“On May 27, 1967, with no motive offered by prosecutors, Artis and Carter were convicted on three counts of murder and sentenced to life in prison.
Eight years later, Carter sent a copy of his autobiography, The Sixteenth Round: From Number 1 Contender to #45472, to Dylan. Within thirty days Dylan came to visit Carter in prison. The singer told a writer at the time, “The first time I saw him, I left knowing one thing … I realized that the man’s philosophy and my philosophy were running down the same road, and you don’t meet too many people like that”.
In the midst of all this, Bob Dylan met with Carter after reading his biography, and penned his newest modern day protest song, “The Hurricane.” In 1976, between being sung on tour, spun on the radio, and talked about in the media, the song helped raise even more awareness as well as funds to help Carter’s situation get a closer examination. It’s an incredible song that went all the way to #33 on the Billboard Hot 100
Images
The person to Dylan’s immediate right is John Artis, the “other guy” in the “Hurricane” story. Artis was with Carter the night everything either did, or did not go down; like Carter, he was convicted of triple murder. Artis ended up serving 15 years in prison, repeatedly refusing offers from police to implicate Carter in exchange for leniency. In 2011, Artis moved to Canada after he found out Rubin was dying, with no family by his side. Artis served as his old friend’s caregiver until Carter’s death from prostate cancer in the spring of 2014.
The man to Dylan’s far right is Thom Kidrin, who became a long-time advocate and friend of Carter’s after visiting him several times in prison. He’s the one who arranged this meeting, and is the source of both photos.
Sources
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