Oscar Micheaux: The Great and Only (52 page)
Read Oscar Micheaux: The Great and Only Online
Authors: Patrick McGilligan
As writer, director, and producer. (Produced by A. Burton Russell for Micheaux Pictures)
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Cast: Frank Wilson, Bebe Townsend, Bee Freeman, Pearl McCormack, Carlton Moss.
“Deals with the theme of a perfect murder and in telling how it is solved holds intense and intriguing moments from start to finish.”
Philadelphia Tribune,
May 4, 1933
1935
LEM HAWKINS' CONFESSION* (aka MURDER IN HARLEM)
As actor, writer, director, and producer.
Sc: Based on Micheaux's unpublished story “The Stanfield Murder Case.” Ph: Charles Levine. Original Music and Cabaret Sequences: Clarence Williams. Songs include: “Harlem Rhythm Dance” (sung by Eunice Wilson). Art Dir: Tony Contineri. Production Manager: Charles P. Nason. Sound: Harry Belock, Armand Schattini.
(Produced by A. Burton Russell for Micheaux Pictures)
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Cast: Clarence Brooks (Henry Glory), Dorothy Van Engle (Claudia Vance), Andrew Bishop (Anthony Brisbane), Alex/Alec Lovejoy (Lem Hawkins), Laura Bowman (Mrs. Epps), Bee Freeman (The Catbird), Alice B. Russell (Mrs. Vance), Lorenzo McClane (Arthur Vance), Lionel Monagas, Sandy Burns, Lea Morris, Joie Brown, Jr., Henrietta Loveless, Helen Lawrence, David Hanna, Alfred “Slick” Chester, Byron Shores, Roland Smith, Eunice Wilson (singer), Clarence Williams, Oscar Micheaux.
“Micheaux attempted something quite ambitious, and in the history of representations of the Mary Phagan/Leo Frank story, quite unusual. By using as a narrative structure a series of interrelated, often contradictory, confessions and testimonies that fit neatly into a detective story genre, he is insisting that we move beyond the bifurcated accusations of the Leo Frank trial in which blatant antisemitism and racism shape the arguments. By introducing the plot twist of a third possible
killerâindeed, the one who really is guiltyâhe ostensibly breaks the racially fraught African-American/Jewish tension in the storyâ¦And, as his narrative structure proves, truths are always more complicated and subjective than they may first appear.”
Michael Bronski, “The Return of the Repressed: Leo Frank Through the Eyes of Oscar Micheaux,”
Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies
(2005)
1937
TEMPTATION
As writer, director, and producer.
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Cast: Ethel Moses (Helen Ware), Lorenzo Tucker (Robert Fletcher), Andrew Bishop (Kid Cotton), Alfred “Slick” Chester, Larry Seymour, Hilda Rogers, the Pope Sisters, Lillian Fitzgerald, Dot and Dash, the Six Sizzlers, Taft Rice, Bobby Hargraves and his Kit Kat Club Orchestra.
“A sophisticated sex drama in the De Mille vein.”
Donald Bogle,
Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies & Bucks
UNDERWORLD*
As writer (“adaptation and dialogue”), director and producer.
Sc: Based on Edna Mae Baker's story “Chicago after Midnight.”
Ph: Lester Lang. Ed: Jack Kemp, Nathan Cy Braunstein.
(Alfred N. Sack Presents for Sack Amusement Enterprises)
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Cast: Bee Freeman (Dinah Jackson), Sol Johnson (Paul Bronson), Alfred “Slick” Chester (LeRoy Giles), Ethel Moses (Evelyn Martin), Oscar Polk (Sam Brown), Lorenzo Tucker, Larry Seymour, Amanda Randolph, Anna May Fritz, Bernice Gray, Eddie Matthews, Mitchell Modeste, Willie Kew, Dorothy “Dot” Salters, Raymond Collins (Rope Dancer), Carrie Bell Powell, Stringbean, The Pope Sisters, Harlem Sepia Chorus, Six Sizzlers, The Girls from Nagasaki, Bobby Hargraves and his Kit Kat Club Orchestra.
“A stirring and highly dramatic film, one that should not be missed. The All-Colored cast is one of the finest ever assembled in one production.”
The Philadelphia Tribune,
January 6, 1938
1938
SWING!*
As writer, director, and producer.
Sc: Based on Micheaux's unpublished story “Mandy.”
Ph: Lester Lang. Ed: Patricia Rooney. Sound: Edward Fenton, E. A. Schabbehor.
Musical Dir: Leon Gross. Songs include: “Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen.” (Produced by A. Burton Russell for Micheaux Productions)
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Cast: Cora Green (Amanda “Mandy” Jenkins), Larry Seymour (Cornell Jenkins), Hazel Diaz (Eloise Jackson/Cora Smith), Alex Lovejoy (Lem Jackson/“Big Yellow”
Jones), Carman Newsome (Ted Gregory), Dorothy Van Engle (Lena Powell), Mandy Randolph (Liza Freeman), Trixie Smith (Lucy), Nat Reed (Sammy), Sammy Gardiner (Taylor), Columbus Jackson (A Hustler), George R. Taylor (Theatrical Backer), Trumpet Player (Doli Armena), Tyler Twins (Tap Dancers), Muscle Dancer (Consuelo Harris), Leon Gross and his Orchestra.
“The night life scenes are set in bright and flashing style, with colorful clubs and glamorous girls. The film at no time spares the stark and realistic side of life, bringing a vivid picture of a woman who loves not too wiselyâbut too well. Her unfaithful man is portrayed in every sordid trait. Seldom has a production with this compelling human interest power carried such a lighter side.”
The Afro-American
(Baltimore), October 1, 1938
GOD'S STEPCHILDREN*
As writer, director, and producer.
Sc: Based on Micheaux's and Alice B. Russell's unpublished story “Naomi, Negress”
Ph: Lester Lang. Ed: Patricia Rooney, Leonard Weiss. Sound: Ed Fenton, Nelson H. Minnerly, E. A. Schabbehor, George Wicke. Music: Leon Gross. (Produced by A. Burton Russell for Micheaux Productions)
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Cast: Alice B. Russell (Mrs. James Saunders), Trixie Smith (visitor), Jacqueline Lewis (Naomi, as a child), Charles Thompson (Jimmie, as a child), Ethel Moses (Mrs. Cush-inberry, the teacher/Eva, her daughter), Carman Newsome (Jimmie, as an adult), Gloria Press (Naomi, as an adult), Alex Lovejoy (Cowper, a gambler), Columbus Jackson (hustler), Laura Bowman (Aunt Carrie), Sam Patterson (banker), Charles Moore (Superintendent of Schools), Cherokee Thornton (Clyde Wade), Consuelo Harris (muscle dancer), Tyler Twins (tap dancers), Sammy Gardiner (tap dancer), Leon Gross and his Orchestra.
“For viewers inclined to dislike Micheaux's style, disagree with his ideology, or distrust his loyalty and character, this film might cinch the case; yet for viewers who celebrate or can get beyond his unorthodox, insouciant, and improvisatory style; who support his ideology (or find it at least reasonable); and who respect his integrity and his character, this film may be his best. It is certainly one of his most fascinating.”
J. Ronald Green,
With a Crooked StickâThe Films of Oscar Micheaux
BIRTHRIGHT*
As writer, director, and producer.
Sc: Based on the T. S. Stribling novel.
Ph: Robert Marshall. Sound: George Wickmer, Wickmer Noiseless Recording. (Produced by A. Burton Russell for Micheaux Productions)
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Cast: Carman Newsome (Peter Siner), Alex Lovejoy (Tump Pack), Trixie Smith (Caroline Siner), Ethel Moses (Cissie Dildine), Hazel Diaz (Ida May), C. R. Chase (Henry Hooker), Herbert E. Jelly (Sheriff Dawson Bobbs), Alice B. Russell (Nan Berry), Har
lan Knight (Tomwit), Ida Forsyne (Old Rose), George E. Lessey (Captain Renfrew), Harry Moses (Dr. Jallup), Robert Alderdice (Sam Awkright), John Ward, Columbus Jackson, Tom Dillon, Allen Lee, Leon Gross and his Orchestra.
“A very unusual film of colored life. Some patrons who have seen it have praised it for its frankness, while others have said that it is too daring a subject that should not be brought to the screen.”
Philadelphia Afro-American,
March 11, 1939
1939
LYING LIPS*
As writer, director, and producer.
Sc: Based on Micheaux's unpublished story “The Story of Elsie Bellwood.” Ph: Lester Lang. Ed: Leonard Weiss. Dialogue Dir: John Kollin.
Night Club Sequences: Charlie Davis. Musical Dir: Jack Shilkret. Recording: Nelson H. Minnerly.
(Alfred N. Sack Presents for Sack Amusement Enterprises)
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Cast: Edna Mae Harris (Elsie Bellwood), Carman Newsome (Benjamen Hadnott), Robert Earl Jones (Detective Wanzer), Frances Williams (Elizabeth Landry Green), Cherokee Thornton (John Landry), Slim Thompson (Clyde Landry), Gladys Williams (Aunt Josephine), Juano Hernandez (Rev. Henry Bryson), Henry âGong' Gines (Ned Green), Don DeLeo (Farina), Charles LaTorre (Garotti), Robert Paquin (District Attorney), George Reynolds (Lt. Donovan), Amanda Randolph (Jail Matron), Teddy Hale (Young Boy), Frank Costello, J. Lewis Johnson.
“It's about a beautiful girl who is led astray because she wants beautiful thingsâ¦You see, I am trying to build up the morals of my race.”
Colonel Hubert Fauntleroy Julian,
Time
magazine, January 28, 1940
1940
THE NOTORIOUS ELINOR LEE*
As writer, director, and producer.
Associate Producer: Hubert Julian. Ph: Lester Lang. Ed: Leonard Weiss. Recording: Nelson Minnerly. Dialogue Dir: John Kollin. Music: Jack Shilkret. Songs: Sally Gooding, Ellen May Waters.
(Alfred N. Sack Presents for Sack Amusement Enterprises)
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Cast: Gladys Williams (Elinor Lee), Robert Earl Jones (Benny Blue), Carman Newsome (Norman Haywood), Edna Mae Harris (Fredi Welsh), Vera Burrelle (Sherry Johnson), Eddie Lemons (Brownlee), Columbus Jackson (Cracker Johnson), Laura Bowman (Benny's Mother), Madeline Donagan (Mary), Amanda Randolph (Mary's Mother), Robert Paquin (Reporter), O. W. Polk (Blakely), Charles LaTorre (Farbacher), Don DeLeo (Feretti), Abe Simon (Hererra), Sandy McDonald (Bradley), Harry Kadison (Max Wagner), Lew Hearn (Joe Grim), Jack Effrat (Chief Reporter), Harry Ballou (Announcer), Sam Taub (Commentator), Lew Goldberg (Referee),
Juano Hernandez (John Arthur), “Rubberneck” Holmes and Ralph Brown (dancers), Frances Williams, Kenn Freeman, Sally Gooding, Ellen May Waters, with Fred Palmer and his Orchestra.
“Benny Blue's win is not just a âclass act,' it is a successful class action by the best elements of the black community, and it results in class advancement on a broad front. The still-long-overdue need for African-American economic progress on a broad front is, of course, what Martin Luther King, Jr. was forcing upon the national agenda when he was assassinated a quarter-century later; Micheaux's portrayal of economic rights as inseparable from the praxis of civil rights was right on target.”
J. Ronald Green,
With a Crooked StickâThe Films of Oscar Micheaux
1947
THE BETRAYAL
As writer, director, and producer.
Sc: Based on Micheaux's novel
The Wind from Nowhere.
Ph: Marvin Spoor.
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Cast: Leroy Collins (Martin Eden), Myra Stanton (Deborah Stewart), Verlie Cowan (Linda Lee), Harris Gaines (Dr. Lee), Yvonne Machen (Terry Lee), Alice B. Russell (Mary Lee), William Byrd (Jack Stewart), Frances De Young (Hattie Bowles), Arthur McCool (Joe Bowles), Vernon Duncan (Duval), David Jones (Crook), Edward Fraction (Nelson Boudreaux), Lou Vernon (Ned Washington), Vernetties Moore (Eunice), Jesse Johnson (Preble), Barbara Lee (Jessie Brooks), Gladys Williams (Mrs. Dewey), Richard Lawrence, David Jones, Curley Ellison, Sue McBride.
“There before her at last stood grandpa Boudreaux, the first time she'd ever seen himâand she was shocked! For he was aâcolored man! She realized in that moment then, that she was not a white girlâand never had been; that she was colored too, coloredâjust like him!”
Newspaper advertisement for
The Betrayal
at the Bill Robinson Theatre, Forty-third and Central,
Los Angeles Sentinel,
November 24, 1949
Any book about Oscar Micheaux or race cinema or the history of African-Americans in Hollywood must begin, somewhat defensively, with an explanation of the skin-color terminology of the past. This issue is especially relevant to Micheaux, as in his films he belittles clear-cut identification (or categorizations) of race. He himself used a variety of terms, sometimes even wielding the n-word in his scripts and being attacked for it. One hundred years ago, when Micheaux was entering manhood, “black people” (a common phrase today) didn't call themselves “black people.” Some people of African or slave descent called themselves “Ethiopians” or “Abyssinians.” Already there was a vigorous debate over whether the best progressive term was “colored” or “Negro,” or “negro” with a small
n,
which Micheaux favored in his earliest novels. (I have tried to preserve his spellings as well as his varying terminology.)
A single passage from the autobiography of famed bandleader Cab Calloway, roughly Micheaux's contemporary, illustrates the problem and contradictions. “Our people were colored or Negro, never black,” mused the fair-skinned Calloway in
Of Minnie the Moocher and Me
(coauthored with Bryant Rollins and published by Crowell in 1976). “To call somebody black was an insult; and, of course, to call me black, light-skinned as I was, was a triple insultâ¦
“Even black people have given me a hard way to go sometimes. They've called me dirty yeller and poor white. That went on for years in the thirties and forties. Some people were bothered bcause they couldn't classify me easily; they thought I was Cuban or Puerto Rican. It's a horrible thing when people want to classify you or resort to name calling, but I've come through it because I've always knownâ¦hell, I'm a nigger and proud of it.”
All these terms crop up in my book. I have done my best to keep true to Micheaux's vernacular, or the language of the times in context, and I apologize in advance to anyone who prefers contemporary expressions. To some extent, this is a continuing debate, and even “African-American” is questioned nowadays by people without clear or direct African ancestry.
Also, any book about Oscar Micheaux must begin by paying tribute to the authors and scholars who have gone before. This book stands on their shoulders. Alphabetically the list would begin with “Bowser, Pearl,” whose research, many articles, public appearances, interviews, several books, and documentary film have led the reappraisal of Micheaux's life and work; she was honored with the Jean Mitry Award for her role in the rediscovery of Micheaux by the world's silent film community at the annual
Le Giornate del Cinema Muto
in Sacile, Italy, in 2001. This book couldn't have been written without the benefit of Bowser's oral history interviews with Elton Fax, Shingzie Howard, Carlton Moss, and Edna Mae Harris. I was privileged to meet her, hear her speak about Micheaux, and gain her trust and encouragement. Others, especially the members of the Oscar Micheaux Society, whose published works I have cited, have dug into many facets of Micheaux's life, and spread appreciation of his work.
In previous accounts of his career, Micheaux's silent film work has attracted the most attention, and two earlier biographies had understandable limitations. When Micheaux died in 1951, he left no archives of his papers, not having access to the privilege extended to most important Hollywood directors (whose professional files were generally compiled and preserved by the studio system from which Micheaux was barred). Anyone who knew Micheaux well and who wasn't quite out of their teens at the time of his death would now be in their late seventies. I've never done fewer primary-source interviews for a book. But the first oneâwith Leroy Collinsâwas substantive: Micheaux had been on my list of possible subjects for a long while when, out of the blue, Martin J. Keenanâa Micheaux champion who lives in Great Bend, Kansasâcalled and urged me to get off my duff and get down to Chicago to talk to Leroy Collins, the star of
The Betrayal,
Micheaux's last motion picture. That is what I did, and publishing that interview was my first step toward this project. (Collins was an invaluable resource throughout the job.) Still, Keenan wouldn't leave me alone; he talked my ear off (by phone, e-mail, and letter), insisting that I proceed with a full-fledged biography.
When I wasn't traveling to places where Micheaux lived, I spent my time reading other people's articles and books; communicating with archivists and librarians in cities where Micheaux had lived or worked; searching out land deeds, court records, and government documents; and reading on microfilm the muzzy print of the black press of Micheaux's era. Many people warned me, “A biography of Micheaux is impossible. He was too much of a liar. Too secretive. There aren't enough records.” That challenge intrigued me. I did my best to double-check and honor the earlier research. I focused on gaps and did my utmost to contribute some modest discoveries. I made guesses here and there (it is surely impossible to reconstruct accurately the actual sequence of production and release, much less a precise filmography, for Micheaux). Of course, I always have my own ideas, my own preoccupations, and point of view. In the end I lined up everything chronologically and tried to understand the “life” and tell the “story.” I hope it winds up as Micheaux would have liked, with a strong plot, a meritorious theme, at least one true woman, and a strong-jawed hero overdue for acclaim.
Thank you Matthew Bernstein, Pearl Bowser, Leroy Collins, J. Ronald Green, Karen P. Neuforth, Jacqueline Najuna Stewart, Betti Carol VanEpps-Taylor, and Dana F. White for reading the work-in-progress and making sharp criticisms and worthwhile suggestions. Of course, no one but myself is to blame for any errors of fact or interpretation.