African-Americans in Film Trivia Quiz

Answer: Green Pastures

"The Green Pastures" was a sensation in 1936. It was calculated that the film sold 6000 tickets per hour at its release. Many theaters canceled other films and only ran "Green Pastures" for a year. Viewed through the lens of the twenty first century, racial stereotyping is evident but does provide an insight into the 1930s status of society.

One reviewer said the film "recreates various Sunday school stories from the Old Testament that's told in a spirited manner in the lingo of the rural southern Negro".

Rotten Tomatoes--86%

Answer: A Raisin in the Sun

The three proposals are to buy a house in the suburbs, invest in a liquor store, or to pay tuition for medical school. The compromise is to put 3500 dollars as a down payment, invest 3500 in the liquor store, and reserve 3000 for tuition. The liquor turns out to be scam. However, the Homeowners Association has offered to return the down payment plus a bonus. Walter (Sidney Poitier) is sent to negotiate the deal. However, he finds that racism is the motive of the HA is keep the neighborhood white. He refuses the deal and the family bonds over the decision.

Both the 1959 play and 1961 screenplay of the same name were by Lorraine Hansberry. The play was closed down on Broadway so the cast could reprise their parts in the film. One reviewer commented: "A groundbreaking work that manages to be both specific to the African-American experience and universal in its themes of hope, change, and upward mobility." The film held a 100% freshness from Rotten Tomatoes, a very rare occurrence.

Answer: Isaac Hayes

Isaac Hayes' "Theme from Shaft" is an imaginative combination of electronics, instruments, and voice that put his brand on film music. Fast paced as Shaft himself, Bumpy Jones' (Moses Gunn) daughter has been kidnapped by a rival gang. Shaft (Richard Roundtree) is hired to find her without setting off a race war.

Rotten Tomatoes gave it an 86% rating. A typical review: "The attraction... will be the stylish conversation and attitudes, as well as Richard Roundtree, who lends Shaft the right amount of charisma, swagger and untouchability."

Answer: Oprah Winfrey

Winfrey not only promoted the book on her television talk show but accepted a prime role that resulted in an Oscar nomination. "The Color Purple" was shut out even with its 11 nominations. Steven Spielberg was awarded best director by the Directors Guild even though he was not a nominee for an Academy Award. Although the reason given was that the film was too sentimental, many believe there was an undercurrent of racism in the Hollywood community.

The film was an adaptation of the novel by the same name by Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction. Promoted by Orpah Winfrey, it was made into a movie in 1985. The plot deals with African American women who faced during the early 20th century domestic violence, incest, pedophilia, poverty, racism, and sexism. The Southern African-American male does not come off well.

Roger Ebert wrote: "The world of Celie and the others is created so forcibly in this movie that their corner of the South becomes one of those movie places -like Oz, like Tara, like Casablanca- that lay claim to their own geography in our imaginations. The affirmation at the end of the film is so joyous that this is one of the few movies in a long time that inspires tears of happiness, and earns them." Rotten Tomatoes audience rating was 94%.

Answer: Samuel L. Jackson

Matthew Broderick plays the commander of the 54th based on the real life Colonel Robert Gould Shaw. Shaw was not only the lead officer but also an advocate for his troops. He suggested that his men not accept their pay until it was at the level of white soldiers. In the film he volunteers his men for an assault on Morris Island and capturing Fort Wagner. Because of the topography of the land, there is a large open beach that must be traversed and heavy human loses are expected. The beach is littered with the men of the 54th and their goal is not obtained.

Roger Ebert's insight into this film is interesting. He wrote: "Watching 'Glory', I had one recurring problem. I didn't understand why it had to be told so often from the point of view of the 54th's white commanding officer. Why did we see the black troops through his eyes - instead of seeing him through theirs? To put it another way, why does the top billing in this movie go to a white actor?" Rotten Tomatoes gave the film 93% and Denzel Washington won Best Supporting Actor for his role as Private Silas Trip.

Answer: Diana Ross

In addition, her traveling companions are Michael Jackson as Scarecrow, Nipsey Russell as Tin Man, and Ted Ross as Cowardly Lion. They are trying to reach the Wiz (Richard Pryor). It is also interesting to note that a number of black personalities participated in the film in cameo or uncredited roles. A few of these are Lena Horne, Roberta Flack, Robin Givens, Quincy Jones, Luther Vandross and Mabel King.

To say it was a monumental artistic and commercial failure may be an overstatement but it was a disappointment. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 44%. It is most often seen as a cult film by Michael Jackson fans.

Answer: Ethel Waters

Eddie Anderson plays Little Joe Jackson, something of a demanding scallywag and who does not have a good reputation and who mistreats his wife, Petunia. When he dies at a crap game, he is given a second chance at redemption if he can repair the damage he has done. Much of the film is a series of musical interludes. Ethel Waters sings the Oscar nominated song "Happiness is Just a Thing Called Joe". It had a poor reception in the South as many theaters would not show any films with prominent black actors.

In addition, Lena Horne's bubble bath scene had to be cut along with a Louie Armstrong solo that accompanied it. It was later revived in the mid-'90s by the "That's Entertainment" series. The sight of an attractive black female in a bathtub was too much for sensitive Southern viewers.

Duke Ellington and his orchestra make an appearance. "Cabin in the Sky" got an 85% rating.

The film was out of sight for many years until the cable network Turner Classic Movies revived it.

Answer: John Singleton

John Singleton says he not only wrote the screenplay but he lived it. He kept the script close to him and set a goal of directing it so "no one from Idaho" could. The film was a starting place for young black actors including Ice Cube, Cuba Gooding Jr., Morris Chestnut, Laurence Fishburne, Nia Long, Regina King, and Angela Bassett. John Singleton was nominated for two Oscars - for direction and screenplay.

John Singleton chronicles the tribulations of three young African-American males in South Central Los Angeles. When young Tre (Cuba Gooding Jr.) begins to show signs of trouble, his mother (Angela Basset) sends him to live with his father (Laurence Fishburne), a no-nonsense disciplinarian. There he befriends Ricky (Morris Chestnut), a burgeoning football star, and Doughboy (Ice Cube), a gang banger. Each must decide what path they must take to survive.

It achieved a Rotten Tomatoes score of 96%. Typical of the reviews is: "Like a jazz ensemble, Singleton and his actors slowly involve us in an almost sensual melange of moods, images and situations that take us inside the ghetto in a way mainstream films almost never do."

Answer: Stormy Weather

The dancer (Bill (Bojangles) Robinson) and the singer (Lena Horne) never get together because of their devotion to their careers and show business. But here are some things you will see:

Cab Calloway performing in his zoot suit.

Bill Robinson showing his magic tap dancing.

Lena Horne as her most glorious and best voice.

Fats Waller singing "Ain't Misbehavin'" who was to die shortly after the film was released.

Fred Astaire commented that the Nicholas Brothers "Jumpin' Jive" dance sequence was the best dance he had ever seen.

Rotten Tomatoes 83% (seems low).

Answer: Black Panther

"Black Panther" is a wide-ranging film and difficult to summarize. Here is one plot summary I found: "Prince T'Challa returns home to the reclusive, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda to serve as his country's new king. However, T'Challa soon finds that he is challenged for the throne from factions within his own country. When two foes conspire to destroy Wakanda, the hero known as Black Panther must team up with the C.I.A. ... and members of the Dora Milaje, Wakandan special forces, to prevent Wakanda from being dragged into a world war."

The film was a worldwide sensation. Many theaters showed it free during Black History month. In its African releases it was a leader in many countries. In Saudi Arabia "Black Panther" not only premiered but it lifted the country's ban on films, including allowing unrelated men and women into the theater. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning three. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 97% freshness rating.

One critic wrote: "Black Panther is a film that uses political theory as more than a plot-pushing gimmick without losing its wonder, humor and bad-ass action. Kudos to the studio and to filmmakers for looking outside the starched-white box."