By JAMES MITCHELL
Sunday Times Newspapers
LINCOLN PARK – On the heels of a successful “blast from the past” summer with a legendary rock ’n’ roll group, the Lincoln Park Historical Museum invites the public to take a deeper stroll into local history at the first of its fall events.
Noted local author and historian Alana Paluszewski – a lifelong Wyandotte resident – will continue discussions held earlier this year about a hometown rock band that hit the big time. “Before the Revolution: The MC5’s Downriver Years,” will focus on the infamous band’s early days.
Of particular note was the band’s association with Ann Marston, whose time as the group’s business manager was one entry in a lifelong resume that included having been Miss Michigan in the 1950s and a national champion archer.
Paluszewski’s presentation will include copies her book, “Shooting Star: The Amazing Life of Ann Marston.”
Museum Curator Jeff Day said the presentation – which will recall Marston and the MC5s formative years in Lincoln Park in the early 1960s – will conclude with the installation of a permanent MC5 exhibit. This summer had featured a special exhibit in honor of the band’s 50th anniversary, with events that included a tribute concert featuring MC5 drummer Dennis “Machinegun” Thompson.
The MC5 – four of its founding members called Lincoln Park home – had gained widespread notoriety in the late 1960s, but had first been under the guidance of Marston, a Wyandotte native who also had achieved national fame. Her archery championships had earned the cover of “Sports Illustrated” in 1955, and in 1959 she claimed the Miss Michigan crown and competed for Miss America the following year.
Interested in the rising sound of rock ’n’ roll, Marston managed several local bands including the MC5 in the early 1960s. Her interests were short-lived due to her struggle with diabetes, which claimed her life in 1971 at age 32.
The presentation at the Lincoln Park Historical Museum, 135 Southfield, begins at 7 p.m. Oct. 7. Admission is free, and copies of “Shooting Star” will be available for purchase. For information contact the museum at 313 386-3137.
(James Mitchell can be reached at [email protected].)