Work has begun on the Lesley Riddle Documentary: "RIDDLE of ROCHESTER"

   (The following is from Nancy's letter announcing this project)

As of December 2025, Alan von Kalckreuth of Argonaut Films (and Hollywood Motion Picture Co.) and Nancy (Park) Drum are officially announcing our launching of a project we have been working on and developing over the last five months. Please help us by posting the following information on your social media pages (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, etc.) and sending to all of your contacts, as follows:

I am extremely excited and honored to announce that I'm currently working with the prestigious Hollywood filmmaker, Alan von Kalckreuth on a feature documentary entitled "RIDDLE OF ROCHESTER". The film is about Lesley Riddle, his life, his work and his influences. It is told through the story of the five years that Lesley was a dear friend of our family and my musical mentor. Over this time period, Lesley and I performed professionally together in Rochester, NY.

Lesley Riddle is now hailed as one of the most influential African American historical musical figures due to his significant contributions to the origins of country music. He was born on June 13, 1905 in Burnsville, NC but grew up near Kingsport, TN. It was here that he developed a signature guitar picking style and also honed his skills on the slide guitar, as well. He also played music with Steve Tarter, Harry Gay, Brownie McGhee, Blind Lemon Jefferson and John Henry Lyons. It was through Lyons that Riddle was introduced to AP Carter of the legendary Carter Family in 1928.

This would lead to a great friendship that included song catching trips throughout the Appalachian territory for several years. Riddle would collaborate with the Carter's on tunes that he wrote, as well as the ones that he and AP collected, while he also assisted with the musical arrangements. His amazing guitar work was such a great influence on Mother Maybelle Carter that she incorporated some of its elements into her own famous signature style. Riddle moved to Rochester, NY in 1942 and he didn't perform again until the late 60's when the notable musicologist Mike Seeger came to Rochester to help him start his career and record him. It was in 1974 that he met our family and we formed this very strong bond of music and friendship that lasted up until his death in 1979.

This documentary will vastly showcase Mr. Riddle’s musical work and contributions. We are currently in the development stages but please stay tuned, as there will be much more to come. In the meantime, you can see Alan's work through his most recent film release entitled, "On Fatal Ground".

Thank you,
   Nancy

Please feel free to share this post with your friends and associates who might be interested in learning about this.

If you have any thoughts or material related to this project, please email:   Riddle@hollywoodmotionpicture.com