"Politics and power in a small American town"--Jacket subtitle.

1930-1958.King of the drag ; Shotgun houses ; Play ball ; My dreams ; Rumblings -- 1958-1962. Outside the rail ; Roadshow ; Sinking pretty low -- 1963-1965. Something altogether new ; Judge in a nutshell ; In the middle ; Born again -- 1965-1985. Picking up the pieces ; Inside the ballpark ; New life ; Racial politics ; Black Santa ; Straddling two eras ; Contradictory individuals ; Roadshow two ; A multitude of problems ; Drawing the lines ; Salt and pepper ; Intense politickin' time ; Ironies all around -- 1985-1990. The probability of miracles.