Anyone on the prowl for dubiously-sourced second-tier blaxploitation films of the 1970s would most likely pass this place by, because really why would a store called Gateway Cosmetics, buried inside a corporate tower in downtown Newark, contain, say, the unthinkably obscure Ron O'Neal bare-knuckle fight film The Hitter, or Bonnie & Clyde knock-off Thomasine & Bushrod, with music by a way-past-their-prime Love?
I can't answer that question. I can simply assert that it does, indeed, have a very fine collection of films by the not-quite-legitimate Blax label, priced a few bucks cheaper than the ones in Philly's Market East. It's also got a decent selection of mostly-black-themed films of the more legally-reputable sort, also at good prices, an eclectic array of books that range from stoic autobiographies to urban fiction to the insane conspiracy theories of Behold a Pale Horse.
And, I guess, some cosmetics, though I will confess to not paying great attention on that front (possibly to my own detriment).
I might never have even entered this store, since it's fairly hidden behind its front wall, had their rather random window display not included the startling Fred Williamson western The Legend of N****r Charley one day--but glad I did! read more