St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1945-04-27
HOLLYWOOD REPORT
By William Thomos Smith Ia

y
be made, and with emphasis on So
cial overtones.
This is worthy of our close at
tention. Despite almost frantic eff
fort at democratic preachment, as
exemplifed in the film crop of the
past few years, Hollywood's atti-
tude toward the Negro actor, the
Negro worker, and the Negro race
remains unchanged; the democracy
it breaches is as usual "For White
Only"
While it is true that the war has
to some extent curtailed film pro-
duction, the earnings of Negroes in
pictures have declined in a manner
which cannot be explained by the
film curtailment. Fewer Negro ex-
tras are now used than in the past
decade. Only the most deeply
rooted, and well-connected bit play
ers have managed to survive. Jesse
Graves, whose face is familiar to
millions of film fans as a portrayer
of butler roles, played in 48 pic
lures last year, but earned only
$1,000. Ernest Whitman, an actor
of undoubted talent, landed on the
film payrolls but twice.
The biggest news of recent years
is the signing of Miss Lena Horne
to a seven year contract by the
Metro Goldwyn Mayer company.
Miss Horne is definitely a lovely
girl, and heretofore lovely colored
girls have not been given any sort
of chance in Hollywood. Miss
Horne's first appearance before the
cameras was in The Duke Is Tops,
one of the best of the all-Negro pic
lures of the period prior to 1910,
which starred Ralph Cooper, and
was made by Million Dollar Produc-
tions. Her fortunes rose sharply
when she was taken on by MGM a
few years later. She appeared in
Cabin in the Sky and Stormy
Weather, on loans to the Fox studio
and in Right About Face, AS Thou
sands Cheer, 1 Dood It, and other
films for her own studio. Miss
Horne again broke all sorts of
presidents when the entire cover of
nationally famous motion picture
magazine carried her picture in
color last year; and articles about
her have been written in other ma
tional periodicals.
However, despite Miss Horne's
success, no other film maker has
sought to emulate MGM in featur-
ing other beautiful colored girls.
And no satisfactory picture for Miss
Horne has been yet found which
would fully realize her potentiali-
ties and her proven box-office al
lure.
Eddie Rochester" Anderson con-
tinues as a unique person in that
his parts in the Jack Benny pic
lures are not only large and hi
larious but do not show him in a
racially unfavorable light.
Veteran Clarence Muse, as fine
an actor as has ever been in Holly
wood, and whose rich talents have
never been given an opportunity be-
fore the cameras, still remains a
bit player. This is significant, be-
cause few producers in Hollywood
would even bother to deny the fact
of this players ability.
A few brighter spots of recent
years would include the part given
Rex Ingram, and his performance
of it in Sahara, a Columbia picture
in which Mr.. Ingram played a Suda-
nese soldier of courage, intelligence
and dignity. This was likewise true
of Leigh Whipper, who as Halle
Selassie in Mission to Moscow
scored impressively. Ben Carter
was given a fairly good part in
Crash Dive, a Fox production in
which he played a heroic messman,
a la Dorrie Miller, a real life naval
hero.
Harry Levett, nationally known
Hollywood commentator and West
Coast Associated Press correspon-
dent, brings to mind other small
gains. One of these is the aban-
donment by the studios of the word
"nigger" when speaking of a black
electrical screen. The word for this
apparatus is now "gobo." This
seems a small thing, but it has
unnerved many a Negro player
awaiting preparation of a set upon
which he was to appear. Another
gain is that Warner Brothers studio
now employs 200 Negro custodians,
and has made a Negro the super
intendent of this force.
Despite the war and the crying
need for skilled technical help, the