Iceberg Slim: Portrait of a Pimp Page #9

I was arrested

when he was alive.

It's been many times

since then.

Oh, boy.

- Anyway, I got arrested

with 10 kilos of cocaine

And a million dollars cash.

So they called my father

'cause they wanted

to give me 50 years.

I thought that would be

a scary phone call to make,

But it wasn't 'cause

he just took it all...

Uh-huh, and then

what did you have

In your possession,

my dear?

Nothing, dad.

I swear. I wouldn't lie.

And he was, like, okay.

I'm gonna call

the prosecutor right now

And plead your case.

And he did,

and I couldn't believe that.

And he didn't let anything

stand...

Get in the way of him

being able to deliver himself

Unto you if you needed it.

He was very supportive

As far as, like,

giving you kind of...

An insight

on what will come,

Being a girl,

being a woman.

When I was a teenager,

I didn't want to hear

anything he had to say,

As any teenage girl,

But he was giving me love.

I didn't think

it was love back then.

I just thought he was,

you know,

This non-existing father.

But now, obviously,

yeah, that was love.

It was the third day

of the riots,

Los angeles,

with the rodney king thing.

And it was pretty evident

That my father

was not doing well.

Gangrene had set in

Because of the diabetes

in his foot,

And he was gonna

have to have

Some parts of it amputated.

- Melody called me

at the office,

And she said

daddy's in the hospital

And they want

to take his leg off,

And he refused to let 'em

take his leg off.

And I said, melody,

call your dad back

And tell him that

I will be there to see him

And tell him

I said good night.

And he died that night.

Every time

that I put my hand out

To try to show him

That the animosity

wasn't as strong and as raging

As it had been

in the beginning,

Something bad

would happen to him.

I was in France.

By the time I got here,

he was already dead,

And I knew it

when the plane hit the tarmac.

I got a call from betty,

And she said, leon,

daddy's gone.

- I was one of the pallbearers

at his funeral.

I know they never have

women pallbearers.

- But she was

right in there.

I was right in there.

- I never got a chance

to be an adult

And kind of apologize for

being estranged from him.

He died with us

on bad, bad terms,

Which, you know.

Everyone has regrets, so...

- No one would know that he

was as influential as he is,

Even today, 20 years later

after his death,

By the way that he lived

and the things that he had.

He had nothing.

- If I had known

it was that bad,

I think

I would have gone

And said that's okay,

I'll take care of you.

I don't think

I would have let him-

I don't think I would have

let him stay like that.

I don't believe

that I would.

I couldn't because

he was part of me.

I mean, we made

iceberg slim together.

It wasn't

a one-person process,

It was a two-people

process, you know.

He was a wonderful person,

And I love him

And I miss him.

- Iceberg slim books

will always sell well.

They always have sold well,

and when we order them,

We order, you know,

50 or 100 at a time

To make sure

that we never run out.

Sometimes

somebody will come in

And literally

pick up one of each

Because people wanna

pass them along to their friends

And have the entire set,

so it's interesting.

- The acceptance

of iceberg slim

Has been literally

universal.

If I'm correct,

I believe

it's 8 or 10 languages.

International publishers,

in the main,

Are all people

of high repute,

That felt that there was

a great deal of worth here.

- He used to say,

I could have been anything.

I could have been somebody.

I said, what the hell

do you think you are?

You're a writer

That's ready by millions

and millions of people.

You are somebody.

- To describe the life

of iceberg slim,

I would say

it's not a story

To glamourize

a player's life.

It's rather

a story of redemption.

- His contribution

to african-american literature

Hasn't been touched

by anyone.

He was literally an icon

in this genre.

- Iceberg slim

represents change.

He represents-

he's like a beacon of hope

For anybody who's living

in impoverished conditions

That wants to change,

you know,

And is looking

for that outlet.

- I am a new york times

best selling author,

And if it wasn't

for iceberg slim,

I probably wouldn't even

have a platform.

He's one of the pioneers,

no doubt about it.

- The book company's

called cash money content,

And we definitely proud

of the fact

That we publish

iceberg slim books.

I think it's important

that we protect his legacy.

These books will live

forever, guaranteed.

- Those of us

that know iceberg slim

Will put him with baldwin

and chester himes,

Richard wright

and alex haley, even.

As the wrap gift

For every movie

I've ever done,

I give out copies of pimp

to the whole cast and crew.

All the questions of life

Can be answered

if you read this book.

- From reading iceberg slims

and really getting into it,

I knew that that

was the only way

To tell a story:

To tell both sides of it.

Whenever you would listen

to an ice-t record,

It's the game,

but it's the b-side, too.

- He really had, like,

a big heart,

Even though

he never showed anyone.

I think that his heart

Was absolutely bursting

inside of him half the time.

You know, brother beck,

Your autobiography,

pimp, which you wrote,

It may have encouraged

a lot of young brothers

To become pimps.

How do you feel about this?

- I think

it's very unfortunate

That there have been many

misguided young black men

Who should know better,

Who missed the whole message

in the book,

And that was

that nothing good

Came to me

except the penitentiary

And a heroin habit

And misery

And the complete waste

of my life.

I stupidly tried

to get something for nothing.

And any time that you try to

get something for nothing,

You're gonna suffer...

One way or another.

this is a man's world

this is a man's world

but it wouldn't

be nothing

nothing without a woman

or a girl

you see,

man made the cars

to take us over the road

man made the train

to carry the heavy load

man made

the electric light

to take us

out of the dark

man made the boat

for the water

like noah made the ark

this is a man's,

man's, man's world

but it wouldn't

be nothing

nothing without a woman

or a girl

man thinks about

a little bit of baby girls

and of baby boys

man make them happy

'cause man

make them toys

and after man

make everything

everything he can

you know

that man makes money

to buy from other men

this is a man's world

but it wouldn't

be nothing

nothing,

not one little thing

without a woman

or a girl

he's lost

in the wilderness

he's lost

in bitterness

he's lost

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