...It was in 1925, that our troupe found themselves in Clarksdale Mississippi. One lonely night, while waiting for a bus that would take them to new venues something truly unbelievable happened. Standing on the opposite corner of the crossroads was a young blues guitarist named Tommy Johnson. He paced and waited, strumming out crude tunes and mumbling incoherently. As the time moved to midnight, a tall black figure moved graciously towards young Tommy. The figure picked up Tommy’s guitar, tuned it, and then played a few notes. Strange lights and sounds emanated form the guitar and shot out in every direction. Our troupe stood, mouths agape, until they were knocked over by the sheer force of the dark magic in the night. When they came to, each had a pair of tire tracks across their bodies, and a greyhound bus was on fire 100 yards away. Tommy Johnson just stood and played. The Ol’ Scratch magic had delivered its promise to Tommy Johnson, and given an accidental gift to our intrepid troupe. As they stood up and dusted off their clothes, each realized in turn that they had in fact been run over and survived. That Black Magic had condemned them to an eternity of performing their vaudeville comedy show. They decided that they should be named The Tragedies, for their tale was one of heavy burden.