''Underworld'' is a 1937

gangster film A gangster film or gangster movie is a film belonging to a genre that focuses on gangs and organized crime. It is a subgenre of crime film, that may involve large criminal organizations, or small gangs formed to perform a certain illegal act. The ...

directed by

Oscar Micheaux Oscar Devereaux Micheaux (; January 2, 1884 – March 25, 1951) was an author, film director and independent producer of more than 44 films. Although the short-lived Lincoln Motion Picture Company was the first movie company owned and controlled ...

, about a recent graduate from an all-black college who moves from the

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and gets swept into the criminal underworld. The film was adapted from the short story "Chicago After Midnight" by Edna Mae Baker. Among its stars are

Ethel Moses Ethel Moses (April 29, 1904 – June 1982) was an American stage and film actress, and dancer. She was billed as "the black Jean Harlow". Moses is best known for working in films by Oscar Micheaux. Early life Ethel Moses was born on April 29, 190 ...

, a Micheaux regular, and

Oscar Polk Oscar Polk (December 25, 1899 – January 4, 1949) was an American actor. He portrayed the servant Pork in the film '' Gone with the Wind'' (1939). Career His most memorable scene in that film comes when Pork discloses to Scarlett O'Hara, port ...

, best known for his appearance in ''Gone with the Wind'' two years later.

Plot

The film opens at an all-black college somewhere in the Southern United States. Paul Bronson, a recent graduate, is convinced by gambler LeRoy Giles to join him in Chicago. There, Paul becomes involved with Dinah Jackson, a singer who is married to club owner Sam Brown but has been having an affair with LeRoy. Paul runs into Evelyn Martin, a beauty parlor owner, who recognizes him from college. The two have lunch together, during which LeRoy spots them and reports to Dinah that Paul is seeing someone else. Dinah arranges for LeRoy to drug and rob Paul. LeRoy also kills Sam and leaves the gun by his body. Paul finds the body; as he picks up the gun, Dinah enters and accuses Paul of killing Sam. Eventually, Dinah reports Paul to the police for the murder; she then goes on a bender and dies when her car is hit by a train. It seems that Paul will be found guilty of Sam's murder, until, at the last moment, a Chinese man named Ching Li comes forward as an eyewitness. Paul is freed and reunited with Evelyn. The two plan to travel by train to Oklahoma to start over together.

Cast

* Bee Freeman as Dinah Jackson * Sol Johnson as Paul Bronson * 'Slick' Chester as LeRoy Giles *

as Evelyn Martin *

as Sam Brown * Larry Seymour as Tim Sharkey *

Lorenzo Tucker Lorenzo Tucker (June 27, 1907 – August 19, 1986), known as the "Black Valentino," was an American stage and screen actor who played the romantic lead in the early black films of Oscar Micheaux. Acting career Born in Philadelphia, Tucker st ...

* Clara Bell Powell

Production

On November 14, 1936, the ''Motion Picture Herald'' reported that Ideal Sound Studios in

North Bergen, New Jersey North Bergen is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 63,361. The township was founded in 1843. It was much diminished in territory by a ...

had been reopened for Oscar Micheaux to make four films. The notice mentioned that "a company of 20 actors, including Oscar Folk 'sic''.. are now employed."

Censorship

Records from the

Production Code Administration The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is an American trade association representing the Major film studios#Present, five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service Netflix. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Pic ...

show that numerous deletions were requested in order for the film to be shown in various states. For

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, the

MPPDA The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is an American trade association representing the Major film studios#Present, five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service Netflix. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Pic ...

required the words "chippy" and "broad" to be deleted; for

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, requested deletions included the word "hell" and shots and sounds relating to the murder of Big Sam.

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

rejected the film entirely.

Themes

According to Barbara Tepa Lupack, ''Underworld'' features at least two elements that are common to Micheaux's films. The first is the "surprise revelation of guilt or innocence." The second is the recurring motif of the train that serves as "both the method of Dinah's punishment and the means by which Paul and Evelyn can begin their new life together in Oklahoma."

Songs

* "

It Don't Mean a Thing "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" is a 1931 composition by Duke Ellington with lyrics by Irving Mills. It is now accepted as a jazz standard, and jazz historian Gunther Schuller characterized it as "now legendary" and "a prophe ...

," music by

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

, lyrics by

Irving Mills Irving Harold Mills (born Isadore Minsky; January 16, 1894 – April 21, 1985) was an American music publisher, musician, lyricist, and jazz artist promoter. He sometimes used the pseudonyms Goody Goodwin and Joe Primrose. Personal Mills was ...

* "I'll Never Say 'Never Again' Again," music and lyrics by Harry Woods

References

{{Oscar Micheaux 1937 films Race films Films set in Chicago American black-and-white films American gangster films 1937 crime films 1930s American films