Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry, better known by the stage name Stepin Fetchit, was an American vaudevillian, comedian, and film actor of Jamaican and Bahamian descent, considered to be the first black actor to have a successful film career. His highest profile was during the 1930s in films and on stage, when his persona of Stepin Fetchit was billed as the "Laziest Man in the World".
Helene Costello was an American stage and film actress, most notably of the silent era.
Zenobia is a 1939 comedy film directed by Gordon Douglas and starring Oliver Hardy, Harry Langdon, Billie Burke, Alice Brady, James Ellison, Jean Parker, June Lang, Stepin Fetchit and Hattie McDaniel. The source of the film was the 1891 short story "Zenobia's Infidelity" by H.C. Bunner, which was originally purchased by producer Hal Roach as a vehicle for Roland Young.
William Best, known professionally as Willie Best or Sleep 'n' Eat, was an American television and film actor.
The Galloping Ghost is a 1931 American pre-Code Mascot serial film co-directed by B. Reeves Eason and Benjamin H. Kline. The title is the nickname of the star, real life American football player Red Grange. Serial historian Raymond William Stedman lists Lon Chaney Jr. as appearing in Ghost in a small uncredited part as a henchman, but this has never been verified.
Pretty Ladies is a 1925 American silent comedy drama film starring ZaSu Pitts and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film is a fictional recreation of the famed Ziegfeld Follies. Directed by Monta Bell, the film was written by Alice D. G. Miller and featured intertitles by Joseph Farnham. Pretty Ladies originally featured musical color sequences, some in two-color Technicolor. However, the color sequences are now considered lost.
The Merry Widow is a 1925 American silent romantic drama/black comedy film directed and written by Erich von Stroheim. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the film stars Mae Murray, John Gilbert, Roy D'Arcy, and Tully Marshall, with pre-fame uncredited appearances by Joan Crawford and Clark Gable.
Hearts in Dixie (1929) starring Stepin Fetchit was one of the first all-"talkie", big-studio productions to boast a predominantly African-American cast. A musical, the film celebrates African-American music and dance. It was released by Fox Film Corporation just months before the release of Hallelujah!, another all-black musical by competitor Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The director of Hearts in Dixie was Paul Sloane. Walter Weems wrote the screenplay, and William Fox was producer.
Swing Wedding is a 1937 MGM Happy Harmonies cartoon directed by Hugh Harman.
Judge Priest is a 1934 American comedy film starring Will Rogers. The film was directed by John Ford, produced by Sol M. Wurtzel in association with Fox Film, and based on humorist Irvin S. Cobb's character Judge Priest. The picture is set in post-reconstruction Kentucky and the supporting cast features Henry B. Walthall, Hattie McDaniel and Stepin Fetchit. It was remade by Ford in 1953 as The Sun Shines Bright.
Steamboat Round the Bend is a 1935 American comedy film directed by John Ford, released by 20th Century Fox and produced by Fox Film Corporation, based on the 1933 novel of the same name by author Ben Lucien Burman. It was the final film made by star Will Rogers and was released posthumously, a month after he was killed in an airplane crash on August 15, 1935.
The Sun Shines Bright is a 1953 American Comedy-Drama Western film directed by John Ford, based on material taken from a series of Irvin S. Cobb "Judge Priest" short stories featured in The Saturday Evening Post in the 1910s, specifically "The Sun Shines Bright", "The Mob from Massac", and "The Lord Provides".
The Coward is a 1915 American silent historical war drama film directed by Reginald Barker and produced by Thomas H. Ince. Ince also wrote the film's scenario with C. Gardner Sullivan, from a story Ince had bought from writer Edward Sloman. The film stars Frank Keenan and Charles Ray. John Gilbert also appears in an uncredited bit part. A copy of The Coward is preserved at the Museum of Modern Art.
The County Chairman is a 1935 American comedy film directed by John G. Blystone and starring Will Rogers, Evelyn Venable and Kent Taylor. It was produced and distributed by the Fox Film Corporation. It is based on the 1903 play of the same name by George Ade which had previously been adapted into a 1914 silent film The County Chairman.
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch is a 1942 American comedy-drama film starring Fay Bainter and directed by Ralph Murphy. It was based on the play by Anne Crawford Flexner that premiered on Broadway in 1904, which was in turn adapted from the 1901 novel of the same name by Alice Hegan Rice.
On Record is a 1917 American silent crime drama film starring Mae Murray and directed by Murray's then-husband Robert Z. Leonard. Based on a story by John B. Clymer and Paul West, the film's scenario was written by George D. Proctor. On Record was produced by Jesse Lasky's production company, Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company and was distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film's status is currently unknown.
Finger Prints is a 1927 American silent comedy crime film directed by Lloyd Bacon and starring Louise Fazenda, John T. Murray, and Helene Costello.
David Harum is a 1934 American comedy film directed by James Cruze and written by Walter Woods. The film stars Will Rogers, Louise Dresser, Evelyn Venable, Kent Taylor, Stepin Fetchit, Noah Beery, Sr. and Roger Imhof. The film was released on March 3, 1934, by Fox Film Corporation.
His Exciting Night is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Gus Meins and written by Pat C. Flick, Edward Eliscu and Morton Grant. It is based on the 1934 play Adam's Evening by Katharine Kavanaugh. The film stars Charlie Ruggles, Richard Lane, Maxie Rosenbloom, Marion Martin, Stepin Fetchit and Ona Munson. The film was released on November 11, 1938, by Universal Pictures.
Carrie Artiemissia Snowden, known professionally as Carolynne Snowden, was an American actress, dancer, and singer who broke new ground for black people working in the entertainment industry.
