Tuesday, December 28, 2021

Oscar Micheaux Presents a Great Colored Picture -- December 28, 2021

Evening Capital and Maryland Gazette, 17-December-1921

The Star Theater in Washington advertised two race films, The Black Thunderbolt starring ex-heavyweight champion Jack Johnson and Oscar Micheaux's The Gunsaulus Mystery. I can't find much about The Black Thunderbolt. The Gunsaulus Mystery was inspired by the alleged murder of Mary Phagan by Leo Frank. I have always assumed that "Gunsaulus" is a phonetic rendering of "Gonzales." 

Moving Picture World, 03-November-1921

Ernest Morrison, billed as Sunshine Sammy, had appeared in many of Hal Roach's short comedies with Harold Lloyd and Snub Pollard. Roach starred Morrison in "The Pickanniny." "Pickanniny" is a derogatory term for a child of African descent. Morrison went on to be a member of the Bowery Boys.

Motion Picture News, 17-December-1921

Harris Dickson was a lawyer and judge from the south. He wrote many stories about small-town life for the Saturday Evening Post. I was not entirely surprised to learn that he was prominent in the Anti-Miscegenation movement. Much of his output was what were referred to as "Colored stories." I have never read one of his stories, but I'll bet they contain the occasional stereotype.

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