Cast and Crew: Martha Reeves (Soundtrack); J. J. Johnson (Original Music); Alan Weeks
What It’s About: Willie Dynamite (Roscoe Orman) is a pimp who lives large, wearing the most astounding pimp fashions imaginable (gold lame duster, an outfit that looks like Elvis gone Shriner, huge fur hat and coat, and a hat and coat covered in more feathers than Big Bird) while running an ethnically diverse stable of hookers that specializes in convention trade. There’s only one problem-the cops, lead by Assistant D.A. Robert Daniels (Thalmus Rasulala) and detectives Pointer (Albert Hall) and Celli (George Murdock) are clamping down on the vice industry. Bell (Roger Robinson) calls a pimp meeting and convinces the pimps to organize but Willie D. will have none of it. Soon he’s facing harassment from the cops and the pimps, and it gets worse when social worker and ex-prostitute Cora (Diana Sands) gets on his case-and starts trying to get his youngest and most beautiful prostitute, Pashen (Joyce Walker) off the street and into modeling.
Why Watch it Today?: Roscoe Orman made today’s film shortly before his first appearance on Sesame Street as Gordon, which aired on November 4th, 1974. Anyone who grew up with Orman’s Gordon will find Willie Dynamite provides excellent cognitive dissonance.
The League of Dead Films 
Holy Hookers. I haven’t seen this in YEARS and forgot that it was Gordon in this! The Dream Team Schooltime Double Feature, however is to double this flick up with Street Smart so you can see Morgan Freeman (or Easy Reader from the Electric Company!) as a brutal pimp called Fast Black. Nice performance from Christopher Reeve as well in there…
Street Smart has been on my “to see” list for years, thanks for reminding me of it-and of giving me a great title for the double feature-Sesame Street Smarts.
Now that’s a hoot. Yeah, definitely check it out. I saw it when it was first released with some friends and I think we had to see it twice because the first time we were laughing so much at Easy Reader as a mean Yoo-Hoo swilling pimp threatening poor Clark Kent (Reeve plays a reporter here). It’s not a perfect film, but it’s a lot of fun to see these guys playing against type…
I always heard both were good in it, but especially Freeman. Didn’t know about the Yoo Hoo though!
Yeah, that beverage of champeens plays an important role in the plot, believe it or not…