African Americans and the Oscar

Decades of Struggle and Achievement

Edward Mapp

• Publisher: Scarecrow Press
• Year: 2008
• eBook ISBN: 9781461706373
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Film History & Criticism

At the 2007 Academy Awards' ceremony, an unprecedented number of Black performers received acting nominations, and two of the statues awarded that evening went to Forest Whitaker and Jennifer Hudson. Indeed, since 2000, more African Americans have received Oscars than in the previous century. While the last few years have seen more and more Black performers receive acknowledgment by the Academy, it hasn't always been that way. African Americans and the Oscar': Decades of Struggle and Achievement highlights the advancements Black performers have made on the silver screen and how those performances were honored by the Academy. In the Academy's first 40 years, less than ten African Americans were cited for their work on screen and only two, Hattie McDaniel and Sidney Poitier, received competitive awards before the 1980s. This book profiles all the nominees and recipients of the coveted award in the acting, writing, and directing categories, beginning with the first: McDaniel's Best Supporting Actress win for her role in Gone with the Wind (1939). Each entry, organized chronologically and by name, provides valuable information about how the role or film was viewed during its time and also places it in historical context by drawing connections to other related awards or events in film history. In the introduction, Mapp's overview of the nomination process helps explain the historically low percentage of African Americans who have been nominated or received the honor. Also, appendixes provide lists of non-acting/directing nominees and winners, overlooked performances, and performers of nominated songs. Highlighting the achievements of Sidney Poitier, Whoopi Goldberg, Halle Berry, Morgan Freeman, Spike Lee, Jamie Foxx, Denzel Washington and others, this volume provides an enlightening history of the Black experience in Hollywood and will fascinate fans of all ages.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Introduction
• 1939 Hattie McDaniel, Gone with the Wind
• 1946 James Baskett, Song of the South
• 1949 Ethel Waters, Pinky
• 1954 Dorothy Dandridge, Carmen Jones
• 1958 Sidney Poitier, The Defiant Ones
• 1959 Juanita Moore, Imitation of Life
• 1963 Sidney Poitier, Lilies of the Field
• 1967 Beah Richards, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner
• 1969 Rupert Crosse, The Reivers
• 1970 James Earl Jones, The Great White Hope
• 1972 Diana Ross, Lady Sings the Blues
• 1972 Cicely Tyson, Sounder
• 1972 Paul Winfield, Sounder
• 1974 Diahann Carroll, Claudine
• 1981 Howard E. Rollins Jr., Ragtime
• 1982 Louis Gossett Jr., An Officer and a Gentleman
• 1983 Alfre Woodard, Cross Creek
• 1984 Adolph Caesar, A Soldier’s Story
• 1985 Margaret Avery, The Color Purple
• 1985 Whoopi Goldberg, The Color Purple
• 1985 Oprah Winfrey, The Color Purple
• 1986 Dexter Gordon, ’Round Midnight
• 1987 Morgan Freeman, Street Smart
• 1987 Denzel Washington, Cry Freedom
• 1989 Morgan Freeman, Driving Miss Daisy
• 1989 Spike Lee, Do the Right Thing
• 1989 Denzel Washington, Glory
• 1990 Whoopi Goldberg, Ghost
• 1991 John Singleton, Boyz N the Hood
• 1992 Jaye Davidson, The Crying Game
• 1992 Denzel Washington, Malcolm X
• 1993 Angela Bassett, What’s Love Got to Do with It?
• 1993 Laurence Fishburne, What’s Love Got to Do with It?
• 1994 Morgan Freeman, The Shawshank Redemption
• 1994 Samuel L. Jackson, Pulp Fiction
• 1996 Cuba Gooding Jr., Jerry Maguire
• 1996 Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Secrets & Lies
• 1997 Spike Lee, 4 Little Girls
• 1999 Michael Clarke Duncan, The Green Mile
• 1999 Denzel Washington, The Hurricane
• 2001 Halle Berry, Monster’s Ball
• 2001 Will Smith, Ali
• 2001 Denzel Washington, Training Day
• 2002 Queen Latifah, Chicago
• 2003 Djimon Hounsou, In America
• 2004 Jamie Foxx, Collateral
• 2004 Jamie Foxx, Ray
• 2004 Morgan Freeman, Million Dollar Baby
• 2005 Don Cheadle, Hotel Rwanda
• 2005 Terrence Howard, Hustle & Flow
• 2005 Sophie Okonedo, Hotel Rwanda
• 2006 Djimon Hounsou, Blood Diamond
• 2006 Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls
• 2006 Eddie Murphy, Dreamgirls
• 2006 Will Smith, The Pursuit of Happyness
• 2006 Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland
• Filmographies
• Appendix A: African American Oscar Nominees (Non-Acting/Directing/Writing)
• Appendix B: Overlooked Worthy Performances by African American Actors
• Appendix C: African American Performers of Nominated Songs at Oscar Ceremonies, A Select List
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Author