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Charles Weldon
Charles Weldon (June 1, 1940 – December 7, 2018) was an actor, director, educator, singer, and songwriter. He was the artistic director of the Negro Ensemble Company for thirteen years. He was the co-founder of the Alumni of this company, and directed many of their productions. During his career he worked with Denzel Washington, James Earl Jones, Cicely Tyson, Alfre Woodard, Muhammad Ali, and Oscar Brown Jr. Early years Weldon's mother was Beatrice Jennings; his father was Roosevelt Weldon. The family moved from Wetumka, Oklahoma, to Bakersfield, California, when he was seven years old. As a young boy, he worked in the cotton fields of Bakersfield until the age of seventeen, when he joined a local doo-wop group. He graduated from Bakersfield High School in 1959. He was the brother of actress Ann Weldon, singer Maxine Weldon, and Mae Frances Weldon. As the lead singer of The Paradons, he co-wrote the hit record "Diamonds and Pearls" in 1960. The group appeared on the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wetumka, Oklahoma
Wetumka is a city in northern Hughes County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,282 at the 2010 census, a decline of 11.7 percent from the figure of 1,451 recorded in 2000. First settled by the Muscogee Creek after removal in the 1830s, they named it for their ancestral town of Wetumpka, in Alabama. ''Wetumka'' is a Muskogee language word meaning "rumbling waters."Linda D. Wilson, "Wetumka". ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''. Accessed January 17, 2013 In the 21st century, it is the headquarters for two federally recognized tribes, the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town and the |
Oscar Brown
Oscar Brown Jr. (October 10, 1926May 29, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, playwright, poet, civil rights activist, and actor. Aside from his career, Brown ran unsuccessfully for office in both the Illinois state legislature and the U.S. Congress. Brown wrote many songs (125 have been published), 12 albums, and more than a dozen musical plays. Early life and education Brown was born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, to Oscar Brown Sr. and Helen (née Clark). Brown's father was an attorney and real estate broker. Brown's first acting debut was on the radio show ''Secret City'' at the age of 15. After graduating from Englewood High School, Brown attended University of Wisconsin–Madison then Lincoln University but later dropped out. During Brown's twenties, he worked as the "world's first Black newscaster" for ''Negro Newsfront'', a Chicago radio program that he coproduced with Vernon Jarrett. He worked briefly in real estate and public relations before running fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leslie Lee (playwright)
Leslie Lee (1930 – January 20, 2014) was an American playwright, director and professor of playwriting and screenwriting. Life and work Leslie Lee grew up in West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a master's degree from Villanova University. Lee's early theatre experience was at Ellen Stewart's La Mama Experimental Theatre Club in the East Village, Manhattan. His play ''Elegy for a Down Queen'' was produced at La MaMa in 1970 and in 1972 by John Vaccaro's Playhouse of the Ridiculous. ''Cops and Robbers'' was produced at La MaMa in 1971 by La MaMa GPA Nucleus Company. 1997, marked the beginning of Mr. Lee's theatre collaboration (spanning twenty years) with his Dramatic Writing Student from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts whom he deemed his protégé, Sophia Romma (née Murashkovsky). Colonel Lee directed Sophia Murashkovsky's play, ''Love, In the Eyes of Hope, Dies Last'' which was produced at La ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The River Niger
''The River Niger'' is a play by Joseph A. Walker, first performed by New York City's Negro Ensemble Company off-Broadway in 1972. The production made its Broadway debut with a transfer to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on 27 March 1973 for a run of 162 performances. It's a black play, meaning all characters are African American, with the titular river being a pun on the N-word. Characters * Mattie Williams * Johnny Williams * Dr. Dudley Stanton * Jeff Williams * Ann Vanderguild * Big Moe Hayes * Al * Chips * Skeeter * Gail * Wilhelmina Brown Adaptations The play was adapted by Walker for film in 1976, directed by Krishna Shah starring Cicely Tyson and James Earl Jones. Awards and nominations Awards * 1973 Drama Desk Award for Most Promising Playwright – Joseph A. Walker * 1973 Obie Award for Best American Play * 1974 Tony Award for Best Play Nominations * 1974 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play – Douglas Turner Ward * 1974 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Carter Harrison
Paul Carter Harrison (March 1, 1936 – December 27, 2021) was an American playwright and professor. Harrison was known for works such as his Obie Award winning play ''The Great MacDaddy'' and scholarly writings on theater and performance. Between 1962 and 1982, he produced or directed numerous American and Dutch plays and screenplays. Early years Paul Carter Harrison was an African American, born on March 1, 1936, to Thelma Inez and Paul Randolph Harrison who were born in North and South Carolina but raised in New York City. His brother, Kenneth Allen Harrison was the first black basketball player on scholarship at Villanova University. Harrison attended Commerce High School and graduated in 1952. While attending New York University, Harrison was introduced to many writers and theater artists such as Lou Gossett, Jr., Billy Dee Williams, Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), and Ted Joans. He transferred to Indiana University where he interacted with musicians such as Freddie Hubbard, La ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fortune as a newspaper publisher, and is administered by Columbia University. Prizes are awarded annually in twenty-one categories. In twenty of the categories, each winner receives a certificate and a US$15,000 cash award (raised from $10,000 in 2017). The winner in the public service category is awarded a gold medal. Entry and prize consideration The Pulitzer Prize does not automatically consider all applicable works in the media, but only those that have specifically been entered. (There is a $75 entry fee, for each desired entry category.) Entries must fit in at least one of the specific prize categories, and cannot simply gain entrance for being literary or musical. Works can also be entered only in a maximum of two categories, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles Fuller
Charles H. Fuller Jr. (March 5, 1939 – October 3, 2022) was an American playwright, best known for his play ''A Soldier's Play'', for which he received the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 2020 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play. Early life Fuller was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on March 5, 1939, the son of Charles H. Fuller, Sr. and Lillian Anderson. Raised Catholic Church, Roman Catholic, he attended Roman Catholic High School and then Villanova University (1956–1958), then joined the U.S. Army in 1959, serving in Japan and South Korea. He left the military in 1962, and later studied at La Salle University (1965–1967), earning a Doctor of Fine Arts, DFA. Furthermore, he co-founded the Afro-American Arts Theatre in Philadelphia. Career Fuller vowed to become a writer after noticing that his high school's library had no books by African-American authors. He achieved critical notice in 1969 with ''The Village: A Party'', a drama about racial tensions betwe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Douglas Turner Ward
Douglas Turner Ward (May 5, 1930February 20, 2021) was an American playwright, actor, stage director, director, and theatrical producer. He was noted for being a founder and artistic director of the Negro Ensemble Company (NEC). He was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play in 1974 for his role in ''The River Niger'', which he also directed. Early life Ward was born Roosevelt Ward Jr. in Burnside, Louisiana, on May 5, 1930. His parents, Roosevelt Ward and Dorothy (Short), were poor farmers who also owned a tailoring business. They relocated to New Orleans when Ward was eight years old, and he went to Xavier University Preparatory School. He was accepted by Wilberforce University in 1946, before transferring to the University of Michigan. He majored in politics and theater, but dropped out of college at the age of 19 and relocated to New York City. There, he became friends with Lorraine Hansberry and Lonne Elder III. Ward became a member of the Progr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Malcolm X (1992 Film)
''Malcolm X'' (sometimes stylized as ''X'') is a 1992 American epic biographical drama film about the African-American activist Malcolm X. Directed and co-written by Spike Lee, the film stars Denzel Washington in the title role, as well as Angela Bassett, Albert Hall, Al Freeman Jr., and Delroy Lindo. Lee has a supporting role, while Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale, the Rev. Al Sharpton, and future South African president Nelson Mandela make cameo appearances. It is the second of four film collaborations between Washington and Lee. ''Malcolm X's'' screenplay, co-credited to Lee and Arnold Perl, is based largely on Alex Haley's 1965 book, ''The Autobiography of Malcolm X''. Haley collaborated with Malcolm X on the book beginning in 1963 and completed it after Malcolm X's death. The film dramatizes key events in Malcolm X's life: his criminal career, his incarceration, his conversion to Islam, his ministry as a member of the Nation of Islam and his later falling out ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Serpico
''Serpico'' is a 1973 American neo-noir biographical crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Al Pacino in the title role. The screenplay was adapted by Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler from the book of the same name written by Peter Maas with the assistance of its subject, Frank Serpico. The story details Serpico's struggle with corruption within the New York City Police Department during his eleven years of service, and his work as a whistleblower that led to the investigation by the Knapp Commission. Producer Dino De Laurentiis purchased the rights from Maas. Agent Martin Bregman joined the film as co-producer. Bregman suggested Pacino for the main part, and John G. Avildsen was hired to direct the film. Pacino met with Serpico to prepare for the role early in the summer of 1973. After Avildsen was dismissed, Lumet was hired as his replacement. On a short notice, he selected the shooting locations and organized the scenes; the production was filmed in July and Augus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stir Crazy (film)
''Stir Crazy'' is a 1980 American comedy film directed by Sidney Poitier, produced by Hannah Weinstein and written by Bruce Jay Friedman. The film stars Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor as two unemployed friends who are given 125-year prison sentences after getting framed for a bank robbery. While in prison they befriend other prison inmates. The film reunited Wilder and Pryor, who had appeared previously in the 1976 comedy thriller film '' Silver Streak''. The film was released in the United States on December 12, 1980 to mixed critical reviews, but was a major financial success. Plot Aspiring actor Harry Monroe (Pryor) is working as a waiter in a rich woman's penthouse, but is fired when the cooks accidentally use his stash of marijuana as oregano at a dinner party. His friend, playwright Skip Donahue (Wilder), is working as a shop detective when he thinks he sees a well-known actress shoplifting, and his accusation gets him fired. Skip, the optimist of the two, spins their ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sophia Romma
Sophia Romma () is an American playwright known for her one act plays and experimental films. Her work has been reviewed by ''The New York Times'' and ''The Village Voice.'' Early life and education Dr. Romma was born in Moscow and emigrated with her parents to the United States in 1979. Professor Romma is of Romani, Romanian and Ukrainian ancestry. She earned a Bachelor in Fine Arts (1995) and a Master's in Fine Arts (1997) from New York University. In 2005, Romma received her Honorary Doctorate Degree in Philology (majoring in 19th Century Russian Literature) with a Minor in French and Slavic languages from the Maxim Gorky Literature Institute. In 2017, Romma graduated from Fordham University School of Law and received her Master of Laws. Romma was the Literary Manager of the Negro Ensemble Company and worked closely on theatre productions with Charles Weldon and Leslie Lee. Career Romma is the author of 14 off-Broadway plays, and her theater productions have been staged a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
