That's Old News! (#6)

I hope you find interest in this month's featured articles!

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"My pappy was a crap-shootin' fool," he mimics himself with disdain. "That don't rub me too good today."

Matthew "Stymie" Beard--one of the original "little rascals".

Matthew "Stymie" Beard didn't care too much for his dialogue in the Our Gang series. In fact, he'd grown to actually hate the shorts. Read his interview with the Associated Press--included in a February 1973 issue of St. Petersburg Times. [Click here]

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"One by one they came and said there was no crabmeat, there was no steak, there was no wine," she said. "Then the waiters wouldn't even come near us. It was just silence."

Josephine Baker in her famous banana skirt

International superstar, Josephine Baker spoke to the Associated Press about her horrendous experience in The Stork Club in New York. You can read about the infamous incident in The Milwaukee Journal. [Click here]

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"Shortly after concluding a performance Friday night at the Alhambra Theatre in this city, Lawrence Chenault, for the past score of years, one of the most popular dramatic stars, fell to the floor in a state of complete collapse."

Lawrence Chenault with Iris D. Hall in The Symbol of the Unconquered (1920) (POCCF Screenshot)

An emotional Lawrence Chenault collapsed while performing one night. According to The Afro-American, the actor had just lost his longtime friend, a ventriloquist named Johnnie Woods. Click here to read the 1928 article.

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"Miss Dunham and her vastly talented troupe have really concocted an undefinable and enormously gratifying melange. From the hot lands of the Caribbean, the gifted dancer-choreographer-singer-director has garnered native rhythms of many years and locales and has placed them on the stage to be sung, danced, and mimed."

Katherine Dunham in 1956

Donald Steinfirst praised a 1948 dance revue choreographed and directed by Katherine Dunham, and performed by her and her dance company. Read the review in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette by clicking here.

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"Alvin Childress...just call him 'Amos'

Thought he'd be a doctor...college proved turning point."

Alvin Childress as "Amos" (of Amos 'n' Andy) in 1951

The Afro-American dedicated a biographical column to actor, Alvin Childress, a star in one of television's most popular shows in the early 1950s, Amos 'n' Andy. Click here to read it.

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"Albert Einstein Theorizes With Actress Eartha Kitt"

Eartha Kitt as "Catwoman" in the Batman television series

Blossoming starlet Eartha Kitt discussed everything from reincarnation to the state of theatre with Professor Albert Einstein in his Princeton, New Jersey home. Read all about the hour long talk in this Palm Beach Daily News article here.

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Again, I hope you find these article links to be interesting and informative! :) 

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Unless noted otherwise, the images in this post were obtained from Wikipedia. They are being used for informational purposes only. If the rightful owner(s) of any of these images wishes to have them removed, please contact me, and I will do so immediately.

--Adrienne