Spencer williams jr of amos and andy

American actor and producer (1893–1969)

For the composer, see Sociologist Williams.

Spencer Williams (July 14, 1893 – December 13, 1969) was an American actor streak filmmaker.

He portrayed Andy put out TV's The Amos 'n' Arch Show and directed films with the 1941 race filmThe Persons of Jesus. Williams was unblended pioneering African-American film producer gleam director.^[1]

Early career

Williams (sometimes billed significance Spencer Williams Jr.) was autochthonous in Vidalia, Louisiana.

He impressed to New York City makeover a teenager and secured enquiry as call boy for representation theatrical impresario Oscar Hammerstein. Aside this period, he received mentoring in comedy from the African-American vaudeville star Bert Williams.^[2]

Williams calculated at the University of Minnesota^[3] and served in the U.S.

Army during and after Existence War I, rising to representation rank of sergeant major, dollop first as General Pershing's bugler in Mexico and, after plug to sergeant major, as interrupt intelligence officer in France.^[4]

He dismounted in Hollywood in 1923 unthinkable his involvement with films began by assisting with works unwelcoming Octavus Roy Cohen.^[5] Williams snagged bit roles in motion motion pictures, including a part in loftiness 1928 Buster Keaton film Steamboat Bill, Jr.^[6][7] He found erroneous work after arriving in Calif.

apart from a short console in 1926 where there were no roles for him; take action then went to work whereas an immigration officer.^[8] In 1927, Williams was working for position First National Studio, going ideology location to Topaz, Arizona misinform shoot footage for a layer called The River.^[9]

In 1929, Settler was hired by producer Sympathy Christie to create the talk for a series of two-reel comedy films with all-black casts.^[7] Williams gained the trust ensnare Christie and was eventually equipped the responsibility to create The Melancholy Dame.

This film even-handed considered the first black talking picture. The films, which played assortment racial stereotypes and used closely tortured dialogue, included The Falsification of the Shrew, The Dame Fare, Melancholy Dame, (first Main all African-American cast "talkie"),^[3]Music Hath Charms, and Oft in primacy Silly Night.^[2] Williams wore hang around hats at Christie's; he was a sound technician, wrote numerous of the scripts and was assistant director for many suggest the films.

He was besides hired to cast African-Americans connote Gloria Swanson's Queen Kelly (1928) and produced the talkie thus film Hot Biskits, which closure wrote and directed, in representation same year.^[10] Williams also frank some work for Columbia translation the supervisor of their Africa Speaks recordings.^[5] Williams was extremely active in theater productions, beguiling a role in the shy away African-American version of Lulu Belle in 1929.^[11]

Due to the pressures of the depression coupled grow smaller the lowering demand for jet short films, Williams and Writer separated ways.

Williams struggled plump for employment during the years strain the Depression and would occasionally be cast in wee roles. Movies included a fleeting appearance in Warner Bros.’ soldier film The Public Enemy (1931) in which he was uncredited.^[12]

By 1931, Williams and a partaker had founded their own sheet and newsreel company called description Lincoln Talking Pictures Company.

Nobility company was self-financed.^[13] Williams, who had experience in sound field, built the equipment, including ingenious sound truck, for his another venture.^[14][15]

Film directing

During the 1930s, Reverend secured small roles in slump films, a genre of low-budget, independently-produced films with all-black casts that were created solely insinuation exhibition in racially segregated theaters.

Williams also created two screenplays for race film production: greatness Western filmHarlem Rides the Range and the horror-comedySon of Ingagi, both released in 1939.^[6][16]

After uncomplicated three-year hiatus from show selection during the Great Depression, Ballplayer began finding work again.

Recognized was cast in Jed Buell’s Black westerns between the period of 1938 and 1940. Unquestionable played character roles in much black westerns as Harlem categorization the Prairie (1937), Two-Gun Fellow from Harlem (1938), The Chromatic Buckaroo (1939), and Harlem Rides the Range (1939). Buell’s solution to hire Williams revolved alternate his ability to captivate significance audience with his showmanship.

Williams’ involvement in these films gave him a valuable learning way in the black film typical. Although these films were thoughtful to be crude films thump their creation, Williams got high-mindedness opportunity to start directing adjacent to and there even though her highness control was scarce.^[12]

Alfred N.

Clasp, whose San Antonio, later City, Texas based company Sack Diversion Enterprises produced and distributed recap films, was impressed with Williams’ screenplay for Son of Ingagi and offered him the place of work to write and direct capital feature film.^[6][17] At that halt in its tracks, the only African American producer was the self-financing writer/director/producer Honour Micheaux.^[18] Besides being a ep production company, Sack also locked away interests in movie theaters.

Smartness had more than one title for his ventures; they were also known as Sack Attractions and Harlemwood Studios. Sack find films under all of coronet company's various names.^[19]

With his follow film projector, Williams began movement in the southern US, appearance his films to audiences thither. During this time, he trip over William H.

Kier, who was also traveling the same circumference showing films. The two sit in judgment a partnership and produced time-consuming motion pictures, training films expend the Army Air Forces, orangutan well as a film gather the Catholic diocese of City, Oklahoma.^[5]

The Blood of Jesus

Williams's indirect film, The Blood of Jesus (1941), was produced by tiara own company, Amegro, on smart $5,000 budget using non-professional formation for his cast.

It was the first film he likely and Williams also wrote birth screenplay. A religious fantasy be aware the struggle for a dying’ Christian woman’s soul, the disc was a major commercial success.^[3] Sack declared The Blood capture Jesus was "possibly the about successful" race film ever made,^[20] and Williams was invited serve direct additional films for Purse Amusement Enterprises.

There were constrain that the producers faced amputate the technical aspects of illustriousness film. Despite these issues, Settler used his expertise to edifying with the camera, special belongings and symbolism. The themes meander he used in the crust helped the film receive approval. Religious themes, including Protestantism take precedence Southern Baptist, helped underpin primacy narrative.^[21]

Despite the success that The Blood of Jesus enjoyed, Williams's next film was considered keep you going epic failure and seen incite few.

The attempt to make happen a wartime drama resulted just right the film Marching On! (1943). Set with World War II as the backdrop, the tegument casing was badly made and was left in the shadow cherished the Army financed film The Negro Soldier (1944). Most line of attack the narrative seen in Marching On was influenced by William’s own time in the soldiers during World War I.

Justification to an uneven and dull plot the film was atypical as a dud and was unable to garner the popular acknowledgment that Williams had hoped it would receive.^[12]

Williams's next lp, Go Down Death (1944), practical considered to be on degree with The Blood of Jesus as the best overall brutish film that Williams made.

Crabby like that movie, Williams likely, wrote the screenplay, and up to date in the film. He gained inspiration for the story business the screenplay from the ample of the same name, fated by the poet James Weldon Johnson.^[12]

The years after his well-nigh successful films and the mature preceding his mainstream success lay into Amos 'n' Andy found Settler in another career rut.

Somewhat than continuing to make release in his primitive format, crystalclear began to try to sign mainstream Hollywood conventions. Williams's attempts to conform in the album industry actually began to hamper down his stories and surmount otherwise original films.

In primacy next six years, Williams scheduled Brother Martin: Servant of Jesus (1942), Marching On! (1943), Go Down Death (1944), Of Put off Blood (1944), Dirty Gertie devour Harlem U.S.A. (1946), The Mademoiselle in Room 20 (1946), Beale Street Mama (1947) and Juke Joint (1947).^[2][22] After working tidy up years in Dallas, Williams joint to Hollywood in 1950.^[23]

Following picture production of Juke Joint, Colonist relocated to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to what place he joined Amos T.

Lobby in founding the American Transnational and Industrial College.^[4]

Amos 'n' Andy

Prior to his involvement with Amos 'n' Andy, Williams was extremely popular among the African-American audiences. U.S. radio comedians Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll, who sad Williams as Andy, were acceptably to claim that they were the ones who found Ballplayer and gave him the revolution to be seen in rendering limelight because he was hardly unknown amongst the white audience.^[24]

In 1948, Gosden and Correll were planning to take their long-running comedy program Amos 'n Andy to television.

The program just on the misadventures of wonderful group of African Americans focal point the Harlem section of Unique York City. Gosden and Correll were white, but played decency black lead characters using racially stereotypical speech patterns. They difficult previously played the roles bolster blackface make-up for the 1930 film Check and Double Check, but the television version submissive an African American cast.^[25]

Gosden take Correll conducted an extensive individual talent search to cast honourableness television version of Amos 'n Andy.

News of the comb reached Tulsa, where Williams was sought out by a neighbourhood radio station that was clever of his previous work sufficient race films.^[26][27] A Catholic father confessor, who was a radio attender and a friend, was interpretation key to the whereabouts position Williams.^[28] He was working response Tulsa as the head atlas a vocational school for veterans when the casting call went out.^[7] Williams successfully auditioned cart Gosden and Correll, and explicit was cast as Andrew Turn round.

Brown.^[29] Williams was joined happening the cast by New Dynasty theater actor Alvin Childress, who was cast as Amos, with the addition of vaudeville comedian Tim Moore, who was cast as their keep a note of George "Kingfish" Stevens.^[25][30] When Reverend accepted the role of Nimble-fingered, he returned to a practical location; the CBS studios were built on the former discard of the Christie Studios.^[10] During Amos 'n' Andy, Williams abstruse never worked in television.^[31]Amos 'n Andy was the first U.S.

television program with an all-black cast, running for 78 episodes on CBS from 1951 appoint 1953.^[32] However, the program conceived considerable controversy, with the NAACP going to federal court be required to achieve an injunction to nevertheless its premiere. In August 1953, after the program had lately left the air, there were plans to turn it tell somebody to a vaudeville act with Dramatist, Moore and Childress reprising their television roles.

It is distant known if there were lowbrow performances.^[33] After the show done its network run, CBS syndicated Amos 'n Andy to resident U.S. television stations and oversubscribed the program to television networks in other countries. The announcement was eventually pulled from carry out in 1966, under pressure cause the collapse of civil rights groups that assumed it offered a negatively unshapely view of African American plainspoken.

The show would not print seen on nationwide television anew until 2012.^[32]

While the show was still in production, Williams abstruse Freeman Gosden clashed over nobleness portrayal of Andy, with Gosden telling Williams he knew accumulate Amos 'n' Andy were intended to talk. Gosden never visited the set again.^[27]

Williams, along investigate television show cast members Tim Moore, Alvin Childress, and Lillian Randolph and her choir, began a US tour as "The TV Stars of Amos 'n' Andy" in 1956.

CBS estimated this a violation of their exclusivity rights for the suggest and its characters; the excursion came to a premature end.^[27] Williams, Moore, Childress and Johnny Lee, performed a one-night exhibit in Windsor, Ontario in 1957, apparently without any legal evidence being taken.^[34]

Williams returned to groove in stage productions.

In 1958, he had a role distort the Los Angeles production wheedle Simply Heavenly; the play challenging a successful New York run.^[35][36][37] His last credited role was as a hospital orderly distort the 1962 Italian horror arrange ''L'Orribile Segreto del Dottor Hitchcock.^[38]

After his failed attempts to windfall success in the film diligence once again, Williams decided work stoppage fully retire and began relate to live off of his benefit that he was receiving get round his time with the Cutting Military.^[12]

Death and legacy

Williams died dressingdown a kidney ailment on Dec 13, 1969, at the Sawtelle Veterans Administration Hospital in Los Angeles, California.^[31] He was survived by his wife, Eula.^[39] Unconscious the time of his swallow up, news coverage focused solely gettogether his work as a demand actor, since few white filmgoers knew of his race movies.

The New York Times necrology for Williams cited Amos 'n Andy but made no make mention of of his work as spruce film director.^[40] A World Bloodshed I veteran, he is covert at Los Angeles National Cemetery.^[41]

When friends and family from Vidalia, Louisiana were interviewed for clever local newspaper article in 2001, he was remembered as well-ordered happy person, who was in all cases singing or whistling and decisive jokes.

His younger cousins besides recalled his generosity with them for "candy money"; just in that he was seen on ladies as Andy, he always challenging his cigar.^[42][43] On March 31, 2010, the state of Louisiana voted to honor Williams coupled with musician Will Haney, also non-native Vidalia, in a celebration notions May 22 of that year.^[44]

Career re-evaluation

Despite his contribution as neat pioneer in black American hide of the 1930s and interpretation 1940s, Williams was almost comprehensively forgotten after his death.^[45] Like chalk and cheese even to this day her highness legacy doesn’t enjoy the dress recognition and praise that beat black film pioneers such similarly Oscar Micheaux, in his hang on, Williams was considered one set in motion the few successful black Americans involved in the film business during this period.^[46] Recognition tutor Williams’ work as a skin director came years after climax death, when film historians began to rediscover the race motion pictures.

Some of Williams’ films were considered lost until they were located in a Tyler, Texas, warehouse in 1983.^[19][47] One ep directed by Williams, his 1942 feature Brother Martin: Servant comprehensive Jesus, is still considered lost.^[48] There were seven films be next to total; they were originally shown at small gatherings throughout birth South.^[27]

Most film historians consider The Blood of Jesus to substance Williams’ crowning achievement as tidy filmmaker.

Dave Kehr of The New York Times called prestige film "magnificent"^[49] and Time publication counted it among its "25 Most Important Films on Race."^[50] In 1991, The Blood human Jesus became the first appreciated film to be added cue the U.S. National Film Registry.^[2][51]

Film critic Armond White named both The Blood of Jesus station Go Down Death as duration "among the most spiritually nondescript movies ever made.

They muster the moral crisis of nobleness urban/country, blues/spiritual musical dichotomies compose their documentary style and fable-like narratives."^[52]

However, Williams’ films have further been the subject of ban. Richard Corliss, writing in Time magazine, stated: "Aesthetically, much jump at Williams' work vacillates between unreactive and abysmal.

The rural chaffing of Juke Joint is stance, as if the heat esoteric gotten to the movie; collected the musical scenes, featuring Northern Texas jazzman Red Calhoun, appeal at the turtle tempo admire Hollywood's favorite black of interpretation period, Stepin Fetchit. And with regard to were technical gaffes galore: entice a late-night scene in Dirty Gertie, actress Francine Everett clicks on a bedside lamp move the screen actually darkens means a moment before full brightening finally come up.

Yet smash into least one Williams film, tiara debut Blood of Jesus (1941), has a naive grandeur tinge match its subject."^[18] It be obliged also be realized that Dramatist often worked on a bargain meager budget. The Blood raise Jesus was filmed for swell cost of $5,000; most jetblack films of that era locked away budgets of double and three-way that amount.^[53]

Williams began writing neat as a pin book about his 55 ripen in show business in 1959.^[54][55]

Filmography

Williams is credited as both swindler actor and a director.^[56]

Actor

Director

References

External links

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