Topic: ScrApper Blackwell death????? Info???

[creightonblues1920]

Hi it's me creighton here with a mystery . Scrapper Blackwell died October 7th 1962 . Supposedly he was shot because of a mugging? Can somebody give me some more info on this?

[Bunker Hill]

MJT3 of this parish has been researching Carr-Blackwell for a mighty long time. I'm sure if anyone can supply the background he's the man. 

In the meantime at item 18 in Stefan's discography http://www.wirz.de/music/blackfrm.htm you'll find my scan of the booklet notes to the 77 LP. These were written in 1960 by Duncan Schiedt and, as you'll note, Blackwell complained during this latter session that he had lost the effective use of his left ring finger due to a fracas in an apartment the previous night. Obviously prone to such happenings.....

[Gumbo]

Obviously prone to such happenings.....

it never occurred to me before to wonder how he got his nickname!

[Prof Scratchy]

I remember reading that Scrapper was shot by a neighbour, a 75 year old man named Robert Beam. The two had been drinking in the alley behind Beam's house. Scrapper died 24 hours after the shooting. He had two bullets in his chest. Beam was arrested but claimed he'd been cleaning the gun when it went off accidentally. Twice, apparently! Don't know what happened after that - whether Beam was charged and arraigned? Anyway, not a mugging.

[Bunker Hill]

Well done Prof, just the nudge my failing memory needed. It can be found chapter and verse in the notes 1980 to Blackwell Agram LP, by Guido van Rijn and Han Veergeer. I've attached a scan of the relevant section from the LP notes. The arty farty layout doesn't help - click image to view.

[Prof Scratchy]

That's it BH!

[MTJ3]

BH, Thanks for the "shout out" to an undeserving apostate from the parish.  I don't have a lot to add, except a few details, which raise a lot of questions or doubts. 

Robert Beam (75) and one Frank Williams (70) called the police at 9:22 a.m. and reported that they found Scrapper at the rear of Beam's house bleeding from a chest wound.  (On Scrapper?s death certificate, his brother Herschel made a statement that implied that Beam was a friend of Scrapper?s.) Beam initially told police he didn't know what happened to Scrapper.  The police found Scrapper, who was unconscious, at 9:26 a.m. on a Saturday.  Based on a tip from an unidentified source that Beam was the perpetrator, the police searched Beam's house and found what turned out to be the murder weapon in a shoe box at the foot of Beam's bed and arrested Beam.  Beam told a reporter that (1) he and Scrapper had been in Beam's backyard drinking home brew and were high, (2) Beam had been loading a bullet in an empty chamber of a .22 revolver, pulled the hammer back so the cylinder would turn, and his thumb slipped off the hammer and shot Scrapper who fell to the ground at first but appeared not to be injured, Beam saw no blood and Scrapper seemed alright, and (3) Beam didn't come clean about this to the police initially because he didn't know what they would think. 

As noted elsewhere, Scrapper died about 24 hours later from two bullets in his chest.

Beam was initially held without bail. There was a hearing a couple of weeks later at which he may have been able to post bond.  He was scheduled for indictment in December 1962.  I haven't followed up on Beam as I should have done, so beyond that, I don't know what happened to Beam (though I would assume that he was convicted of at least involuntary manslaughter if he made it to trial). 


 

[jostber]

More information on Mr.Blackwell here with some interesting links at the end:

https://sundayblues.org/?p=11393

[mtzionmemorialfund]

I haven't followed up on Beam as I should have done, so beyond that, I don't know what happened to Beam (though I would assume that he was convicted of at least involuntary manslaughter if he made it to trial).

He was sentenced to ten years and got a pardon in 1964.  (See The Indianapolis News, May 12, 1964) He lived a quiet four years until he died of smoke inhalation in 1968.  He has a military headstone.