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“BURNT CORK”—Ever since the first official public screening of a motion picture took
place in America in 1896, the Afro-American presence can be found int he film industry.
However, as part of the film industry’s early beginnings, the Black image was either por
trayed in a clown-like manner by whites smeared with burnt cork or acted out by Black ac
tors hwo were forced to play demeaning roles. This rich and little-known legacy of Blacks
in motion pictures is chronicled on Tony Brown’s Journal in a four part mini-siries, Black
Hollywood: The Way It Was.”
Blacks exploited in early cinema
As part of the film industry’s
early beginnings, the Black image
was either portrayed in a clown
like manner by whites smeared
with burnt cork or acted out by
Black actors who were forced to
play demeaning roles.
Their exclusion from legitimate
cinema prompted Blacks to in
dependently produce their own
films.
This rich and little-known legacy
of Blacks in motion pictures is
chronicled on TONY BROWN’S
JOURNAL in a four-part mini
series, “Black Hollywood: The
Way It Was.”
The first episode of this fantastic
t glimpse into the archives of the
motion picture industry, “Burnt
Cork,” journeys back to the
beginning.a'ith the ip.vgntion of the
first moving picture r and follows
the impact of Afro-Americans in
its development.
Televised nationally on public
Augusta Mini Theatre
ninth season openers
The Augusta Mini Theatre an
nounced the casts for its upcoming
one-act plays which will be held on
Dec. 14, 15, at 8 p.m. and Dec. 16
at 6 p.m. in the Paine College
Odeum.
The senior citizens drama class
and members of the youth theater
will be featured in the play
“Angels With Paper Wings.”
Participating are Pearl Burns as
Golden Angel and Laura Davis as
Silver Angel. The youth are
Gordon Parks to direct new film
ROCHESTER, N.Y. Gordon
Parks, the director of the up
coming A DAY IN THE LIFE OF
HAWAII* Public Broadcasting
Service (PBS) television program,
underwritten by Eastman Kodak
Company, has a history as varied
and impressive as the islands them
selves. Parks is a photographer,
author, director and composer,
and he has won numerous ac
colades in each of these roles.
Born in Fort Scott, Kansas, he
left home at the age of 16 and went
to Minneapolis, Minnesota and
thereafter to Chicago. He worked
as a piano player, busboy, dining
car waiter, and a professional
Augusta Ambassadors to
host Christmas gala
On Dec. 2, the Augusta Am
bassadors will host the first annual
“A Christmas Afternoon in
f Augusta” at the historic Bon Air.
, ’ The gala will take place from 2
p.m. until 5 p.m. in the ballroom,
located on the second floor.
Chefs aprons, t-shirts, books,
paintings, and arts and cragts are
only a sample of the unique
“Augusta” Christmas gifts which
will be'on display for sale. For
those persons interested in seeing
the historic and picturesque Sum
merville neighborhood, tours will
be conducted throughout the af
ternoon for a two dollar fee.
The Augusta College Chamber
television (PBS) the program will
be seen in this area on WCES-20 at
7:30p.m., Dec. 11.
Ever since the first official
public screening of a motion pic
ture took place in America in 1896,
the Afro-American presence can
be found in the film industry.
Between 1910 and 1950 there were
approximately 150 independent
film companies organized to
produce Black-cast movies. Thir
ty-four percent of these Companies
were owned by Blacks.
“Black participation in the
business of motion picture produc
tion and distribution began in
Chicago, Illinois when in 1910
William Foster produced the first
of a series of Black-cast
comedies,’’says Dr. Henry T.
Sampson, author of Blacks in
Black and White: A Source Book
on Black Films (The Scarecrow
Press), and a guest on the
program. Also documenting the
Cheronda Mallett as Angelica,
Cheryl Hamilton as Celeste and
Marcos Thomas as Shep. The play
is written by W. Gordon Mauer
mann.
The other play, “Santa Sees a
Shrink,” will feature Jimel Car
penter as Santa, Michelle Thomas
and his wife, Indemnity Claus,
Michael Thomas as Mr. Wibble,
Dasniel Simpkins as Caesar
Chives, Olivia Dorsey as Sneezy
basketball player, before taking up
photography in the late 19305.
In 1949 he became a member of
the staff of Life magazine and
remained there as a photographer
until 1972, writing and
photographing award-winning
stories on subjects as various as the
Black Muslims, Ernest
Hemingway’s Paris, and stories of
life in black ghettos. He has done
fashion photography for such
magazines as Vogue, and was one
of the founders of Essence
magazine and its editorial director
until 1974.
Gordon Parks is the author of a
novel, The Learning Tree,
Choir, Augusta Symphony
Players, and the Davidson Fine
Arts School Handbell Ringers will
provide entertainment, filling the
ballroom with holiday cheer.
In celebration of the yuletide
season,t he ballroom will be
lavishly decorated with the main
attraction being a seven foot high
Christmas tree donated by Fat
Man’s Forest.
The festivities are open to the
general public. There is no ad
mission charge and free refresh
ments will be served. Santa Claus
may even make a guest appearan
ce, so be sure to bring your family
and friends.
history of Blacks in film will be Dr.
Thomas Gripps, author of Slow
Fade to White (Oxford University
Press) and Black Film as Genre
(Indiana University Press).
Although Foster’s contributions
were highly significant, America’s
perception of the Negro as a sub
missive, child-like character or a
stupid buffoon prevailed in films.
Five years after William Foster
made the first Black-produced
film, the industry was spiraled into
a new era when a White filmmaker
named D.W. Griffith produced
“The Birth of a Nation.” Grif
fith’s sentimental three-hour adap
tation of the pre-Civil War South
revolutionized the industry, but, at
the same time, became a landmark
epic of racial hatred. The movie
not only ignited the Black society
and created a criteria by which all
films and Blacks would be
judged for years to come.
announces
and Tamekia Stewart ans Dopey.
Also, Falana Steadman will ap
pear as Grumpy, Tonya Ruther
ford as Dr. Anna Lassitude,
Talitha Ghunter as Mother and
Ron Fraizer as Son. The first and
second daughters will be played by
Rochelle Spencer and Demetra
Sampson, respectively.
The plays are directed by Judith
Simon-Buther, drama instructor at
the theater.
published in nine languages; Born
Black, a book about the decade of
black revolt, 1960-1970; A Choice
of Weapons, an autobiographical
work; and three volumes of
poetry.
fKnow What’s Happening In Your Community
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On marriage
Dr. Cynthia Butler
One of the most interesting
questions I have heard since being
in America is, “Cynthia, I am
engaged to a
Nigerian, sho
uld I marry
him and move
to Nigeria?
At first
glance, it
would seem
that the woman is asking for ad
vice, but after thinking about it, I
realized that what she was asking
for was information and positive
reinforcement. So I said:
Black women between the ages
of 28-32 want to get married. It
seems dangerous to wait until that
time, but events and available
mates may dictate that.
Nigerian men are certainly
desirable to the older woman. By
the time she is 28-32 years old, she
realizes that marriage is an in
stitution. It is very important that
a man have a clear image of who
he is. Nigerian men usually do.
The problem may occur when she
realizes that he also has a clear idea
of who she is. She will discover
that it is not easy to get out of a
specified role. Flexibility will be
difficult to attain.
But those issues are not that im
portant initially. What is impor-
Clayton awarded ‘Black Georgian 84’
Xernona Clayton, Super Station
WTBS’ Director of Public Affairs,
has been awarded the “Black
Georgian of the Year Award” for
1984 by the State Committee on
the Life and History of Black
Georgians (SCLHBG).
Clayton was cited for her 1
distinguished contributions to the
people of Georgia and the nation
in Social Services in her role as the
Super Station’s Director of Public
Affairs and as the former
host/producer of WTBS’ OPEN
UP program. In addition, she has
served as host/producer for a
variety of Super Station specials,
including THE TUMBLING
WALLS: THEN AND NOW and
Spec. Hampton
attends NA TO camp
Spec. 4 Johnnie Hampton Jr.,
son of Emma Knip of 1537 Maple
St. and Johnnie Hampton Sr. of
2209 Grand Blvd., was involved in
a NATO-sponsored exercise by
participating in the Army’s return
of forces to Germany
(REFORGER) and the Air Force’s
Crested Cap exercises.
The exercises are designed to
develop uniformity of doctrine,
standardize procedures for rapid
response to a crisis and demon
strate soliderity in commitment to
NATO goals and objectives.
Hampton is an indirect-fire in
fantryman with the 3rd Infantry
Division in Kitzingen, West Ger
many.
He is a 1970 graduate of T.W.
Josey High School.
The Augusta News-Review December 1.1984
tant is Marriage. And an educated
man in the bargain makes for
imagined sweetness.
A youneer woman is more likely
to look for romantic love.
Therefore, it is easier for her to
make her own decision about
Nigerians. She will also undo her
mistakes earlier than the older
woman.
Once the decision is made, you
may find that your mother-in-law
expects to live with you. Where is
her husband you may ask. Well,
he may be dead or he may have
other wives. If at all possible, she
will rule her son’s home. She will
want you to start producing
children immediately. For the
older woman, this may not present
a problem because she may be
trying to beat the time clock and is
grateful for the opportunity. But
the younger woman may not want
that responsibility. She is in for a
heart wrenching emotional
dragged out fight. The husbapd is
likely to sit there and say that there
is nothing that he can do. At that
point, it will be you and the
woman.
Os course, initially, you may
appreciate having your mother-in
law live in and help you raise your
•children. But what do you do
when you no longer need her ser
vices? It will appear as if you are
kicking a helpless used woman out.
SEARCH FOR EQUITY, both of
which explored the social, political
and economic progress Black
America has made over the last 20
vears.
A recipient of numerous media
awards. Clayton has been honored
worldwide for her contribution to
humanity. She received the
National Conference of Mayors’
1983 “President’s Award” in
recognition of her “untiring com
mitment to promoting Blacks in
the communications field,” and
the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference’s 1983 “Drumb Major
for Justice Award” for paving the
way for minorities in com
munications. She also has received
the “Bronze Woman of the Year in
VINTAGE PLUS
JUST WHAT YOU WANT
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| INDUSTRIAL DIVISION
STATE BOARD FOR TECHNICAL AND
COMPREHENSIVE EDUCATION AND
AIKEN AND DENMARK TECHNICAL
IW COLLECES
I Will Conduct A
i Special 1 raining Program
For
| GENERAL SERVICE OPERATORS
Industrial experience in electrical, instrumentation,
mechanical, laboratory or production operation is
desirable but nor required.
Day and evening classes will be conducted.
Training will be at not charge to trainees.
| Training will be conducted for potential employment
I opportunities which exist at:
| DuPont OPERATIONS
Savannah River Plant
Applications for training will be accepted at:
Aiken Jaycee Exhibit Building
Highway No. 1 North at Fairgrounds
I
I or
Barnwell County Vocational School
Reynolds Road
I Aiken and Barnwell Job Service Representatives will be
I accepting applications during dates and times listed below:
Wednesday, November 28 10 AM-7 PM
Thursday, November 29 10 AM -7 PM
Friday, November 30 10 AM-7 PM
Saturday, December 1 BAM -1 PM
! Applications for training will be accepted ONLY at the Aiken
I Exhibit Building and ONLY at the Barnwell County Vocational
I School at the above specified dates and times.
j Applications WILL NOT be accepted at the Aiken Job Service
I Office or the Barnwell Job Service Office.
Your husband and his family will
not tolerate that.
And anyway these women have
suffered physically and
emotionally to raise these sons.
Often times they do it alone. The
father may be a remote figure
especially in polygamous homes.
So when the son starts working,
women expect to enjoy their lives a
bit. And God knows, they deserve
a reward ... they deserve ap
preciation, but unfortunately,
husbands are not expected to give
it sons are.
This is a foreign concept to the
American woman. She expects to
live a life with her husband. This
real mother-in-law situation causes
problems.
In addition, you become the
wife of the family. Sex is the
only exclusive right of the husband.
You should be ready to serve any
member of the family at any time.
Despite these phenomena, I
believe that marriage is a vital, in
tricate part of life’s process. I
believe that you miss an essential
part of life it you don’t marry.
So my advice to you, my dear, is
to get mentally prepared for a new
world. Assure yourself that the
man is capable of loving you con
sistently and reliably as a human
being, kick your heels together and
jump the broom with enthusiasm
and vigor.
Human Relations Award” for
“Superior Television Program
ming.”
Xernona Clayton joined
Super Station WTBS in 1979 as a
part-time documentary specials
producer. She became host and
producer of WTBS’ weekly hour
long talk and public affairs show,
OPEN UP, in 1981 and
relinquished those duties in Oc
tober 1983 to accomodate her
demanding schedule as Director of
Public Affairs for the
Super Station. She was also Coor
dinator of Minority Affairs for
Turner Broadcasting System Inc.,
serving as the company’s liaison
with minority communities and
organizations.
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