Etta Moten
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Etta Moten Barnett (November 5, 1901 – January 2, 2004) was an American actress and
contralto A contralto () is a classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range is the lowest of their voice type, voice types. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare, similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to ...
vocalist, who was identified with her signature role of "Bess" in ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' ( ) is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play ''Porgy (play), ...
''. She created new roles for
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
women on stage and screen. After her performing career, Barnett was active in Chicago as a major philanthropist and civic activist, raising funds for and supporting cultural, social and church institutions. She also hosted a radio program in Chicago and represented the United States in several official delegations to nations in Africa.


Biography


Early years

Etta Moten was born in
Weimar, Texas Weimar ( or, by many non-locals, ) is a city in Colorado County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,076 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Texas-German belt region and was founded and named by German emigrants after the city of Weima ...
, the only child of a
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
minister, Rev. Freeman F. Moten, and a teacher, his wife, Ida Norman Moten. She started singing as a child in the church choir. Moten's family put great importance on education, as her parents made sure she was enrolled in good schools no matter where they moved. Moten attended Paul Quinn College's secondary school in Waco, Texas. She then attended Western University, a
historically black college Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...
(HBCU) in
Quindaro, Kansas Quindaro Townsite was once a settlement, then a ghost town, and later an archaeological site. It is around North 27th Street and the Missouri Pacific Railroad tracks in Kansas City, Kansas. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Pla ...
, where she studied music. To pay her tuition, she joined a quartet on Topeka's WREN radio, performed on the Chautauqua circuit, and spent summers with the Jackson Jubilee Singers. She completed her education at the
University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...
, where she earned a B.A. in voice and drama in 1931. She became the first student to present a recital in the campus's newly constructed Hoch Auditorium. Moten became a member of
Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is an List of African American fraternities, historically African-American Fraternities and sororities, sorority. The sorority was founded in 1908 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.. Alpha Kappa Alpha ...
sorority.


Career

Moten Barnett's first job began at Lincoln University. She received a teaching contract, which was short-lived when her father informed her that she would be moving to New York. Moten moved to New York City, where she first performed as a soloist with the
Eva Jessye Eva Jessye (January 20, 1895 – February 21, 1992) was an American conductor and composer who was the first black woman to receive international distinction as a professional choral conductor. She is notable as a choral conductor during the Har ...
Choir. Jessye was a groundbreaking collaborator with
Virgil Thomson Virgil Thomson (November 25, 1896 – September 30, 1989) was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music. He has been described as a modernist, a neoromantic, a neoclassic ...
and
George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned jazz, popular music, popular and classical music. Among his best-known works are the songs "Swan ...
. In 1931, she performed in ''Fast and Furious'', a musical revue written by
Zora Neale Hurston Zora Neale Hurston (January 7, 1891 – January 28, 1960) was an American writer, anthropologist, folklorist, and documentary filmmaker. She portrayed racial struggles in the early-20th-century American South and published research on Hoodoo ...
. Moten was cast in the Broadway show ''Zombie''. She performed in two musical films released in 1933: ''
Flying Down to Rio ''Flying Down to Rio'' is a 1933 American pre-Code musical film famous for being the first screen pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, although lead actors Dolores del Río and Gene Raymond received top billing. Among the featured pla ...
'' (singing " The Carioca") and a more substantial role as a war widow in the
Busby Berkeley Berkeley William Enos, (November 29, 1895 – March 14, 1976) known professionally as Busby Berkeley, was an American film director and musical choreographer. Berkeley devised elaborate musical production numbers that often involved complex geo ...
musical ''
Gold Diggers of 1933 ''Gold Diggers of 1933'' is an American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code musical film directed by Mervyn LeRoy with songs by Harry Warren (music) and Al Dubin (lyrics). The film's numbers were staged and choreographed by Busby Berkeley. It starr ...
'' (singing the emotive "My Forgotten Man" with
Joan Blondell Rose Joan Blondell (August 30, 1906 – December 25, 1979) was an American actress who performed in film and television for 50 years. Blondell began her career in vaudeville. After winning a beauty pageant, she embarked on a film career, estab ...
). Also in 1933, she dubbed the singing of
Theresa Harris Theresa Mae Harris"Harris-Robinson"
''Camarillo Star''. August 25, 1933. p.  ...
in '' Professional Sweetheart''. Up until this point, the representation of black women in movies was limited to maids or nannies (the Mammy archetype). Moten made a breakthrough with her roles in these movies and is generally recognized as the first black woman to do so. On January 31, 1934, Moten became the first African American to perform at the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
in the 20th century, the first in over 50 years since
Marie Selika Williams Marie Selika Williams (c. 1849 – May 19, 1937) was an American coloratura soprano. She was the first Black artist to perform in the White House. Biography She was born Marie Smith in Natchez, Mississippi, around 1849. After she was born, her f ...
performed for President
Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was the 19th president of the United States, serving from 1877 to 1881. Hayes served as Cincinnati's city solicitor from 1858 to 1861. He was a staunch Abolitionism in the Un ...
and First Lady
Lucy Webb Hayes Lucy Ware Hayes (née Webb; August 28, 1831 – June 25, 1889) was the wife of President Rutherford B. Hayes and served as first lady of the United States from 1877 to 1881. Hayes was the first First Lady to have a college degree. She was als ...
in 1878. Moten performed "The Forgotten Man" from her movie ''Gold Diggers of 1933'' for President
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
at his birthday celebration. The song echoed Roosevelt's campaign promise that he would remember the "
forgotten man The forgotten man is a political concept in the United States centered around those whose interests have been neglected. The first main invocation of this concept came from William Graham Sumner in an 1883 lecture in Brooklyn entitled ''The Forgo ...
". Moten Barnett crossed over decades before that music-industry phrase existed. Disturbed by subtle but persistent racial discrimination, she persevered, believing she had to be "twice as good to get anywhere at all". Gershwin discussed her singing the part of Bess in his new work ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' ( ) is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play ''Porgy (play), ...
'', which he had written with her in mind. She was concerned about trying a role above her natural range of contralto. In the 1942 revival, the part of Bess was rewritten. She did accept the role of Bess, but she would not sing the word "nigger", which
Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the ...
subsequently removed from the
libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...
. Through her performances on Broadway and with the national touring company until 1945, she captured Bess as her signature role. She stopped performing in 1952 owing to vocal problems after doctors found a cyst on her vocal cords that required surgery. After her husband, Claude Barnett, died in 1967, she lived in Chicago, where she became active in the
National Council of Negro Women The National Council of Negro Women, Inc. (NCNW) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1935 with the mission to advance the opportunities and the quality of life for African-American women, their families, and communities. Mary McLeod Bethune, ...
, the
Chicago Lyric Opera Lyric Opera of Chicago is an American opera company based in Chicago, Illinois. The company was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included ...
, and the
Field Museum The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educationa ...
. She was also active in the DuSable Museum and the
South Side Community Art Center The South Side Community Art Center is a community art center in Chicago that opened in 1940 with support from the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project in Illinois. Opened in an 1893 mansion in Bronzeville, it became the first bla ...
."Etta Moten Barnett Papers – Biographical Note"
Chicago Public Library The Chicago Public Library (CPL) is the public library system that serves the Chicago, City of Chicago in the U.S. state of Illinois. It consists of 81 locations, including a central library, three regional libraries, and branches distributed thr ...
In addition to activities with civic organizations, Moten Barnett served as a board member of both
The Links The Links is an American social and service organization of prominent black women. It was founded in 1946 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of 2025, it has 299 chapters and more than 17,000 members in the United States and other countries.. Its ...
, a service organization for African-American women, and her sorority,
Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is an List of African American fraternities, historically African-American Fraternities and sororities, sorority. The sorority was founded in 1908 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.. Alpha Kappa Alpha ...
. She was also active in
International Women's Year International Women's Year (IWY) was the name given to 1975 by the United Nations. Since that year March 8 has been celebrated as International Women's Day, and the United Nations Decade for Women, from 1976 to 1985, was also established. History ...
activities and events in the 1980s.


Cultural missions

In the 50s and 60s Moten Barnett hosted a radio show in Chicago called ''I Remember When''. Dozens of recordings of ''I Remember When'' are available at the Library of Congress and at the Schomburg Library in New York City. According to historian Angela Tate, Moten Barnett's program, which covered a wide range of cultural issues, was perhaps the first "Black woman’s radio broadcast created for Black listeners that also had a broader audience." The United States government appointed her to be a representative on cultural missions to ten African nations. Etta's marriage to Claude Barnett gave her the opportunity to travel to Africa. Claude, as the head of the Associated Negro Press, along with Etta and other members of the organization visited the continent frequently to gain African news information for the ANP to include in their issues. On March 6, 1957, Moten Barnett interviewed Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...
in
Accra Accra (; or ''Gaga''; ; Ewe: Gɛ; ) is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , had a population of ...
, Ghana] where they were both attending the celebration of Ghana Independence Act 1957, Ghana's independence from Great Britain—she as the wife of Claude Barnett, a prominent member of the official U.S. delegation headed by Vice President
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
, and King, fresh from the
Montgomery Bus Boycott The Montgomery bus boycott was a political and social boycott, protest campaign against the policy of racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama. It was a foundational event in the civil rights movement in the United ...
, as a man interested in the liberation of oppressed people globally, but with no official place in Ghana's Independence Day festivities. The recording of this conversation, conducted in a Ghanaian radio studio where Moten Barnett was gathering recordings for her Chicago broadcasts, is also available at the Library of Congress and the
Schomburg Library The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is a research library of the New York Public Library (NYPL) and an archive repository for information on people of African descent worldwide. Located at 515 Malcolm X Boulevard (Lenox Avenue) be ...
.


Personal life

About 1918 she married Curtis Brooks, who had been a teacher of hers in high school. They had three daughters: Sue, Gladys and Etta Vee, but divorced after six years of marriage. In 1934, while living and working in New York, Moten married a second time, to Claude Albert Barnett, the head of the Associated Negro Press in Chicago. The two were happily married for 33 years, until his death in 1967. Etta Moten Barnett died of
pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...
at Chicago's Mercy Hospital in 2004, aged 102.


Legacy and honors

* 1943 – University of Kansas, citation of merit * 1958 – National Association of Business and Professional Women, citation for service * 1973 – African Center of Atlanta University, citation for contributions to Afro-American music * 1974 – WAIT, citation for contributions to City of Chicago * 1979 – Inducted into
Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame The Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame, Inc. (BFHFI), was founded in 1974, in Oakland, California. It supported and promoted black filmmaking, and preserved the contributions by African-American artists both before and behind the camera. It also sponso ...
, noted as: Actress, Concert Artist * 1983 –
Candace Award The Candace Award is an award that was given from 1982 to 1992 by the National Coalition of 100 Black Women (NCBW) to "Black role models of uncommon distinction who have set a standard of excellence for young people of all races". Candace (prono ...
from the
National Coalition of 100 Black Women The National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc. (NCBW) is a non-profit volunteer organization for African American women. Its members address common issues in their communities, families and personal lives, promoting gender and racial equity. His ...
* 1988 – African American Institute citation for service to Africa * 1993 –
Order of Lincoln The Lincoln Academy of Illinois is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to recognizing contributions made by living Illinoisans. Named for Abraham Lincoln, the Academy administers the Order of Lincoln, the highest award given b ...
from the State of Illinois * 2001 – Inducted into the Emily Taylor Center for Women and Gender Equity, University of Kansas


''Honoris causa'' degrees

* 1976 –
Atlanta University Clark Atlanta University (CAU or Clark Atlanta) is a private, Methodist, historically black research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded on September19, 1865, as Atlanta University, it was the first HBCU in the Southe ...
* 1983 –
Spelman College Spelman College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia ...
* 1987 –
University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...
* 1989 –
Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) Lincoln University (LU) is a public state-related historically black university (HBCU) near Oxford, Pennsylvania. Founded as the private Ashmun Institute in 1854, it has been a public institution since 1972. Lincoln is also recognized as th ...
* 1989 –
North Carolina Central University North Carolina Central University (NCCU or NC Central) is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by James E. Shepard in affiliati ...


Work


Stage

* ''Fast and Furious'', musical revue (1931) * ''Zombie'', a play (1932) * ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' ( ) is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play ''Porgy (play), ...
'', musical revival (1943) * ''
Lysistrata ''Lysistrata'' ( or ; Attic Greek: , ''Lysistrátē'', ) is an ancient Greek comedy by Aristophanes, originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC. It is a comic account of a woman's mission to end the Peloponnesian War between Greek city ...
'',
Aristophanes Aristophanes (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Ancient Greek comedy, comic playwright from Classical Athens, Athens. He wrote in total forty plays, of which eleven survive virtually complete today. The majority of his surviving play ...
' comedy, with an all-black cast (1946)


Filmography

* ''
Ladies They Talk About ''Ladies They Talk About'' is a 1933 pre-Code American crime drama directed by Howard Bretherton and William Keighley, and starring Barbara Stanwyck, Preston Foster, and Lyle Talbot. The film is about an attractive woman who is a member of a ...
'' (1933) as Singing Inmate (voice, uncredited) * ''
Gold Diggers of 1933 ''Gold Diggers of 1933'' is an American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code musical film directed by Mervyn LeRoy with songs by Harry Warren (music) and Al Dubin (lyrics). The film's numbers were staged and choreographed by Busby Berkeley. It starr ...
'' (1933) as "Remember My Forgotten Man" Singer (uncredited) * '' Bombshell'' (1933) as Singer (scenes deleted) * ''
Flying Down to Rio ''Flying Down to Rio'' is a 1933 American pre-Code musical film famous for being the first screen pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, although lead actors Dolores del Río and Gene Raymond received top billing. Among the featured pla ...
'' (1933) as The Colored Singer * '' Professional Sweetheart'' (1933) (dubbed singing voice for
Theresa Harris Theresa Mae Harris"Harris-Robinson"
''Camarillo Star''. August 25, 1933. p.  ...
) * ''
Operator 13 '' Operator 13'' is a 1934 American pre-Code romance film directed by Richard Boleslawski and starring Marion Davies, Gary Cooper, and Jean Parker. Based on stories written by Robert W. Chambers, the film is about a Union spy who impersonates ...
'' (1934) as Slave at Medicine Show (uncredited) * ''
The Green Pastures ''The Green Pastures'' is a play written in 1929 by Marc Connelly adapted from '' Ol' Man Adam an' His Chillun'' (1928), a collection of stories written by Roark Bradford. The play was the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930. It ha ...
'' (1936) as Angel (uncredited) * '' A Day at the Races'' (1937) as Black Singer (uncredited) * '' Born to Sing'' (1942) as Soloist – " Ballad for Americans" (uncredited) (final film role)


References


Further reading

* *Vernon, Ann (1997)
''Etta Moten Barnett: A Kansas City Tribute''
(29 pages)
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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Moten Barnett, Etta 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women opera singers African-American women opera singers American operatic contraltos Deaths from pancreatic cancer in Illinois People from Weimar, Texas Singers from Texas University of Kansas alumni 1901 births 2004 deaths African-American Methodists Actresses from Texas American film actresses American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses African-American centenarians 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century American actresses Classical musicians from Texas American women centenarians 20th-century Methodists Members of The Links Radio personalities from Chicago