African-American Representation In Hollywood
The presence of African Americans in major motion picture roles has stirred controversy and been limited dating back decades due to lingering racism following slavery and segregation. "Through most of the 20th century, images of African-Americans in advertising were mainly limited to servants like the pancake-mammy Aunt Jemima and Rastus, the chef on the Cream of Wheat box." While African American representation in the film industry has improved over the years, it has not been a linear process; "Race in American cinema has rarely been a matter of simple step-by-step progress. It has more often proceeded in fits and starts, with backlashes coming on the heels of breakthroughs, and periods of intense argument followed by uncomfortable silence." History Old Hollywood Due to the racial discrimination in the 19th and early 20th centuries, Hollywood tended to avoid using African-American actors and actresses. In pursuit of avoiding the use of African American actors and actresses, B ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black people, Black racial groups of Africa. African Americans constitute the second largest ethno-racial group in the U.S. after White Americans. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of Slavery in the United States, Africans enslaved in the United States. In 2023, an estimated 48.3 million people self-identified as Black, making up 14.4% of the country’s population. This marks a 33% increase since 2000, when there were 36.2 million Black people living in the U.S. African-American history began in the 16th century, with Africans being sold to Atlantic slave trade, European slave traders and Middle Passage, transported across the Atlantic to Slavery in the colonial history of the United States, the Western He ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Passing As White
In the United States of America, racial passing occurred when a person who was categorized as Black in regard to their race in the United States of America, sought to be accepted or perceived (" to pass") as a member of another racial group, usually White. Historically, the term has been used primarily in the United States to describe a black person, especially a Mulatto person who assimilated into the white majority to escape the legal and social conventions of racial segregation and discrimination. In the Antebellum South, passing as White was a temporary disguise used as a means of escaping slavery. United States Passing for white Although anti-miscegenation laws outlawing racial intermarriage existed in the North American Colonies as early as 1664, there were no laws preventing or prosecuting the rape of enslaved girls and women. Rape of slaves was legal and encouraged during slavery to increase the slave population. For generations, enslaved black mothers bore mixed- ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tiana (Disney)
Tiana Rogers is a fictional character in Walt Disney Pictures' animated film ''The Princess and the Frog'' (2009). Created by writers and directors Ron Clements and John Musker and animated by Mark Henn, Tiana is voiced by Anika Noni Rose, with Elizabeth M. Dampier voicing the character as a child. She is loosely based on two princesses: Princess Emma from the 2002 novel '' The Frog Princess'' by E. D. Baker, and the princess from the Brothers Grimm fairy tale "The Frog Prince". The character also was inspired by famed New Orleans chef Leah Chase. A hardworking waitress who dreams of opening her own restaurant, Tiana finds her ambitions stalled when she kisses a prince who has been turned into a frog by an evil witch doctor, only to transform into one herself. Tiana has been mostly positively received with critics praising her personality and values. However, the depiction of Tiana and her community has been criticized for lacking "emphasis on racial issues". The decision to d ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16, 1923, as an animation studio, by brothers Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney, Roy Oliver Disney as Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio; it later operated under the names Walt Disney Studio and Walt Disney Productions before adopting its current name in 1986. In 1928, Disney established itself as a leader in the animation industry with the short film ''Steamboat Willie.'' The film used synchronized sound to become the first post-produced sound cartoon, and popularized Mickey Mouse, who became Disney's mascot and corporate icon. After becoming a success by the early 1940s, Disney diversified into live-action films, television, and theme parks in the 1950s. However, followin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tyler Perry
Tyler Perry (born Emmitt Perry Jr., September 13, 1969) is an American actor, filmmaker, and playwright. He is the creator and performer of Madea, Mabel "Madea" Simmons, a tough elderly woman, and also portrays her brother Joe Simmons and her nephew Brian Simmons. Perry's films vary in style from orthodox filmmaking techniques to filmed productions of live stage plays, many of which have been subsequently adapted into feature films. Madea's first appearance was in Perry's play ''I Can Do Bad All by Myself (play), I Can Do Bad All by Myself'' (1999) staged in Chicago. Perry wrote and produced many stage plays, which were at their successful peak in the 1990s and the 2000s. His breakthrough performance came in 2005 with the film ''Diary of a Mad Black Woman'', which he wrote and produced as an adaptation of his Diary of a Mad Black Woman (play), stage play of the same name. He also developed numerous television series, most notably ''Tyler Perry's House of Payne'', which ran for ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Spike Lee
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and author. His work has continually explored race relations, issues within the black community, the role of media in contemporary life, urban crime and poverty, and other political issues. Lee has won numerous accolades for his work, including an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, a BAFTA Award, and two Peabody Awards. He has also been honored with an Honorary BAFTA Award in 2002, an Honorary César in 2003, and the Academy Honorary Award in 2015. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut with '' She's Gotta Have It'' (1986). He has since written and directed such films as '' School Daze'' (1988), '' Do the Right Thing'' (1989), '' Mo' Better Blues'' (1990), ''Jungle Fever'' (1991), '' Malcolm X'' (1992), '' Crooklyn'' (1994), '' Clockers'' (1995), '' 25th Hour'' (2002 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. Obama previously served as a U.S. senator representing Illinois from 2005 to 2008 and as an Illinois state senator from 1997 to 2004. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Obama graduated from Columbia University in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and later worked as a community organizer in Chicago. In 1988, Obama enrolled in Harvard Law School, where he was the first black president of the ''Harvard Law Review''. He became a civil rights attorney and an academic, teaching constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School from 1992 to 2004. In 1996, Obama was elected to represent the 13th district in the Illinois Senate, a position he held until 2004, when he successfully ran for the U.S. Senate. In the 2008 pre ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vanity Fair (magazine)
''Vanity Fair'' is an American monthly magazine of popular culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast in the United States. The first version of ''Vanity Fair'' was published from 1913 to 1936. The imprint was revived in 1983 after Conde Nast took over the magazine company. Vanity Fair currently includes five international editions of the magazine. The five international editions of the magazine are the United Kingdom (since 1991), Italy (since 2003), Spain (since 2008), France (since 2013), and Mexico (since 2015). History ''Dress and Vanity Fair'' Condé Montrose Nast began his empire by purchasing the men's fashion magazine ''Dress'' in 1913. He renamed the magazine ''Dress and Vanity Fair'' and published four issues in 1913. It continued to thrive into the 1920s. However, it became a casualty of the Great Depression and declining advertising revenues. Nonetheless, its circulation at 90,000 copies was at its peak. Condé Nast announced in December 193 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to merge with the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) to create SAG-AFTRA. Background According to SAG's Mission Statement, the Guild sought to: negotiate and enforce collective bargaining agreements that establish equitable levels of compensation, benefits, and working conditions for its performers; collect compensation for exploitation of recorded performances by its members, and provide protection against unauthorized use of those performances; and preserve and expand work opportunities for its members. The Guild was founded in 1933 in an effort to eliminate the exploitation of Hollywood actors, who were being forced into oppressive multi-year contracts with the major movie studios. Opposition to these contract ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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African Americans In Film
African-Americans in film refers to the history, contributions, and representation of African Americans, African-Americans in the film industry. This article covers the evolution of African-American roles in film, including notable filmmakers, actors, and films, as well as the challenges and achievements of African-Americans in the industry. History Early cinema In the early days of cinema, African-American roles were scarce and often filled with stereotypes. Pioneers like Oscar Micheaux, one of the first significant African-American filmmakers, countered these narratives with films like ''The Homesteader'' (1919) and ''Body and Soul (1925 film), Body and Soul'' (1925), which were part of the "race film" genre and tackled issues such as racial violence, economic oppression, and discrimination Other pioneers included Maria P. Williams, the first black female film producer, known for her 1923 film ''Flames of Wrath'', and Noble Johnson, who founded the Lincoln Motion Picture ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Stepin Fetchit
Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry (May 30, 1902 – November 19, 1985), better known by his stage name Stepin Fetchit, was an American vaudevillian, comedian, and film actor of Jamaican and Bahamian descent, considered to be the first black actor to have a successful film career. His highest profile was during the 1930s in films and on stage, when his persona of Stepin Fetchit was billed as the "Laziest Man in the World". Perry parlayed the Fetchit persona into a successful film career, becoming the first black actor to earn $1 million. He was also the first black actor to receive featured screen credit in a film. Perry's film career slowed after 1939 and nearly stopped altogether after 1953. Around that time, Black Americans began to see his Stepin Fetchit persona as an embarrassing and harmful anachronism, echoing negative stereotypes. However, writer Mel Watkins has since argued the Stepin Fetchit character is better described as a prankster rather than simply lazy. Ear ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Walter Francis White
Walter Francis White (July 1, 1893 – March 21, 1955) was an American civil rights activist who led the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for a quarter of a century, from 1929 until 1955. He directed a broad program of legal challenges to racial segregation and disfranchisement. He was also a journalist, novelist, and essayist. White first joined the NAACP as an investigator in 1918, at the invitation of James Weldon Johnson. He acted as Johnson's assistant national secretary and traveled to the South to investigate lynchings and race riots. Being light-skinned, at times he was able to pass as white to facilitate his investigations and protect himself in tense situations. White succeeded Johnson as the head of the NAACP in an acting capacity in 1929, taking over officially in 1931, and led the organization until his death in 1955. He joined the Advisory Council for the Government of the Virgin Islands in 1934, but he resigned in 1935 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |