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PEPSI-COLA AND TONY BROWN USHER IN BLACK HISTORY MONTH WITH WORLD PREMIERE AT HARLEM CHURCH

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NEW YORK, January 30—Harlem's Canaan Baptist Church was the setting for the world premiere today of "Thank God!", an Afro-American docu-opera dramatizing the history of the black church through its music. The church screenig served as the official kick-off of Black History Month, celebrated nationwide in February.
Produced by Tony Brown's Journal and funded by Pepsi-Cola, "Thank God!" celebrates four centuries of black music, tracing its evolution from early spirituals through modern-day gospel, jazz, blues, rock and the Broadway musical theatre.
Scenes from the four part television special, which begins airing nationally next week, were shot at the church, using the congregation and choir.
The Reverend Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker, senior pastor of the church and one of the world's leading authorities on black scared music, officiated at the ceremony.
Dr. Walker, who appears in the opening scene of "Thank God!", reenacted his television role, expanding on the oral tradition and its role in keeping the black legacy alive. 
The author of two books, The Soul of Black Worship and Somebody' Calling My Name, Dr. Walker served as historical consultant for the series, which begins with a recreation of life in an African village, prior to the Atlantic slave trade.
The arrival of the first Africans in Jamestown, VA. in 1619—one year before the Mayflower—is documented in the special, as is the brutality of the slave trade, in which 60 million West Africans were killed. It was, according to Dr. Walker, a former aide to the late Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., "Genocide on a scale unmatched in recorded history."
The church, however, kept, spirits alive, encouraging the oppressed to keep "Singing the Lord's song in a strange land." The music swelled, mirroring the events of the next three and a half centuries, making and reflecting history.
Today, Dr. Walker asserted. "The music of the black religious experience is the root of all music born in the United States." Black music, he added, is the only music indigenous to America.
Dr. Walker was joined on the pulpit by Tony Brown, producer and host of Tony Brown's Journal, the longest-running black affairs television series in America. Mr. Brown, an award-winning journalist, syndicated columnist and former Howard University dean, described the making of "Thank God!", which marked his directing debut, as a year-long labor of love. A Southern Fundamentalist, the 46-year-old Charleston, W. Va. native credits the church with the pragmatism that made it possible to produce a series as ambitious as "Thank God!" while juggling an extensive schedule of weekly programming and speaking engagements.
The special screening of "Thank God!" was preceded by a performance by Theresa Merritt, star of the Broadway hit musical. "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," who demonstrated the link between spiritual and gospel. show music and blues, in a rousing medley which set the mood for the music and drama on the screen.
An audience of over 500 church leaders, entertainers and dignitaries, including NAACP Executive Director Benjamin Hooks, former borough president Percy Sutton and Jeree Palmer, star of "Shades of Harlem," gathered at the church to pay tribute to an entertainment milestone—and a moving monument to the role of the church as lodestone of the black experience.
Roger Enrico, president and chief executive officer of Pepsi-Cola USA, concluded the church premiere by underscoring the company's commitment to Black History Month and the celebration of black culture in America.
"1985 marks our tenth year as sponsors as of Tony Brown's Journal, and our third as underwriters of these Black History Month four-part specials," Mr. Enrico said.
Pepsi-Cola bottlers throughout the U.S. will be staging local premiere of "Thank God!", Mr. Enrico pointed out, in conjunction with black clergy and the community leaders. "This is a grass roots effort," he continued, "designed to heighten public awareness of our black heritage and reinforce the pride that we, as Americans, black and white, feel for our cultural tradition."
Local festivities will include free distribution of "Tony Brown's Journal Magazine," a four-color quarterly publication. This year's special Black History Month issue highlights the making of "Thank God!" and includes an in-depth look at the history of the black church and the music it produced.
"Thank God!" will air on over 240 public television stations in 115 markets, starting February 7. Check local listings for details.

Thank God–for Tony Brown and the Rev. Wyaat Walker