''Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson'' is a 2005 biographical

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

by filmmaker

Ken Burns Kenneth Lauren Burns (born July 29, 1953) is an American filmmaker known for his documentary films and television series, many of which chronicle American history and culture. His work is often produced in association with WETA-TV or the Nati ...

, based on the 2004 nonfiction book of the same name by Geoffrey C. Ward. It describes the life story of Jack Johnson, the first

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. ...

Heavyweight Boxing Champion of the World. It also describes racism and social inequality during the

Jim Crow The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced racial segregation, " Jim Crow" being a pejorative term for an African American. The last of the ...

era, against which Johnson struggled.

Production

It is narrated by

Keith David Keith David Williams (born June 4, 1956) is an American actor. He is known for his deep voice and screen presence in over 300 roles in film, stage, television, and interactive media. He has starred in such films as '' The Thing'' (1982), ''Pla ...

,The Hollywood reporter: Volume 395. 2006 with a soundtrack by

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, and music instructor, who is currently the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has been active in promoting classical and jazz music, often to young ...

and with Samuel L. Jackson as the voice of Jack Johnson.

Alan Rickman Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman (21 February 1946 – 14 January 2016) was an English actor and director. Known for his distinctive deep, wikt:languid#Etymology 1, languid voice, he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and b ...

also contributed his voice to the documentary.

Stanley Crouch Stanley Lawrence Crouch (December 14, 1945 – September 16, 2020) was an American cultural critic, poet, playwright, novelist, biographer, and syndicated columnist. He was known for his jazz criticism and his 2000 novel ''Don't the Moon Lo ...

appears, offering commentary, including a quote from Johnson responding to a question from a white woman about black people, "We eat cold eels and think distant thoughts." This documentary is an example of a style frequently used by Burns, where a range of authorities gives voiceovers to contribute particular details. Stanley Crouch is the primary authority, offering personal recollections. The film was produced by David Schaye, Paul Barnes and Ken Burns (Executive Producer) for Florentine Films.

Release and reception

The documentary was first broadcast on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

in two parts, on January 17 and January 18, 2005. In 2005, the film earned Ken Burns an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

for Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming. Geoffrey C. Ward won an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming. Keith David won an Emmy for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance.

References

External links

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''Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson''
at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise And Fall Of Jack Johnson 2005 television films 2005 films Documentary films about boxing Documentary films about sportspeople American documentary television films Television shows based on books Films directed by Ken Burns Racism in sport Documentary films about racism in the United States Cultural depictions of Jack Johnson Primetime Emmy Award–winning broadcasts 2000s English-language films 2000s American films African-American films English-language documentary films Films scored by Wynton Marsalis

Production

Release and reception

See also

References

External links