Policy Man

Last updated
Policy Man
Directed by Irwin Franklyn
Produced byIrwin Franklyn,
Hazel Franklyn
Starring Ethel Moses,
Jimmie Baskett,
Count Bassie,
Ann Harleman,
Henry Wessels
Color processblack and white [1]
Production
company
Creative Films Corporation [1]
Distributed by Sack Amusement Entertainment [1]
Release date
  • July 1, 1938 (1938-07-01) [2]
Country United States
LanguageEnglish

Policy Man, is a 1938 American feature film in black and white, and is now a lost film. [3] [4] It was advertised as having an "all colored cast", [5] featuring Ethel Moses, Jimmie Baskett, and Count Bassie. [3] [6] It was directed by Irwin Franklyn, and produced by Irwin Franklyn and Hazel Franklyn. [1] [7]

About

Policy Man was an urban crime film that portrayed sophisticated African Americans in Harlem. [3] [8] It included in its plot a person involved in a numbers game lotteries (or a gambler), and the numbers racket (or illegal gambling). [2] It was a popular film in northern cities in the United States. [8]

The cast included Ann Harleman, Henry, Wessels, Ethel Moses, Jimmie Baskett, and Count Bassie. [1] The film features musical groups The Plantation Club Chorus (or N.Y. Plantation Club Chorus), The Al Taylor Orchestra, The Savoy Lindy Hoppers, and The Big Apples. [9]

It was one of a series of Creative Films Corporation produced urban crime films, all directed by Irwin Franklyn. [3] Advertising materials for the film are extant. [10]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Richards, Larry (2015-09-17). African American Films Through 1959: A Comprehensive, Illustrated Filmography. McFarland. p. 133. ISBN   978-1-4766-1052-8.
  2. 1 2 Schlabach, Elizabeth Schroeder (September 15, 2012). "Policy, Creativity, and Bronzeville's Dreams". Along the Streets of Bronzeville: Black Chicago's Literary Landscape. Vol. 1. University of Illinois Press. pp. 73–. doi:10.5406/illinois/9780252037825.003.0003. ISBN   9780252095108 via Google Books.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Koszarski, Richard (2008). Hollywood on the Hudson: Film and Television in New York from Griffith to Sarnoff. Rutgers University Press. p. 376. ISBN   978-0-8135-4293-5.
  4. "The Policy Man (1938)". Frankie Manning Foundation. 3 July 2019.
  5. "Roosevelt". The Pittsburgh Press . 1938-07-11. p. 10. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  6. "Negro films". The Palmetto Leader (newspaper). July 30, 1938. OCLC   28640893.
  7. "Hallejua Star Receives Long Time Contract (Image 1)". Twin-City Herald (newspaper). July 30, 1938. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-27 via Chronicling America, National Endowment for the Humanities.
  8. 1 2 White, Shane; Garton, Stephen; Robertson, Stephen; White, Graham (May 15, 2010). Playing the Numbers: Gambling in Harlem Between the Wars. Harvard University Press. ISBN   9780674051072 via Google Books.
  9. "Film, Video: Policy Man". Library of Congress.
  10. "Policy Man (1938) [Lost Film]". Department of Afro-American Research, Arts, and Culture (DAARAC).