IN CELEBRATION OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH: AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE ACTORS

Paul Robeson, a great American singer and actor, spent much of his life actively agitating for equality and fair treatment for all of America's citizens as well as citizens of the world. Robeson brought to his audiences not only a melodious baritone voice and a grand presence, but magnificent performances on stage and screen. Although his outspokenness often caused him difficulties in his career and personal life, he unswervingly pursued and supported issues that only someone in his position could effect on a grand scale. His career flourished in the 1940s as he perfoin America and numerous countries around the world. He was one of the most celebrated persons of his time.






Harry Belafonte is known worldwide for his accomplishments as a recording artist and concert singer, as an actor and a producer, and for his commitment to human rights. He was appointed a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador on 4 March l987.

Belafonte has a long and distinguished campaigning record. He became the entertainment industry’s first cultural adviser to the Peace Corps in the early 1960s. He was a leading architect of the civil rights movement. And in l985, he helped bring together 45 top performers to record the song ‘We Are the World’, which raised millions of dollars for emergency assistance in Africa.






Sidney Poitier

Actor, director. Born February 20, 1927, in Miami, Florida. Born prematurely on the high seas en route to Miami, Poitier grew up in The Bahamas. His youth was filled with delinquency, and his parents eventually sent him to live with his brother in Florida in 1941. Poitier served a short stint in the United States Army before moving to New York to pursue an acting career.
A student at the American Negro Theater in New York City, Poitier appeared on stage and in films before making his Hollywood debut in 1950. Cast mainly in supporting roles, he won an Oscar for Lilies of the Field (1963). The win marked the first Oscar awarded to a black actor and made Poitier cinema's first African American superstar, one who consciously defied racial stereotyping. Handsome and unassuming, he brought dignity to the portrayal of noble and intelligent characters, including Philadelphia detective Virgil Tibbs in In the Heat of the Night (1967). Other notable films include The Defiant Ones and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967).

During the 1970s he also began to direct, producing a number of lowbrow comedies such as the successful Richard Pryor-Gene Wilder vehicle Stir Crazy (1980) and Ghost Dad (1990). He returned to acting after a 10-year absence, appearing in Shoot to Kill (1988), Little Nikita (1988), Sneakers (1992), and One Man, One Vote (1997). In 2001, he received a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for his autobiographical book The Measure of a Man. In 2002, he received and an honorary Oscar.

Poitier was married to Juanita Hardy from 1950 until 1965; the couple has four children. He is currently married to Canadian-born actress Joanna Shimkus; they have two children. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the British Empire in 1974, which entitles him to use the title "Sir," though he chooses not to do so. He has also served as non-resident Bahamian ambassador to Japan and to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization






Bill Cosby, is a successful comedian, product representative, television producer, story teller, author, and film and television actor. His work in the media has been recognized by his peers and critics, and acclaimed by audiences.
Cosby began his career as a stand?up comedian and in that arena developed his trademark of using raceless humor to capture audience appeal. His "humor for everyone" cast him less as a jokester than as a story teller, commenting on the experiences of life from a personal point of view. Immensely popular on the nightclub circuit, Cosby translated his act to phonograph recordings and won five Grammys and seven gold records for his comedy albums.

His first starring role on television, however, came not in comedy, but in the 1960s action-adventure series, I Spy (1965-68). Producer Sheldon Leonard fought network hesitance to cast him as costar for Robert Culp, making Cosby one of the first African American players to appear in a continuing dramatic role on U.S. television. More than the faithful sidekick to the star, Cosby's role developed into an equal partner, winning him three time Emmy awards. His portrayal in this series introduced viewers to an inoffensive African American feature character who seldom addressed his blackness nor another character's whiteness.
[Edited 2/17/08 15:48pm]

One of my favorites.....


Ossie Davis (1917–2005) RIP

Actor, playwright, director. Born December 18, 1917 in Cogdell, Georgia. Interested in literature from an early age, he finished school at the height of the Depression, and although offered scholarships to Savannah State College and Tuskegee Institute in Alabama he was unable to accept. Later he was able to take up a place at Howard University in Washington (1935) where he began acting with a Harlem theatre company and also became an active lifelong campaigner for civil rights.

During World War II, Davis worked in an army hospital in Liberia, spending his free time writing and producing plays to entertain troops and local people. He made his Broadway debut in 1946 in Jeb, where he met his future wife, Ruby Dee. They co-starred in many stage productions and films, and during the 1970s had their own radio show The Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee Story Hour. Among his best-known film roles are The Joe Louis Story (1953) and Purlie Victorious (1963), and his directorial debut was a comedy-action film Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970).

noimageatall said:

One of my favorites.....


Ossie Davis (1917–2005) RIP

Actor, playwright, director. Born December 18, 1917 in Cogdell, Georgia. Interested in literature from an early age, he finished school at the height of the Depression, and although offered scholarships to Savannah State College and Tuskegee Institute in Alabama he was unable to accept. Later he was able to take up a place at Howard University in Washington (1935) where he began acting with a Harlem theatre company and also became an active lifelong campaigner for civil rights.

During World War II, Davis worked in an army hospital in Liberia, spending his free time writing and producing plays to entertain troops and local people. He made his Broadway debut in 1946 in Jeb, where he met his future wife, Ruby Dee. They co-starred in many stage productions and films, and during the 1970s had their own radio show The Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee Story Hour. Among his best-known film roles are The Joe Louis Story (1953) and Purlie Victorious (1963), and his directorial debut was a comedy-action film Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970).

Out of all listed, Harry B. and Ossie have got to be my most admired.

Man,I would have loved to have seen or heard Paul Robeson back in the day. I probably would have been censored right along with him, but man, Robeson had some courage!!

Mad love for:
Ossie Davis
Harry B
Mr. Cos
Sidney P

JellyBean said: