the steps, I asked what she was doing around.
“Coming to see you,” she says.
“You’re a damned liar, cause you wasn’t. You was coming to see Teddy.”
“I was coming to see you. Don’t you believe me?”
I didn’t, but I tell her, “Let’s go for a walk.”
We went to a little place they call a park. Nothing there but a blade of grass, a rock, a tree, a bench, and one light. “Baby,” I say, “It’s too light here for what I want.”
She gave me a funny look, then said, “There’s a whole field of grass behind us.”
Next day she had on a ring from the Five and Ten. She showed it to the girls, saying me and her is engaged. One of the witches asked me about it and that’s when I went looking for Zelma’s skin. I found her with some of her friends and right off I say, “What’s the idea of telling these dogs I gave you a ring?” Damn, she looked ready to cry, and me, I don’t want her to feel bad so I turn to the others. “Yeah, I gave her the ring. What about it?” I said to them.
One girl laughed. “Pretty Boy, you’re sweet but you’re evil,” she tells me.
That night I bought me some reefers. I got crazy high quick and sent Zelma home for my pistol. Then I picked up the rest of the boys, cause we got a “war” on with the Pelicans. We taxied into foreign territory, fired a few wild shots and flew, cause the cops was hot in the streets.
By that time I’m so high they have to drag me from the taxi. I was real goofed and when Zelma met me, she was half goofed and didn’t care where we went, so we went up on her roof.
“I don’t care what happens,” she said. “I hope you can’t ever quit me. I’m going to buy you a coat.”
“Baby, you love me, steal me some good shirts, I’m partial to blue,” I tell her.
“I’ll steal a box of them for you, all with pearly buttons, as long as you love me.”
“Yeah, baby, you’re the only one I ever did love. If I went to jail, what would you do?”
“I’d wait for you.”
I felt in my pockets for money. “I want some more Pete and reefers,” I tell her. “You get the stuff cause I’m shy of the streets tonight.”
Yeah, she bought the wine and reefers for me and we got high.
Late the next afternoon, I went to the poolroom. “Hey Joe, let me go with a couple of sticks,” I said to the man.
“Ain’t got them with me. I’ll be back in ten minutes,” he says, and I waited.
Good stuff he brought back. “I got fifty more, if you want to push them for me,” he tells me.
“Yeah, what’s the profits, man?” I asked.
“Same as always,” he says. “But dig man, don’t try to cheat me cause I got everything counted. I don’t want to cut you, but I’ll do it if I have to. You got money and sticks for yourself. If the cops bust you, I won’t be there but somebody’ll be there for you.”
“Okay, Joe.”
“Keep a cool head, and don’t talk or you’ll have us all in the slam. See you later, kid.”
A dance was set for the next night. I’m thinking of the Pelicans, if they’ll be there. I hate them punks. Going to get one yet.
I listened to some blues and boogie. Then I took me a bath, dressed, chipped in for a bottle of Five Star and got a little high. We was ready for the dance by that time and somebody called a taxi. When we got to the Hall we swaggered in. Damn, them girls was drunk and dizzy with wine and reefers already.
Pelicans there, too. One of their punks stepped on my shine while I’m dancing. “What you doing?” I say to him.
“Mother-jumper, I’ll step on your throat next. I’ll bang your head and rock your foundations.”
“Yeah, maybe you want a pistol butt for a self-raising eye,” I said, moving my hand inside my jacket.
That ended it. Boys from both sides broke it up, but there was a bad feeling the rest of the evening. Me, I played the field, looking for trouble. We was all looking for trouble. I wandered up to the balcony and made a pass at a man’s wife. The man showed me a knife.
I took a fast walk and found one of my boys and a girl sitting out a slow-drag. They was chewing benzedrine. Me, I don’t chew today to get drunk tomorrow. Benny don’t make you high, it makes you lazy. That’s what I told them.
The girl laughed and I didn’t like that, so I walked. Another like her once tried to grandstand on me. I could hear her voice in my head yet, saying, “You ain’t going to do this, and you ain’t going to do that.” I told her, I don’t want no girl giving me orders. “You jiving turkey, I don’t want no man I can beat,” she said. “I want a man and therefore you ain’t nothing but a flunkie.” That was when I swung and knocked her down the stairs.
The dance was over at two and I’m all reefed up. Got evil thoughts about them Pelicans. One of them is going to die yet.
Me and my boys stood across the street from the Hall with the girls. The Pelicans stood out front. One of their girls threw a can of lye and started the rumble. I’m thinking of my face, so I got under a truck when that lye flew. That fight didn’t last. Somebody yelled cops and we scattered.
Me, I hustled over to Fat-Stuff’s. We all met there and ate fish sandwiches. Coming out, I see a squad car at the curb. Two cops got out and lined us up against the windows. Me and my boys all had blue club hats on.
“What’s all the blue hats for?” one of them cops says, and nobody answered till he picked me out.