I Called Him Morgan Page #6

are expected.

Again, high winds,

lows around 32

and a high temperature of 37.

Authorities advice you

to stay off the road

and stay indoors...

[Billy] So that night,

we had the gig at Slugs'.

Well in the first place,

Slugs', this was a real

raw saloon basically, you know.

I mean, when you go in there,

sawdust on the floor.

And then the stage in the back.

That was one of the places

where all the musicians

were playing at the time.

And so it had the reputation

of a place where you can

really hear the real cats.

I remember it was

a most difficult night.

It was a night that

started out, and then it

became something else.

It was a snow--

When we got there,

the snow was two feet high.

I remember because

I had to get out of there

with my instrument.

Then I went back to

Philadelphia the next day.

That was...

that was it.

[Lena] It was February 18th.

I met Lee for dinner.

And he liked the dress

that I had on.

I remember him talking about

my dress. "I like your dress."

And we ate.

And then I said,

"Well, it's going to

be a blizzard,

so I got to go

back to Jersey.

Because I ain't

drivin' in the snow."

He said, "Just take me up to

the Bronx, I'll get my horn,

and drop me off at Slugs'."

And that was the plan.

[Helen] And that Saturday,

I don't know

what possessed me.

I said, "I'm going to Slugs'."

He was working down there

that whole week.

I hadnt been down there

that whole week.

And a fella was stayin'

with me named Ed.

So Ed was gay.

And Ed knew all

the musicians and

everything, you know.

And I said, "Ed, come on."

He said, "Don't go."

I said,"No, I'm goin'."

He said "I just don't

want you to go."

[Lena] As you may know,

up in the Bronx, a lot

of streets are cobblestone.

And we slid

on the cobblestone

and totaled my car.

So we got the--

we didn't get hurt, though.

We had our fur coats and

we were all bundled up.

It was near

the Grand Concourse.

He went upstairs

and got his horn.

I said, "Well, I got

to get back to Jersey."

My car was totaled.

It was maybe four or five

inches of snow by then.

Going down in the cab, going

down from Grand Concourse

stand to Slugs'.

Now we're talking about

seven, eight inches of snow.

He said,"I can't not go

on the stand because I'm

the leader, it's my group."

And he was flashing back

to when he was strung out,

and lots of times

he didn't show up.

He said,"I can't

let them down."

So I went in.

I sat by the door, because

if I could get a cab,

I was going to

get out of there.

[Jymie] That night was

pay night.

And Lee was late getting there.

And when he came in,

he rushed right

to the bathroom.

He had to throw up.

He had just--his car

had just totaled.

He had totaled his car

on the way to work.

[Helen] I said, "I'm just

going to stop in Slugs'

and say hello."

And then I'd gone over to

the band guy named Freddy.

A guy Cam I met down there.

And I went in Slugs', went in.

[jazz music playing]

[Billy] You know,

while we were playing,

he said,"Don't look now

but Helen just came in."

I didn't know there was

a big problem with them

at the time.

But when I look back,

you know, it was like a movie.

The doors flung open

and there was Helen.

[Lena] It was crowded

for it to be a blizzard.

Um, Helen came to the door.

He was not sitting with me,

I was sitting by the door

so I could see

out the window,

waiting for a cab.

"I'm here for the draw."

That's what Helen said,

"I'm here for the draw."

She said it real loud.

He said, "You want a draw?"

Which would be,

musicians get a draw.

They can draw money

out of their pay.

And whatever, I didn't

even hear the argument.

I knew something was going on.

[Paul] It was snowing outside.

And I and my lady decided

we're going to run down

to Slugs' and catch Lee.

As I walked in,

Helen approached me.

And she says, "Paul,

could you go and talk

to your friend, Lee?

And, because he's got

his little girlfriend here.

And I feel very uncomfortable

with her being here,

and she shouldn't be here."

I said okay.

So I walked over to him.

He was at the bar and

talking to this little lady.

"Lee," I said,"look.

Your wife is here.

And I don't know who

this young lady is.

But I think you ought to take

her outside, put her in a cab,

and send her home."

"All right, okay,

all right, we'll do it."

You know, that was

his attitude at the time.

And so his wife then

came and sat with us.

[Helen] Morgan came

where I was.

We was talking.

The girl walked up.

And she said,

"I thought you wasn't

supposed to be with her

anymore," or something.

"I'm not--

I'm not with this b*tch,

I'm just telling her

to leave me alone."

And about that time,

I hit him.

And when I hit him,

I didn't have on my coat

or nothing but I had my bag.

He threw me out the club.

Winter time.

The gun fell out the bag.

He's the one who

bought me the gun.

I couldn't get it myself.

And I got up.

So my lady said to me, "Paul,

Helen is outside in the snow.

Her coat is here.

Why don't you

take her coat to her?"

And she comes in.

[Lena] Lee was getting ready

to go back up there,

play "Angela" for Angela Davis.

And he was getting ready to

go back up and Helen came in.

Helen is walking

and I'm walking,

we're both walking

toward each other,

and Lee is in the middle.

And she once again

taps Lee on his shoulder,

but she has her hand

in her pocketbook.

And taps him, and

Lee turns around.

And bam!

And I said, "What is that?"

You know, we're looking up.

Lee's still standing up,

and I thought maybe--

I don't know what happened.

Maybe somebody shot something

in the air or something.

It was just pop-pop.

Pop--one pop, I don't know.

And, um, and he fell.

[Helen] Yeah,

I lost it, I lost it.

I said,

"I couldn't have did this.

I couldn't have did this.

This must be a dream.

And I'mma wake up."

[sirens wailing]

[Paul] The police

came right away.

But in--I don't know

whether it was because

of the bad weather,

the ambulance took almost

an hour to get to the club.

I think he could

have been saved.

It took such a long time

for the ambulance to come.

[Jymie] E verybody

walked away--

I don't know,

I never walked back.

I never--I don't know...

I was never able to go

down that street again.

Didn't get back to New York.

[jazz music playing]

[Lena] I went with him

to the hospital,

sitting in this

big empty Bellevue,

and ran to see by myself.

After a while, I saw them come

out of the ER with a big bag,

they were dragging it

on the floor.

And there was blood--

there was nobody there but Lee.

And I just walked over,

over to it.

I knew he was gone.

[newsreader] Well-known

trumpet player, Lee Morgan

was fatally shot

during a Saturday morning

in an East Village jazz club.

Police said the 33-year-old

Morgan had quarreled earlier

with his wife, Helen Morgan,

who shot the musician

once in the chest after he

completed the late night set

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