Program Description:
"Race Movies" The Popular Art of the Black Renaissance. In this historic film short, you'll discover the first black filmmakers from their earliest days through the twenties. It focuses on the movies that were made and the production companies that produced them. We'll see the early struggles and eventual contributions that would open the door for all future film and television stars. Pioneers featured in this film are producers James Weldon Johnson, Richard D. Maurice & the legendary Oscar Micheaux, whose films, like his colleagues, offered a positive image and an alternative for African American filmgoers.
Original Film Shorts
Bubbling Over (1934) starring Ethel Waters
Boogie-Woogie Dream (1944) starring Lena Horne
The Negro In Entertainment (1950)
Swingin Soundies
Hear and see 6 original soundies from the 1940's. These "three-minute- movies" were originally screened on a visual jukebox during WWII. Includes the King Cole Trio, Ida James, Count Basie and more!
Extra
Jubilee: Strictly G.I. The hippest all-black WWII radio broadcast
Pick a Bale O Cotton (Rare) sung by blues legend, Leadbelly
Spying The Spy (1918 silent) One of the earliest black films made in Hollywood
Little Black Sambo (1935, silent, edited version) Once banned black cartoon
