The Colored American Winning His Suit | |
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Written by | W. S. Smith |
Produced by | W. S. Smith |
Starring | Thomas M. Mosley Ida Askins |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | Five reels |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent |
The Colored American Winning His Suit is a lost [1] 1916 race film, [2] the first production of the Frederick Douglass Film Company. [3] [4] It was written and produced by the Reverend W. S. Smith, pastor of the Monumental Baptist Church of Jersey City, New Jersey, and also a member of the production company. [3] [5] The New York Age hailed it as "the first five-reel Film Drama written, directed, acted and produced by Negroes." [3] Its purpose was to counter anti-African-American films and improve race relations. [4]
The film premiered at the Majestic Theatre in Jersey City to an "interracial audience of over 800" on July 14, 1916. [6] The New York Age review states it was to have its first run at the Lincoln Theatre in Harlem, New York City. [3] According to the American Film Institute, it opened in New York on July 23 and in Baltimore on August 29. [5]
An ex-slave prospers and eventually buys the Virginia estate of his former master. He sends his son Bob to Howard University, where he becomes a lawyer.
When Bob comes home, he meets his sister Bessie's classmate and friend Alma Eaton. They fall in love, but her parents have chosen another man for her, Jim Sample. Bowing to her parents' wishes, Alma breaks up with Bob. However, when Alma's father is charged with theft at the behest of business rival Mr. Hinderus, Bob comes to the rescue and is rewarded with Alma's hand in marriage. [3]
None of the actors had any previous training or experience. [3] They were recruited from families residing in or around Jersey City.
Filming took place in Virginia, Jersey City and nearby towns, and on the campus of Howard University. [3] [5]
Edward Franklin Albee III was an American playwright known for works such as The Zoo Story (1958), The Sandbox (1959), Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1962), A Delicate Balance (1966), and Three Tall Women (1994). Some critics have argued that some of his work constitutes an American variant of what Martin Esslin identified and named the Theater of the Absurd. Three of his plays won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and two of his other works won the Tony Award for Best Play.
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The Girls He Left Behind Him and The Iron Clad Lover are two 1910 American silent short comedies produced by the Thanhouser Company. Both films were originally released together on a single reel and are two distinct and separate subjects. The Girls He Left Behind Him focuses on a young man, Jack Redfern, who receives a letter from an old sweetheart of his. This prompts him to reminiscence about all the girls he has had affections for on the eve of his wedding. All the old sweethearts of his life then appear at his wedding to wish him well. The Iron Clad Lover concerns two suitors who are vying for the affections of Bessie. Tom, who plays a game of chess with her father, ends up quarreling with him and he is thrown out of the house. The next day, Tom attempts to bring flowers and candy for Bessie's birthday, but is dismissed by the angry father. Tom decides to dress up in a suit of armor and ends up breaking a vase when trying to announce himself. The suit of armor is thrown out and Bessie and the other suitor chase down the junk dealer to free Tom from the suit of armor. Both films were released on December 9, 1910 and were met with positive reviews by The Moving Picture World and the New York Dramatic Mirror. Both films are presumed lost.
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