By Steve Bergsman

The 1957 Pulitzer Prize-winning book, "A Death in the Family," begins in narrative format with a tale about a boy and his father in Knoxville, Tennessee. Although the book is a work of fiction, the author, James Agee, closely followed the geographic reality of the city early in the 20th century. This was an area of the world Agee knew well. Before he left for New England and Harvard, then went on to become one of America's literary lions of the mid-20th century as a novelist, poet, journalist, screenwriter and film critic, he was born and raised in Knoxville.

I was familiar with Agee through his film criticism and even more so his Depression-era ode to Alabama sharecroppers, which he did with photographer Walker Evans, called "Let Us Now Praise Famous Men." But I had never read "A Death in the Family." Knowing I was heading to Knoxville, I dove into the book known for the pages of interior dialogue of the main characters. However, it was the beginning pages of the Knoxville knock-about that interested me, so I hooked up with Jack Neely of the Knoxville History Project for a tour through downtown and Agee's world.

The book begins with the boy and his father heading to the moving pictures. Agee writes, "They walked downtown in the light of mother-of-pearl, to the Majestic, and found their way by the light of the screen, in the exhilarating smell of stale tobacco, rank sweat, perfume and dirty drawers." Now that is an exhilarating bit of prose!

Although Knoxville has preserved many of its old theaters, the Majestic was torn down and replaced by a nondescript office building next to the Knoxville tourism storefront. Things do get better. After the movie, the father and son walk past a building with a sign that reads "Sterchi's." Such a building still exists and can be seen from Gay Street, the Broadway of Knoxville. The boy and his father then make it to Market Square, lined with interesting restaurants and shops that today is still the main gathering spot in the city. If you go, look for the plaques in the ground dedicated to three Knoxville writers: Agee, David Madden and Cormac McCarthy. Another plaque quotes the Knoxville Journal and Tribune, which referred to Market Square as "the most democratic place on earth."

In the Knoxville of the novel, Market Square at night is mostly speakeasies, one of which the father enters. Agee wrote: "They turned through the swinging doors into a blast of odor and sound. There was no music, only the density of bodies and of the smell of a market bar."

The Blue Coast Grill, which in Agee's day was the Gold Sun run by a Greek immigrant and open 24 hours. Late-nighters of all stripes ended up here, from the boxer Jack Dempsey to country-western singers. Old-time singer Archie Campbell used to tell of crashing at the Gold Sun when he was short of funds.

As the boy and the father walk to their North Knoxville home, they pass what was one of the first schools in the country for the deaf. The boy refers to it as an "asylum." Agee writes, "The deaf and dumb asylum was deaf and dumb, his father observed very quietly, as if careful not to wake it." Today the ornate building is a law school.

Agee lived in the Fort Sanders neighborhood, which he celebrated in a short story that begins: "We are talking now of summer evenings in Knoxville, Tennessee, in the time that I lived there so successfully disguised to myself as a child." Today the neighborhood has given a nod to Agee by claiming a street in his name and a pocket-pitch called James Agee Park (an oval walk and a few benches surrounded by gardens).

One of the oldest and certainly one of the most beautiful churches in Knoxville is St. John's Cathedral, whose first building was completed in 1846. Agee was a congregant at this church and according to one story sang in the choir. The church today boasts gorgeous stained-glass windows and should be a stop on any tour of the city.

Another such spot is the restored cinema emporium on Gay Street called the Tennessee Theater. Once a movie palace, it is now a venue for Broadway plays and musical performances. If you can catch a tour, check out the dressing rooms below that are named for the famous who performed there. The movie of "A Death in the Family" — called "All the Way Home" — starred Robert Preston. He appeared at the Tennessee Theater and now has a dressing room named after him.

The other famous theater that has been restored is the Bijou. Originally built in 1909 for burlesque, today it's a live-performance venue. Everyone from the Marx Brothers to the Ramones has played there. In Agee's time the top floor above the theater was a house of ill repute. That, however, is a different story.

WHEN YOU GO

For more Information: www.visitknoxville.com or Jack Neely at www.knoxvillehistoryproject.org

James Agee wrote about Market Square in Knoxville, Tennessee, in his novel "A Death in the Family." Photo courtesy of Steve Bergsman.

The writer James Agee attended services at St. John's Cathedral in Knoxville, Tennessee. Photo courtesy of Steve Bergsman.

The Knoxville, Tennessee, building that James Agee referred to as an asylum in "A Death in the Family" is now a law school. Photo courtesy of Steve Bergsman.

Steve Bergsman is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

James Agee wrote about Market Square in Knoxville, Tennessee, in his novel "A Death in the Family." Photo courtesy of Steve Bergsman.