A New York avant-garde film screening devolved into violent conflict with narcotics agents

Evidence

As the narcos in “pasty short sleeve Hawaiian sport shirts danced around Martin,” the ballroom erupted in pandemonium. Hours later in Los Angeles, Watts would explode, triggering a weeklong uprising; at the Broadway Central, audience members demanded to see badges or a warrant. Court documents describe “a melee.” The agents were “repeatedly kicked, struck and otherwise impeded” as they handcuffed Martin and dragged him up the aisle and out of the ballroom onto Mercer Street, physically confronted by the irate ticket taker Irene Nolan (featured in many of Heliczer movies) and dogged by Heliczer, who, by his own account, attempted to kick an agent, at which point he was jumped and thrown to the ground. All three were shoved into a waiting car from which they escaped but were soon recaptured. — J. Hoberman, Everything Is Now, 744

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s core interest in what conditions made underground scenes possible — here, palpable illegality and open confrontation with police.