This 1979 oscarwinning documentary recalls the life of paul robeson 18981976athlete, actor, singer and political activist. The rich deep tones of paul robeson s voice are amazing. Paul robeson bear the burden in the heat of the day all go by musashitzu. Paul robeson may be the most important africanamerican entertainer of the 20th century, but his recorded legacy is so compromised that a dvd set like criterions paul robeson.
Paul robeson, the artist as activist and social thinker. Hd stock video footage paul robeson, an american singer, actor. Now you can listen to and enjoy michael pauls beautiful baritone voice anywhere. This 1979 oscarwinning documentary recalls the life of paul robeson 1898 1976athlete, actor, singer and political activist. Paul robeson biography, albums, streaming links allmusic. Educated at rutgers college and columbia university, he was also a star athlete in his youth. Martin dubermans treatment of paul robesons life is a wonder thanks to his exhaustive research i. The archive, housed at howard universitys moorlandspingarn research center, is the largest repository in the western hemisphere of robeson documents and articles, totaling well over 50,000 items.
Ryan murphy sets a chorus line miniseries, halston biopic starring ewan mcgregor at netflix. Robeson is remembered today as a great actor and singer for both broadway stage and hollywood screen. Paul robeson medley paul robeson 1of2 by gramophoneshane. Recorded on his own othello label in the 1950s, robesons voice rings out with traditional spirituals and folk melodies from around the. Margaret webster as herself director of othello voice archive footage uncredited. A sweet tribute documentary to paul robeson, narrated with love by sidney poitier. May 07, 2014 paul robeson 18981976 was both an internationally renowned actor and singer and an activist for civil rights. Paul robeson was indeed more than an artist, activist and freedom fighter. Tribute to an artist won an academy award for best short documentary in 1980. The other organizations include the syracuse community choir, the dance. An examination of the life of actor and singer paul robeson, from his first major triumphs on the stage in the 1920s through his gradually increasing social activism in the 1930s and 1940s, leading to his controversial performances in eastern europe in the 1940s in which he performed communist anthems and. Turell, with margaret webster, sidney poitier, at turner classic movies.
On april 9, 1898, an eighth child was born to maria luisa bustill, the quaker abolitionist, and william drew, the former slave who had escaped to the north, gone to college, and become a minister. Wilson, fredi washington, ruby elzy, george haymid stamper, brandon evans, taylor gordon, billie. Paul robeson inspired these more notable civil rights leaders and was an unequaled champion of the fight for laboring people and organized labor to gain a more equitable share of the economic pie. Controversial singer, actor, and political force whose booming baritone and oratory skill made him an iconic figure of the 20th century. He also studied swahili and linguistics at the school of. This is a biography of one of the most significant black figures in american historya brilliant scholar and athlete, he became world famous as a singer and actor. Paul robeson 1898 1976 was an american actor, athlete, singer, writer, civil rights activist, and a great. Paul robeson, edward chapman, leslie banks, dudley digges, frank h. Allamerican athlete, scholar, renowned baritone, stage actor, and social activist, paul robeson 18981976 was a towering figure and a trailblazer many times over. He was truly a champion of the underdog and the economically deprived both at home in the u. An american giant of 20thcentury music, paul robeson stood tall against racism, mccarthyism, and blacklisting to proclaim the majesty of africanamerican culture.
Paul robeson april 9, 1898 january 23, 1976 was a multilingual american actor, athlete, bassbaritone concert singer, writer, civil rights activist, spingarn medal winner, and lenin peace prize laureate. In 1980, it won an oscar at the 52nd academy awards. Were sorry but jwapp doesnt work properly without javascript enabled. Tribute to an artist 1979 the criterion collection. Tribute to an artist is an autobiography movie that was released in 1979. January 23, 1976 philadelphia, pennsylvania africanamerican bassbaritone concert singer, actor of film and stage, allamerican and professional athlete, writer, multilingual orator, scholar and lawyer who was also noted for his wideranging social justice activism. With sidney poitier, paul robeson, margaret webster. The longawaited, untold, inside story of the rise of the legendary actor, singer, scholar, and activist. A proud member of the mosaic collective the prpac is one of four community arts organizations that composes the mosaic collective, working together to foster mutual success. Dec 06, 2007 here is a famous song performed live in moscow in 1949 by the legendary paul robeson. The undiscovered paul robeson, an artists journey, 1898. Turells academy awardwinning documentary short paul robeson. Paul robeson biography, movie highlights and photos.
Paul robeson now sleeps the crimson petal by sarastrone. Albums include ol man river ah still suits me, spirituals, and songs of. He was the first american artist, black or white, to realize that the role of the artist extends far beyond the stage and the. Albums include ol man river ah still suits me, spirituals, and songs of free men. The peat bog soldiers paul robeson by pasaremos2010. A 20thcentury renaissance man actor, athlete, singer, social activist, lawyer, author and scholar paul robeson mesmerized audiences with his talent and commanding presence. Courtesy the artist, thomas dane gallery and marian goodman gallery. And as a writer and speaker, he was a vital force in the promotion of equality and freedom in america. View paul robeson speaks about african american struggle vintage historic hd stock video footage in new york city usa, 1944. Ol man river from the original motion picture showboat. And as a writer and speaker, he was a vital force in the promotion of. Portraits of the artist may be the only way to understand him.
January 23, 1976 philadelphia, pennsylvania africanamerican bassbaritone concert singer, actor of film and stage, allamerican and professional athlete, writer, multilingual orator, scholar and lawyer who was also noted for. An examination of the life of actor and singer paul robeson, from his first major. Russian, german, french, italian, spanish, swahili, efik, hebrew, yiddish, portuguese. Beacon press 1958, 1971 edition with preface by lloyd l. Portraits of the artist body and soul borderline the emperor jones paul robeson. Get your kindle here, or download a free kindle reading app. Paul robeson when its sleepy time down south 1931 by tmmvds. Unlike many paul robeson collections of recordings that have been licensed or otherwise obtained and reissued by small labels, this one comes from emi and purports to be a collection of his greatest hits. Now you can listen to and enjoy michael paul s beautiful baritone voice anywhere.
See all 2 formats and editions hide other formats and editions. An examination of the life of actor and singer paul robeson, from his first major triumphs on the stage in the 1920s through his gradually increasing social activism in the 1930s and 1940s, leading to his controversial performances in eastern europe in the 1940s in which he performed communist. Paul robeson, the singer, actor and black activist, died yesterday at the age of 77 in philadelphia. Aug 01, 1992 martin dubermans treatment of paul robeson s life is a wonder thanks to his exhaustive research i.
Tribute to an artist is a 1979 american short documentary film directed by saul j. He was perhaps most groundbreaking, however, in the medium of film. In 1980, it won an oscar at the 52nd academy awards for documentary short subject. Come and experience michael pauls extraordinary voice in this oneman show of songs, stories, and more. Here is a famous song performed live in moscow in 1949 by the legendary paul robeson.
The dimensions of his talent made him our renaissance man. The film was narrated by sidney poitier, and in the film it shows old footage of the late actor in various movies and entertainment shows before he was blackballed. In 1995, he was named to the college football hall of fame. Turells academy award winning documentary short paul robeson. Here i stand pbs american masters 1999 writings by paul robeson.
Tribute to an artist, narrated by sidney poitier, traces his career through his activism and his socially charged performances of his signature song, ol man river. The son of an escaped slave, robeson managed to become a topbilled movie star during the time of jim crow america, headlining everything from fellow pioneer. Jan 24, 1976 paul robeson, the singer, actor and black activist, died yesterday at the age of 77 in philadelphia. That isnt strictly true, if only because robeson had few hits in the accepted sense, but the 20track, hourlong album is a good sampler of robesons studio recordings made between 1928. Tribute to an artist sanders of the river jericho the proud valley native land the criterion collection. Robeson then visits an edinburgh colliery and sings i dreamed i saw joe hill last night in its canteen. He was a communist, and sang the english version of the national anthem of the soviet union. Come and experience michael paul s extraordinary voice in this oneman show of songs, stories, and more.
Paul robeson was an american born musician, most famous for his political views. I was a little disappointed with the supporting singers on one track, but that actually shows how far the industry has come in producing music of this type as the slight quavering would have been corrected these days. Tribute to an artist, narrated by sidney poitier, traces his career through his activism. Paul robeson 18981976 was both an internationally renowned actor and singer and an activist for civil rights. Joe hill was a poet and union organiser for the industrial workers of the world iww, executed on a trumpedup murder charge in 1915 and subsequently immortalised as a workers hero of similar stature to robeson himself. As a singer, robesons deep and powerful voice demanded attention when he sang traditional africanamerican folk songs and spirituals, accompanied by orchestra from the 20s onward. Paul robeson download high quality complete mp3 albums. He also spoke about his book confronting black jacobins. He is one of the few true basses in american music, his. April 9, 1898 january 23, 1976 was an american bass baritone concert artist and stage and film actor who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his political activism. The first volume of this major biography breaks new ground.