"A Killing in Choctaw": A Walk in the Shoes of Carl Ray
by Joe Aytch

AN JOSE - "Why must we suffer? Why are we here? God I'm not complaining, I'm just asking why..." pleads Comedian/Actor Carl ray at the end of his one-man play "A Killing in Choctaw."

"A Killing in Choctaw" is a biography that chronicles the incredible struggle to success of a young Black man from Alabama after witnessing the brutal murder of his father in 1962, and how forgiveness changed his life. This particular young person happened to be named Carl Ray. But he or she could have been the child of a lynching victim, or a relative of the 200 to 300 killed during the Oklahoma Race riots of 1921, or one of the people beaten or murdered during the Civil Rights movement.

It's a play that demonstrates the essence of African American theatre. It's Our Story, told as only we can tell it. From Jim Crow to status quo - it's a drama, and documentary. It's a horrendous family tragedy, an abject lesson on racism in America, and its sprinkled with the topical down-home humor that Carl Ray is known for.

Carl Ray's Journey
Not only did 18-year old Carl witness the murder of his father - he was left feeling responsible.

"All because I didn't say 'sir' to a white man," says Carl, referring to an encounter he had with Bill Carlisle, a white neighbor, earlier that fateful day. "Don't you know you're supposed to say sir to a white man?" demands an angry Carlisle when Carl responded with yes or no answers to the man's questioning on September 6, 1962.

After beating Carl to the ground for being uppity, the angry man later followed the battered youth home. There, in front of Carl and his family, Carlisle argued, then emptied a 45-caliber gun into the chest of George Ray.

The subsequent trial was a sham. Even so, the trial of Bill Carlisle was considered by many to be the first time a white man was sentenced for killing a black man in that part of Alabama.

Attempting to put the past behind him, after attending Tuskegee Institute, Carl went on to 13 successful years as an engineer in the aerospace industry. He retired in 1980 to pursue his dream of being a stand-up comic. He went to comedy school in San Francisco, and began touring the country performing at colleges and comedy clubs. Eventually, he recorded an album in 1989, and hosted The Carl Ray Comedy Show on cable TV. He also continued to perform on TV and in comedy clubs throughout the country.

Carl is also a successful motivational speaker, a husband going on 20 years, and a father of five.

Still, others know him for his very successful Black College Tour that for 12 years has taken dozens of college bound Black youth on tours of Black Colleges.

Back in Butler, Alabama he was known as a smallish child with polio, often referred to as that "flicted kid". A young Carl used humor to disarm school bullies. Others may still think he's the uppity colored boy who caused the death of his father, as he was portrayed during the trial of Bill Carlisle. "People don't know the aftermath of the time of survival. I felt guilty [responsible]," says Carl Ray today. "It ate away at me and did a lot of damage. There were many years of turmoil."

The Play
Last year, the San Jose Museum hosted a display of approximately 75 pictures on loan from the Smithsonian documenting the Civil Rights Movement. Carl Ray and several others served as tour guides at the exhibit, sharing their stories before the tour in hopes of giving the pictures more meaning.

After one particular tour, Tommy Fulcher, Jr., Founder/President of the Economic & Social Opportunity (ESO), approached Carl and suggested he do a play based on his life. Fulcher graciously offered to assist with the financing.

Carl sat down and began to write. Then he enlisted the aid of local Actress/Director Ann Johnson, President of the Board of Directors for the San Jose Multicultural Actors Guild.

Ann, best known for her work with San Jose's Tabia African American Theatre Ensemble, has over 15 years of directing and acting credits. "Ann knew how to put my story into a play form," says Carl. "The sections were broken up and staged. She put an order to it, a flow."

Although Ann had directed five plays previously, "A Killing in Choctaw" presented a different set of challenges. "Initially it was just one big story," says Ann. "I had to have an understanding of what it meant to Carl, then visualize and stage it, getting what he wanted and getting what was god for the audience. He really was still dealing with a lot of [emotional] stuff during the whole process...[it was] a way of working towards healing."

About the comedy portions of the play she adds, "Yes we had to show his suffering, but we knew people would come expecting to see Carl Ray the comedian. We used the comedy to make people comfortable."

The play may be good for the Ray family. A family still struggling to understand why. It may be good for all to see, especially in a nation that continues to be confounded by the destructive nature of bigotry.

Look for [a]...showing of "A Killing In Choctaw"...and prepare to have what promises to be one of your best theatrical experiences in years.