Music Hath
Harms (1929) - 5.5
Here is another YouTube treasure. One of the first all-black talkie films that were termed Race films. Race films were these low budget movies made for the segregated black theaters. This runs 20 minutes and is a genial enough comedy. A conman Roscoe Griggers (Spencer Williams) is telling everyone that he is one of the greatest cornet players in the world and he has the medals to prove it as he shows people a row of medals on his jacket. He is putting on a concert in which he is the band leader but refuses to play the cornet because he is not being paid enough. An offer of $500 is made and he has to take it to pay for a beauty salon for Zenia (Roberta Hyson). But he can't play and so arranges a cornet player to play behind the curtain. But the cornet player is kidnapped by two fellows out to get Roscoe and a saxophone player has to stand in. After the performance the crowd is quiet until he tells them only a genius can make a cornet sound like a saxophone and the crowd applauds.
Of most interest though is the appearance of Spencer Williams. Some of us who are old enough know him as the easy going Andy in the Amos 'n' Andy TV show who falls for every trick the Kingfish pulls on him. But years before that he was one of the driving forces of Race films, acting in many and directing many more (not this one). Even perhaps more interesting than that is his life before show business.
From Wikipedia "Williams studied at the University of Minnesota and served in the U.S. Army during and after World War I, rising to the rank of sergeant major. During his military service, Williams traveled the world, serving as General Pershing's bugler while in Mexico before he was promoted to camp sergeant major. In 1917, Williams was sent to France to do intelligence work there. After World War I, Williams continued his military career; he was part of a unit whose job was to create war plans for the Southwestern United States, in case they might ever be needed." Very cool.
By the time of Amos 'n' Andy he was out of the film business but got the call to try out for the character of Andy. Amos 'n' Andy had been a radio show since 1928 and was to last till 1960 - but the actors were all-white. Thankfully, they did not do that on TV using blackface actors (as they did in the Amos 'n' Andy film Check and Double Check in 1930 - RKO) - but even so it received a lot of condemnation from many including the NAACP for its stereotypes - of which there are plenty - but it can also be very funny. The TV show lasted for 78 episodes and then went into syndication. And was on regularly when I was a kid in the early 1960s. It got pulled from TV under pressure and is hard to see these days unless on DVD.
Oft in the Silly Night (1929) - 5.0
Another short Race film that was part of a series produced by Al Christie that were based on the short stories of Octavus Roy Cohen. Cohen was Jewish but many of his stories centered on the lives of blacks, but some detective novels as well. This one is only 16 minutes in length and up on YouTube. In it a black chauffer (Edward Thompson) has eyes for the daughter of his employer - a hoi polloi black family. This is Mezanine played by Roberta Hyson who was also in Music Hath Harms and was in a number of Race shorts. That is her singing as well.
Well she has eyes for the chauffer but the class differential is a no-go. But the chauffer pays his friend Eli (Spender Williams) $2 ("who do I have to kill for this") to drive the car one night while he goes to a social gathering to woo the daughter. Complications follow but it all ends up happily ever after. More of interest for its historical status as one of the first all-black talkies than for its own merits. Pleasant and short enough though.
Al Christie was a Canadian who got into the movie business very early on in silent comedy shorts, then made some Race films and then produced and directed shorts - according to IMDB nearly 800 of them.
The Framing of the Shrew (1929) - 6.0
Another of the Al Christie all-black shorts that have survived and are up on YouTube. It is the best of three that I have seen - much more ambitious in its story and scope. It is amazing to me that even three of these survived and are in fairly good shape. It is based on the short stories of Octavus Roy Cohen as were the others. These short stories from what I have read tended to indulge in stereotypes that get carried over to the films.
Privacy (Edward Thompson) is married to Clary (Evelyn Preer) a large woman who runs a laundry business and isn't too happy with her no-account husband who does nothing. After some words and a book thrown at him, he departs and runs into Florian (Charles Olden) - kind of an early version of The Kingfish - who advises Privacy to file for divorce in order to get her to bend to his will. The lawyer is Spencer Williams. This doesn't work so they go to stage two - find him a woman (Roberta Hyson) to pretend to have an interest in him. That doesn't work - so stage three - a hunger strike. That kind of works. Thus the title of the film. The Taming of the Shrew and its many versions don't play as well now of course as it did in Shakespeare's time!
Evelyn Preer and Thompson were married in real life and she had quite the career. Worked in vaudeville, on Broadway (she played Salome), in a number of films for Oscar Micheaux, who along with Spencer Williams were major pioneers in black films, she sang with Duke Ellington. Died though in 1932 from pneumonia. She sings one song here - No Fool Man Can Make a Fool Out of Me.
The Melancholy Dame (1929) - 6.0
The last of the Al Christie produced all-black shorts (20 mins) that are up on YouTube as far as I know. Sitting here in 2021 it is hard to gage how these went over with black audiences 90 years ago. The films are all amusing but cheaply shot and more amiable than out right funny with a song during the opening credits and usually some more music during the film. This one has some enjoyable dialogue that felt like it was right out of vaudeville. Permanent (Edward Thompson) and his wife Jonquil (Evelyn Preer) own a night club where a band plays and people dance up a storm. The big attraction is the female dancer and singer Sappho (Roberta Hyson) and her piano playing husband Webster (Spencer Williams). So basically the same crew of actors as in the other films.
Jonquil thinks there is something going on between Permanent and Sappho and
tells him to fire her. That she is picturing her with a lily in her hand.
Trouble is Sappho is his ex-wife who has told her current husband that her
first husband beat her (he didn't) and if he finds out that Permanent is
that guy there won't be enough of him left to put a postage stamp on. A nice
little twist at the end. A couple songs from the band, a high kicking dance
from Hyson that reveals more leg than was acceptable in polite society back
then - but unfortunately no singing from Preer.
Here is another YouTube treasure. One of the first all-black talkie films that were termed Race films. Race films were these low budget movies made for the segregated black theaters. This runs 20 minutes and is a genial enough comedy. A conman Roscoe Griggers (Spencer Williams) is telling everyone that he is one of the greatest cornet players in the world and he has the medals to prove it as he shows people a row of medals on his jacket. He is putting on a concert in which he is the band leader but refuses to play the cornet because he is not being paid enough. An offer of $500 is made and he has to take it to pay for a beauty salon for Zenia (Roberta Hyson). But he can't play and so arranges a cornet player to play behind the curtain. But the cornet player is kidnapped by two fellows out to get Roscoe and a saxophone player has to stand in. After the performance the crowd is quiet until he tells them only a genius can make a cornet sound like a saxophone and the crowd applauds.
Of most interest though is the appearance of Spencer Williams. Some of us who are old enough know him as the easy going Andy in the Amos 'n' Andy TV show who falls for every trick the Kingfish pulls on him. But years before that he was one of the driving forces of Race films, acting in many and directing many more (not this one). Even perhaps more interesting than that is his life before show business.
From Wikipedia "Williams studied at the University of Minnesota and served in the U.S. Army during and after World War I, rising to the rank of sergeant major. During his military service, Williams traveled the world, serving as General Pershing's bugler while in Mexico before he was promoted to camp sergeant major. In 1917, Williams was sent to France to do intelligence work there. After World War I, Williams continued his military career; he was part of a unit whose job was to create war plans for the Southwestern United States, in case they might ever be needed." Very cool.
By the time of Amos 'n' Andy he was out of the film business but got the call to try out for the character of Andy. Amos 'n' Andy had been a radio show since 1928 and was to last till 1960 - but the actors were all-white. Thankfully, they did not do that on TV using blackface actors (as they did in the Amos 'n' Andy film Check and Double Check in 1930 - RKO) - but even so it received a lot of condemnation from many including the NAACP for its stereotypes - of which there are plenty - but it can also be very funny. The TV show lasted for 78 episodes and then went into syndication. And was on regularly when I was a kid in the early 1960s. It got pulled from TV under pressure and is hard to see these days unless on DVD.
Oft in the Silly Night (1929) - 5.0
Another short Race film that was part of a series produced by Al Christie that were based on the short stories of Octavus Roy Cohen. Cohen was Jewish but many of his stories centered on the lives of blacks, but some detective novels as well. This one is only 16 minutes in length and up on YouTube. In it a black chauffer (Edward Thompson) has eyes for the daughter of his employer - a hoi polloi black family. This is Mezanine played by Roberta Hyson who was also in Music Hath Harms and was in a number of Race shorts. That is her singing as well.
Well she has eyes for the chauffer but the class differential is a no-go. But the chauffer pays his friend Eli (Spender Williams) $2 ("who do I have to kill for this") to drive the car one night while he goes to a social gathering to woo the daughter. Complications follow but it all ends up happily ever after. More of interest for its historical status as one of the first all-black talkies than for its own merits. Pleasant and short enough though.
Al Christie was a Canadian who got into the movie business very early on in silent comedy shorts, then made some Race films and then produced and directed shorts - according to IMDB nearly 800 of them.
The Framing of the Shrew (1929) - 6.0
Another of the Al Christie all-black shorts that have survived and are up on YouTube. It is the best of three that I have seen - much more ambitious in its story and scope. It is amazing to me that even three of these survived and are in fairly good shape. It is based on the short stories of Octavus Roy Cohen as were the others. These short stories from what I have read tended to indulge in stereotypes that get carried over to the films.
Privacy (Edward Thompson) is married to Clary (Evelyn Preer) a large woman who runs a laundry business and isn't too happy with her no-account husband who does nothing. After some words and a book thrown at him, he departs and runs into Florian (Charles Olden) - kind of an early version of The Kingfish - who advises Privacy to file for divorce in order to get her to bend to his will. The lawyer is Spencer Williams. This doesn't work so they go to stage two - find him a woman (Roberta Hyson) to pretend to have an interest in him. That doesn't work - so stage three - a hunger strike. That kind of works. Thus the title of the film. The Taming of the Shrew and its many versions don't play as well now of course as it did in Shakespeare's time!
Evelyn Preer and Thompson were married in real life and she had quite the career. Worked in vaudeville, on Broadway (she played Salome), in a number of films for Oscar Micheaux, who along with Spencer Williams were major pioneers in black films, she sang with Duke Ellington. Died though in 1932 from pneumonia. She sings one song here - No Fool Man Can Make a Fool Out of Me.
The Melancholy Dame (1929) - 6.0
The last of the Al Christie produced all-black shorts (20 mins) that are up on YouTube as far as I know. Sitting here in 2021 it is hard to gage how these went over with black audiences 90 years ago. The films are all amusing but cheaply shot and more amiable than out right funny with a song during the opening credits and usually some more music during the film. This one has some enjoyable dialogue that felt like it was right out of vaudeville. Permanent (Edward Thompson) and his wife Jonquil (Evelyn Preer) own a night club where a band plays and people dance up a storm. The big attraction is the female dancer and singer Sappho (Roberta Hyson) and her piano playing husband Webster (Spencer Williams). So basically the same crew of actors as in the other films.