Vantile Emmanuel Whitfield (September 8, 1930 – January 9, 2005), was an

arts administrator Arts administration (alternatively arts management) is a field in the arts sector that facilitates programming within cultural organizations. Arts administrators are responsible for facilitating the day-to-day operations of the organization as we ...

who helped found several performing arts institutions in the United States.

Background

Born September 08, 1930 in

Washington, D.C Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, well known as Vantile Emmanuel Whitfield, but also known as Motojicho was then an only child between Theodore Roosevelt Whitfield and Lugene Ellen Green. Throughout Whitfield's adolescence a direct path had been taken for him to gain much success for himself Vantile, in years to come becomes a student at Dunbar High School, and quite active in playing football while congruently gaining a deep interest in painting. But, after high school, whitfield served in the Air Force until 1952. When, in 1957, Whitfield received a Bachelors of Arts degree, he became one of the first African Americans to study theatre at Howard Unversity. Once Whitfield received his studies and graduated from

Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...

, He enrolled in the master's degree program at the

UCLA Film School The UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television (UCLA TFT), is one of the 12 schools within the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) located in Los Angeles, California. Its creation was groundbreaking in that it was the first time a leadi ...

, making him again, one of the first African Americans to study at that learning instituition.In 1969, Whitfield directed "Watts Gospel Festival" and "Watts Rhythm and Blues Festival" for KCET-TV in Los Angeles Whitfield, divorced three of the four times he married; His first marriage dates back to 1950, to whom which he marries Barbara Ellen Cobbs and divorces; consequently Whitfield then marries again in 1960 to Barbara Ann Grant and then a third marriage (after divorce) in 1974 to actress

Lynn Whitfield Lynn Whitfield (''née'' Smith; born February 15, 1953) is an American actress. She began her acting career in television and theatre before progressing to supporting roles in film. She won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a ...

who Whitfield also divorced. It was not until, 1993, long after his 1978 divorce from his third wife

that Whitfield marries his fourth wife which was to Loretta Collins. Vantile Whitfield and Loretta Collins remained married until his death in 2005. Whitfield fathered three children. Amongst lineage are; actress

Bellina Logan Bellina Logan is an American television and film actress. Career Logan is known for her roles in such films and television shows as ''Interview with the Vampire'', ''Twin Peaks'' and as Nurse Kit in '' ER'' and Janice Mayfield in the sitcom '' ...

and jazz artist
Lance Vantile Whitfield

Career

In 1963, Whitfield co-founded with actor

Frank Silvera Frank Alvin Silvera (July 24, 1914 – June 11, 1970) was a Jamaican-born American character actor and theatrical director. Born in Kingston, Jamaica and raised in Boston, Silvera dropped out of law school in 1934 after winning his first stage ...

the American Theatre of Being in Los Angeles. While there he taught acting classes with

Beah Richards Beulah Elizabeth Richardson (July 12, 1920 – September 14, 2000), known professionally as Beah Richards and Bea Richards, was an American actress of stage, screen, and television. She was also a poet, playwright, author and activist. Rich ...

Whitman Mayo Whitman Blount Mayo Jr. (November 15, 1930 – May 22, 2001) was an American actor, best known for his role as Grady Wilson on the 1970s television sitcom ''Sanford and Son''. Biography Early years Whitman Blount Mayo Jr. was born in New York ...

and

Isabel Sanford Isabel Sanford (born Eloise Gwendolyn Sanford; August 29, 1917 – July 9, 2004) was an American stage, film, and television actress and comedian best known for her role as Louise "Weezy" Mills Jefferson on the CBS sitcoms ''All in the Fam ...

. Also in 1963, Whitfield designed the sets, lights and costumes for Silvera's production of the

James Baldwin James Arthur Baldwin (né Jones; August 2, 1924 – December 1, 1987) was an American writer and civil rights activist who garnered acclaim for his essays, novels, plays, and poems. His 1953 novel '' Go Tell It on the Mountain'' has been ranked ...

play ''

The Amen Corner ''The Amen Corner'' is a three-act play by James Baldwin. It was Baldwin's first work for the stage following the success of his novel '' Go Tell It on the Mountain''. The drama was first published in 1954, and inspired a short-lived 1983 Broad ...

'', becoming the first African-American production designer to work on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

. The following year, Whitfield founded and served as producing artistic director of the Performing Arts Society of Los Angeles (PASLA). The goal of PASLA was to help train inner-city youth in the performing arts. Whitfield's acting credits also include ''

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, a feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer. Creat ...

'' where he was featured in two episodes,
The Ultimate Duel
' as Kimpu an
''Mask of Rona''
as the Chief. He was also founding Artistic Director of Studio West and was enlisted by

Robert Hooks Robert Hooks (born Bobby Dean Hooks; April 18, 1937) is an American actor, producer, and activist. Along with Douglas Turner Ward and Gerald S. Krone, he founded The Negro Ensemble Company. The Negro Ensemble Company is credited with the lau ...

, of the D.C. Black Repertory Company, to be its Artistic Director. In 1971, Whitfield was the founding director of the Expansion Arts Program at the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

(NEA). In this role, he had perhaps his greatest influence, because this program provided funds for many African-American artists and arts organizations.

Association with L.A. Rebellion filmmakers

Although his tenure at UCLA Film School pre-dates the period generally associated with the

L.A. Rebellion The L.A. Rebellion film movement, sometimes referred to as the "Los Angeles School of Black Filmmakers", or the UCLA Rebellion, refers to the new generation of young African and African-American filmmakers who studied at the UCLA Film School in ...

, Whitfield had a connection with several filmmakers associated with the film movement.

Larry Clark Lawrence Donald Clark (born January 19, 1943) is an American film director, photographer, writer and film producer who is best known for his controversial teen film '' Kids'' (1995) and his photography book ''Tulsa'' (1971). His work focuses pri ...

taught film production classes at PASLA while a student at UCLA and directed the short film ''As Above, So Below'' (1973) through the organization. Whitfield also acted in

Haile Gerima Haile Gerima (born March 4, 1946) is an Ethiopian filmmaker who lives and works in the United States. He is a leading member of the L.A. Rebellion film movement, also known as the Los Angeles School of Black Filmmakers. Since 1975, Haile has b ...

's film '' Ashes and Embers''.

Death

Whitfield died from complications of

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

on January 9, 2005.

Awards and recognition

* 1969:

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...

* 1970: Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award * 1992: ETA Creative Arts Foundation Citation * Jeff Citation for ''Among All This You Stand Like a Fine Brownstone'' * 1996: AUDELCO Pioneer Award

References

External links

*
Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library
Emory University
Vantile E. Whitfield papers, circa 1953-2005
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitfield, Vantile 1930 births 2005 deaths 20th-century African-American male actors 20th-century American male actors Baptists from the United States Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in Washington, D.C. Howard University alumni Male actors from Washington, D.C. UCLA Film School alumni American male television actors Dunbar High School (Washington, D.C.) alumni 20th-century Baptists 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people