Join me for a presentation and book signing at the Monterey Public Library, located just blocks from where this story unfolded sixty years ago. Music history was forged that evening in September 1962 when a determined cast of thirteen artists took the stage to present Dave and Iola Brubeck’s The Real Ambassadors, a jazz musical challenging segregation in the boldest terms. I’ll tell the story of how Dave and Iola Brubeck teamed up with Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong who was the most popular musician in the world at that time. The Brubecks battled for five years — with the support of Monterey Jazz Festival co-founder, Jimmy Lyons — to present this once-in-a-lifetime concert at the 1962 Monterey Jazz Festival. I’ll discuss my decade-long research journey discovering what made this jazz musical so noteworthy. Its message of inclusion and confronting racial hatred resonates today just as they did sixty years ago.