Bert Williams: A Biography of the Pioneer Black Comedian

By Eric Ledell Smith

In the early 20th century, black musical shows, operettas, and revues were among America's most popular forms of entertainment. The foremost of the era's African-American entertainers was pantomime artist and comedian Bert Williams.With partner George Nash Walker, Williams starred in the first black musical to open on Broadway, In Dahomey (which became the first black show to give a command performance before English royalty). In 1910, he joined Florenz Ziegfeld's Follies--the only black then regularly appearing on Broadway.Williams' career was marked by racism. It's no disgrace to be a Negro but it's certainly an inconvenience, he said. Despite his status, Williams did not escape the burnt-cork makeup, never dropping the black caricature to move on to dramatic roles.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 089950695X
• ISBN13: 9780899506951
• Release Date: January 1992
• Publisher: McFarland Publishing
• Length: 301 Pages
• Weight: 1.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 0.8" x 6.3"