Dorothy Dandridge - Softcover

Bogle, Donald

4.23

308 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1572972920 ISBN 13: 9781572972926

Publisher: Berkley Trade, 1998

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She captured America's hearts in such stunning films as Carmen Jones and Porgy and Bess. Finally, the true story of America's first Black movie star is revealed in this brilliant, in-depth biography-from her turbulent childhood in Cleveland, to her Hollywood girlhood, her battles against racism, her rise to fame, her marriage and affairs, and her professional and personal decline. The first Black woman nominated for an Academy Award Dorothy Dandridge paved the way for thousands of Black women entertainers. She toured the South with "The Dandridge Sisters," appeared in dozens of movies and on Broadway, played the Cotton Club, and worked with such luminaries as Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, and Maxine Sullivan. But Dandridge's stardom only seemed to exacerbate her deep-seated insecurities-shadowing her success until she died of an overdose at the age of 42. Filled with photographs, and rich with research as well as personal anecdotes from Harry Belafonte, Etta James and others, Dorothy Dandridge: A Biography is not only a fascinating study of the woman and the performer, but also a riveting look at Black Hollywood as it existed within the larger culture.

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Review:

Donald Bogle was almost single-handedly responsible for reviving interest in historic black film with his seminal work, Toms, Coons, Mammies, Mulattoes, and Bucks. Here, in his new biography, he turns his gaze on Dorothy Dandrige, a bronze goddess of the silver screen. Stunningly beautiful and enormously talented, Dandridge had the misfortune to practice her craft at a time when Hollywood trafficked only in black stereotypes. She starred in several films--among them Carmen Jones, an adaptation of Bizet's Carmen, and the musical Porgy and Bess. But because there were few black male romantic leads, and Hollywood could not conceive of pairing her with a white actor, Dandridge's career languished. In 1965, she was found dead in her apartment of a drug overdose. Bogle's excellent book brings Dandrige and her times to life again, portraying this remarkable woman in all her strength and fragility.

About the Author:

Donald Bogle is one of the country's leading authorities on African Americans in Hollywood. He is the author of the groundbreaking Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films; the acclaimed biography Dorothy Dandridge; and Brown Sugar: Over 100 Years of America's Black Female Superstars. He teaches at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and at the University of Pennsylvania.

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