Harold "Hal" DeWindt was an American producer, director, actor, and model. He worked to increase opportunities for

African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

in the arts.

Early life

DeWindt was born and raised in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

. His father Clifford acted with the original Lafayette Theatre.

Career

In 1959, DeWindt became the first male model for the

Ebony Fashion Fair Ebony Fashion Fair (also known as the Ebony Traveling Fashion Fair) was an annual fashion event created by Eunice Johnson, co–founder of the Chicago, Illinois–based Johnson Publishing Company. The show ran across the United States and other cou ...

. He traveled with that fashion troupe for two years. DeWindt began his stage career in the

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 Stree ...

play '' Golden Boy''. He played a leading role in the

Louis S. Peterson Louis Stamford Peterson (June 17, 1922 – April 27, 1998) was an American playwright, actor, screenwriter, and professor.Roberts, Jerry. The Great American Playwrights on the Screen: A Critical Guide to Film, Video, and DVD. Hal Leonard Corpo ...

play ''Entertain A Ghost''. He also appeared in the

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

musical ''

Lost in the Stars ''Lost in the Stars'' is a musical with book and lyrics by Maxwell Anderson and music by Kurt Weill, based on the novel ''Cry, the Beloved Country'' (1948) by Alan Paton. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1949; it was the composer's last work ...

''. In 1962, DeWindt staged an

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

production of ''Raisin' Hell in the Son'', a spoof of ''

A Raisin in the Sun ''A Raisin in the Sun'' is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The title comes from the poem "Harlem" (also known as "A Dream Deferred") by Langston Hughes. The story tells of a black family's experiences in south Chi ...

'' that he co-wrote with

Reni Santoni Reni may refer to: Places * Reni, Alwar, Alwar district, Rajasthan, India * Reni, Chamoli (also ''Raini''), Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, India, devastated by the 2021 Uttarakhand flood * Reni, Churu, Churu district, Rajasthan, India * Reni, U ...

. DeWindt served as production stage manager at the

New York Shakespeare Festival Shakespeare in the Park (or Free Shakespeare in the Park) is a theatrical program that stages productions of Shakespearean plays at the Delacorte Theater, an open-air theater in New York City's Central Park. The theater and the productions are ...

for seven years. He was a director with

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 launc ...

's Group Theater Workshop, which led to the creation of the

Negro Ensemble Company The Negro Ensemble Company (NEC) is a New York City-based theater company and workshop established in 1967 by playwright Douglas Turner Ward, producer-actor Robert Hooks, and theater manager Gerald S. Krone, with funding from the Ford Foundation. ...

, which he served with as a workshop director. DeWindt was the founder and artistic director of the American Theatre of Harlem, and artistic director of the Inner City Repertory Company in Los Angeles. In 1977, he formed the Hal DeWindt Theatre in San Francisco. DeWindt helped Arthur Mitchell bring the

Dance Theatre of Harlem Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) is an American professional ballet company and school based in Harlem, New York City. It was founded in 1969 under the directorship of Arthur Mitchell and later partnered with Karel Shook. Milton Rosenstock served a ...

to Broadway, and helped

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

bring black musicians into the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

. In 1969, as assistant producer of ''

The Angel Levine ''The Angel Levine'' is a 1970 American drama film directed by Ján Kadár and starring Zero Mostel, Harry Belafonte, Ida Kamińska, Milo O'Shea, and Gloria Foster. It is based on a short story by Bernard Malamud about Morris Mishkin, an elderly, ...

'', DeWindt helped run a black apprenticeship program funded by a

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...

grant. He also worked on a number of other film and television productions, and led acting workshops. DeWindt acted on television as well. In 1983, DeWindt co-authored the book ''Kill, Bubba, Kill!'' with former

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

player and actor

Bubba Smith Charles Aaron Smith (February 28, 1945 – August 3, 2011), commonly known as Bubba Smith, was an American football defensive end and actor. He first came into prominence at Michigan State University, where he twice earned All-American hon ...

. DeWindt was serving as an acting professor at

Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. It is located on the west side of the city near Playa Vista. LMU is the parent school to Loyola Law School, which is located ...

at the time of his death.

Personal life and death

In 1958, DeWindt and his wife Violet had their first child, Hal D. Jr. In 1975, DeWindt met actress Sheila Wills when she enrolled in an actor's workshop he was teaching in Los Angeles. They married two years later. The couple divorced in 1981. In 1984, DeWindt married actress/model Angelique. He later married another woman, Suzanne. DeWindt died of cancer in Los Angeles on June 22, 1997. ''The New York Times'' reported his age at death as 63.

Filmography (selected)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:DeWindt, Hal 1997 deaths African-American film producers Film producers from New York (state) American male stage actors American male television actors American theatre directors African-American television directors American television directors Television producers from New York City African-American male actors African-American male models African-American models American male models Male actors from New York City