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| Category: Entertainment:Music | |
| About the Book | |
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Ted
Hull tells a story very few people know ... the story of Motown's
earliest days, when talented young people like Diana Ross, Smokey
Robinson, the Tempations and Stevie Wonder were striving to become
famous. On stage, life appeared glamorous. Off stage, they did what
had to be done to let the world hear their music, including getting
out and pushing the bus. Ted Hull was neither a singer nor musician. But for six years he was a shaping force in Stevie's life, as his private teacher and constant companion. As a teacher, Ted enabled young Stevie to pursue his education and his career. As a man with a severe visual impairment, Ted helped Stevie discover that blindness does not have to impair independence or limit life's adventures. With youthful certainty that good things would be coming his way, receiving a phone call from Motown right after college graduation seemed more natural than surprising to Ted. At lunch the next day Barry Gordy's sister, Esther -- a polished and poised businesswoman -- was impressed by his self-confident attitude. By the end of the meeting, Ted, a white, Tennessee-born 26-year-old, was Little Stevie Wonder's private tutor. Motown's reason for hiring a tutor was strictly economic. State law required the thirteen-year-old to attend school, which could end the musical career rocketing him to national stardom. But when they met, Stevie's interest in Ted was personal, as revealed by his first question: "Are you blind, too?" Quickly, Ted's role grew beyond that of just teacher. He became involved in Stevie's management, and acted as a surrogate father to the growing musical genius. Years later in a telegram addressed to Dr. Robert Thompson, superintendent of the Michigan School for the Blind, Stevie said, "You and Ted were instrumental in making my fantasy come true." The Wonder Years describes how Ted turned the world into Stevie's classroom. It illustrates the normal life he enjoyed as a student at the Michigan School for the Blind when not touring or in the studio. It depicts the prejudices about blindness and race -- sometimes just beneath the surface, sometimes blatant, that they both faced. It recounts a behind-the-scenes story of how Stevie crossed the bridge from ghetto to stardom, while his mother, Lula, and the rest of the family had to wait behind. Ted could have cast himself in the role of Svengali, creating total dependence in the blind youngster and establishing a powerful position in his life. Instead, Ted strove to teach Stevie to be as independent as possible; for example, he helped devise musical cues and other techniques that enabled Stevie to move freely on stage without a sighted guide. Ted's mission was to help Stevie gain control of his life and his world. As any parent knows, the day comes when one's "child" must strike out on his own. It was a tough transition for Ted, who felt as if he were losing his own son.
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| About the Author | |
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Ted Hull, who is legally blind, administers Florida's West Coast region of the Division of Blind Services. Since leaving Motown, Ted has appeared occasionally on Stevie's behalf at functions, including the 1976 American Music Awards. In May 1996, he was an "alumni" at ceremonies opening the Motown Historical Museum. |
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