''Come Back, Charleston Blue'' is a 1972 American crime

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

starring

Godfrey Cambridge Godfrey MacArthur Cambridge (February 26, 1933 – November 29, 1976) was an American stand-up comic and actor. Alongside Bill Cosby, Dick Gregory, and Nipsey Russell, he was acclaimed by ''Time'' in 1965 as "one of the country's foremost cel ...

and Raymond St. Jacques, loosely based on

Chester Himes Chester Bomar Himes (July 29, 1909 – November 12, 1984) was an American writer. His works, some of which have been filmed, include '' If He Hollers Let Him Go'', published in 1945, and the '' Harlem Detective'' series of novels for which he i ...

' novel ''The Heat's On''. It is a sequel to the 1970 film ''

Cotton Comes to Harlem ''Cotton Comes to Harlem'' is a 1970 American neo-noir action comedy film co-written and directed by Ossie Davis and starring Godfrey Cambridge, Raymond St. Jacques, and Redd Foxx. The film, later cited as an early example of the blaxploita ...

''.

Plot

Detectives Ed "Coffin Ed" Johnson and "Grave Digger" Jones are confounded by a string of strange murders in the

neighborhood A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neigh ...

Harlem, New York Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan ...

. The murders themselves are not nearly as bizarre as the calling card left by the murderer: a blue steel

straight razor A straight razor is a razor with a blade that can fold into its handle. They are also called open razors and cut-throat razors. The predecessors of the modern straight razors include bronze razors, with cutting edges and fixed handles, produced ...

. Legend has it that this was the calling card of Charleston Blue, a

vigilante Vigilantism () is the act of preventing, investigating, and punishing perceived offenses and crimes without legal authority. A vigilante is a person who practices or partakes in vigilantism, or undertakes public safety and retributive justice ...

who tried to rid the neighborhood of all criminal elements using a straight razor. Blue, having disappeared years ago after he went after

Dutch Schultz Dutch Schultz (born Arthur Simon Flegenheimer; August 6, 1901October 24, 1935) was an American mobster based in New York City in the 1920s and 1930s. He made his fortune in organized crime-related activities, including bootlegging and the n ...

(with his trusty straight razor), was considered dead by all except his girlfriend, who kept his razors locked away until his "comeback." Soon after the murders start, it is discovered that the razors were missing, and all evidence points to Joe Painter, a local photographer, who has begun dating Carol, the beloved niece of mafia errand boy Caspar Brown. Joe and Brown are at odds over Caspar's refusal to help Joe kick the mafia out of the neighborhood, so Joe enlists the help of a group of brothers and the spirit of Charleston Blue. However, Johnson and Jones discover that Joe's plan does not seem to be exactly what he claimed it was.

Cast

as Detective "Gravedigger" Jones * Raymond St. Jacques as Detective Ed "Coffin Ed" Johnson * Peter Deanda as Joe Painter *

Percy Rodriguez Percy Rodriguez (born Percy Rodrigues; June 13, 1918 – September 6, 2007) was a Canadian actor who appeared in many television shows and films from the 1950s to the 1980s. He was of Afro-Portuguese heritage and was born in the Saint-Henri neig ...

as Captain Frederick J. Bryce * Jonelle Allen as Carol * Maxwell Glanville as Caspar *

Minnie Gentry Minnie Gentry (born Minnie Lee Watson, December 2, 1915 – May 11, 1993) was an American actress. Gentry was born Minnie Lee Watson in Norfolk, Virginia, the daughter of Mincie and Taylor Watson. Her family moved to Cleveland during her childhoo ...

as "Her Majesty" * Dick Sabol as Jarema * Leonardo Cimino as Frank Mago * Toney Brealond as Drag Queen * Tim Pelt as Earl "Earl J" * Marcia McBroom as Girl Barber * Darryl Knibb as Douglas * Joseph Ray as Bubba * Adam Wade as Benjamin "Benjy" *

Dorothi Fox Dorothi Fox (born January 8, 1930) is an American actress who has starred in television, film and on stage. Born in New York City, she started her career in African-American theatre before moving to the big screen in the 1970s appearing in blaxpl ...

as Streetwalker Also appearing in a minor role is Philip Michael Thomas (as a Minister) in his film debut.

Production

The film was shot in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

, which required producer Samuel Goldwyn Jr. to negotiate with

CORE Core or cores may refer to: Science and technology * Core (anatomy), everything except the appendages * Core (laboratory), a highly specialized shared research resource * Core (manufacturing), used in casting and molding * Core (optical fiber ...

and other groups over their demands for "money, jobs and control."

Reception

This film was a sequel to the film ''

'': appearing two years later, it opened to mixed reviews, with critics feeling it was decent, but not riotous like the original 1970 film. In April 1972, less than three months before the film's release, ''Time'' magazine called the film "part of a new Hollywood wave of eminently commercial movies by blacks about the black experience," a wave that included ''

Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song ''Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song'' is a 1971 American independent blaxploitation action thriller film written, co-produced, scored, edited, directed by, and starring Melvin Van Peebles. His son Mario Van Peebles also appears in a small ro ...

'', '' Shaft'', '' Shaft's Big Score'', '' Cool Breeze'', ''

Buck and the Preacher ''Buck and the Preacher'' is a 1972 American Western film released by Columbia Pictures, written by Ernest Kinoy and directed by Sidney Poitier. Poitier also stars in the film alongside Harry Belafonte and Ruby Dee. This is the first film Sid ...

'', ''

The Legend of Nigger Charley ''The Legend of Nigger Charley'' (released as ''The Legend of Black Charley'' for television broadcast) is a 1972 blaxploitation Western film directed by Martin Goldman and starring Fred Williamson in the title role. The story of a trio of esca ...

'', '' Super Fly'', and ''

Blacula ''Blacula'' is a 1972 American blaxploitation horror film directed by William Crain. It stars William Marshall in the title role about an 18th-century African prince named Mamuwalde, who is turned into a vampire (and later locked in a coffin) ...

''. A.H. Weiler, reviewing the film for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', called it "only occasionally funny or incisive" with a "convoluted plot and dialogue that is often too 'in' for the uninitiated."

Soundtrack

All tracks written by

Donny Hathaway Donny Edward Hathaway (October 1, 1945 – January 13, 1979) was an American soul singer, keyboardist, songwriter, backing vocalist, and arranger who ''Rolling Stone'' described as a "soul legend". His most popular songs include " The Ghetto" ...

except "Little Ghetto Boy" ( Earl DuRouen / Edward Howard) and "Come Back Charleston Blue" (Donny Hathaway /

Al Cleveland Al Cleveland (born Alfred W. Cleveland; March 11, 1930 – August 14, 1996) was an American songwriter for the Motown label. Among his most popular co-compositions are 1967's " I Second That Emotion" and 1969's " Baby, Baby Don't Cry" performed by ...

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

). In November 2007,

Rhino Records A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

released a remastered version of the soundtrack album, which included two new tracks, an alternate version and a live version of "Little Ghetto Boy."

References

External links

* * {{Rotten Tomatoes 1972 films 1970s crime comedy films African-American films American sequel films Films based on American novels Films based on crime novels Films set in Harlem Films shot in New York City Warner Bros. films American comedy mystery films American police detective films 1972 comedy films 1970s comedy mystery films 1970s English-language films 1970s American films English-language crime comedy films English-language comedy mystery films