BLACK IN TIME: A Moment In OUR History
Bert Williams
Egbert Austin Williams, The Legendary Comedian, Considered By Many To Be The Greatest Vaudeville Performer In The History Of The American Stage, Died On March 4, 1922.
Best Known as Bert Williams, He First Gained Notice In 1896, As Half Of The Successful Double-Act "Williams & Walker." He And George Walker Performed Song-And-Dance Numbers, Comic Dialogues And Skits, And Humorous Songs. The Pair Performed In Burnt-Cork Blackface, As Was Customary At The Time. They Billed Themselves As "Two Real Coons," To Distinguish Their Act From The Many White Minstrels Also Performing In Blackface. Walker Died In 1911, From Syphilis.
Williams Was A Key Figure In The Development Of Black Music. He Was The Best-Selling Black Recording Artist Before 1920. And in An Age When Racial Inequality And Stereotyping Were An Accepted Part Of Life, He Became The First Black American To Take A Lead Role On The Broadway Stage, And Did Much To Break Racial Barriers During His Career.
As A Central Figure On America's Vaudeville Circuit, Williams Sang, Danced, And Pantomimed In Clubs, Cabarets, And Theaters Across The Country. He Was One Of, If Not The Most, Famous Black American Performer Of The 1900s. Williams Was The Toast Of The Cities He Toured, And in 1904 He Played A Command Performance In England For King Edward VII.
During An Era When The "White Vaudeville Stage Did Not Welcome Black Performers," Williams Pioneered An Important Role For Black Performers Who Had So Profoundly Shaped The Genre. With Unfortunate Regularity, He Was Often The Only Black On Stage.
Williams Joined The Ziegfeld Follies. It Was The Top Production Of Its Kind In America, And Bert Was Its Highest Paid Star For Ten Years. He Often Had To Use His "Mr. Nobody" Routine To Save The Show's Reputation.
The Man Hollywood Film Star And Comedian, W. C. Fields, Called "The Funniest Man I Ever Saw --- And The Saddest Man I Ever Knew," Died At The Age Of 46, In New York.
"In Order For Black History To Live, We Must Continue To Breathe Life Into It." -- Hubert Gaddy, Jr.
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FOR BLACK HISTORY & CULTURE
Hugh Gaddy
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Thanks again Gaddy, this is something else I've learned on your one of blogs that I never knew before. (smile)