''Black Like Me'' is a 1964 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

based on the 1961 book ''

Black Like Me ''Black Like Me'', first published in 1961, is a nonfiction book by journalist John Howard Griffin recounting his journey in the Deep South of the United States, at a time when African-Americans lived under racial segregation. Griffin was a na ...

'' by John Howard Griffin. The journalist disguised himself to pass as an African-American man for six weeks in 1959 in the Deep South to report on life in the segregated society from the other side of the color line. The film was directed by

Carl Lerner Carl Lerner (17 June 1912 – 26 August 1973) was an American film editor, director and educator whose career bridged New York's post‑war documentary movement and Hollywood's studio and independent features, earning recognition for his editorial ...

and the screenplay was written by Carl and

Gerda Lerner Gerda Hedwig Lerner (née Kronstein; April 30, 1920 – January 2, 2013) was an Austrian-born American historian and woman's history author. In addition to her numerous scholarly publications, she wrote poetry, fiction, theatre pieces, screenpl ...

. The film stars

James Whitmore James Allen Whitmore Jr. (October 1, 1921 – February 6, 2009) was an American actor. He received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Tony Award, plus two Ac ...

Sorrell Booke Sorrell Booke (January 4, 1930 – February 11, 1994) was an American actor who performed on stage, screen, and television. He acted in more than 100 plays and 150 television shows, and is best known for his role as corrupt politician Jefferson ...

and

Roscoe Lee Browne Roscoe Lee Browne (May 2, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American actor and theatre director, director. He resisted playing Stereotypes of African Americans, stereotypically black roles, instead performing in several productions with New York Ci ...

Plot

John Finley Horton is a liberal white journalist who darkens his face and hands (and to some degree his body) using various means, sufficiently to pass for a black man. He travels for several weeks in the Deep South in order to report from the other side of the color line in the segregated society. He spends time in places from New Orleans to Atlanta, and encounters racism from both white and black people.

Cast

as John Finley Horton (''

'' author John Howard Griffin) *

as Dr. Jackson *

as Christophe *

Al Freeman Jr. Albert Cornelius Freeman Jr. (March 21, 1934 – August 9, 2012) was an American actor, director, and educator. A life member of The Actors Studio, Freeman appeared in a wide variety of plays, ranging from Leroi Jones' ''Slave/Toilet'' to Joe ...

as Thomas Newcomb *

Will Geer Will Geer (born William Aughe Ghere; March 9, 1902 – April 22, 1978) was an American actor, musician, and social activist who was active in labor organizing and communist movements in New York City and Southern California in the 1930s and 1940 ...

as Truck Driver *

Robert Gerringer Robert Gerringer (born Robert Geiringer; May 12, 1926 – November 8, 1989) was an American character actor perhaps best known as Dr. Dave Woodard on the soap opera ''Dark Shadows'', a role he played during 1967. Gerringer left the show because h ...

as Ed Saunders *

Clifton James George Clifton James (May 29, 1920 – April 15, 2017) was an American actor known for roles as a prison floorwalker in '' Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), Sheriff J.W. Pepper alongside Roger Moore in the James Bond films '' Live and Let Die'' ...

as Eli Carr * John Marriott as Hodges * Thelma Oliver as Georgie * Lenka Petersen as Lucy Horton * Richard Ward as Burt Wilson

Reception

Critical reception for the film has been mixed. Bosley Crowther of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' described the film as "melodramatic and unsubtle". He said it failed to place the viewer inside an African American's skin, and to convince the audience that the protagonist "is truly passing for black". Reviewing the film after the 2012 DVD release, Leonard Maltin awarded the film a positive 3 out of 4 stars. He said that, although some aspects of the film felt dated, the film's themes were still timely.

Release

The film made its DVD debut on February 12, 2002, by VCI Home Video. It later was re-released by Video Service Corp on December 11, 2012. This DVD release includes a documentary titled ''Uncommon Vision'' about John Howard Griffin, the journalist on whom the main character is based.

References

External links