Stepin Fetchit was the stage name of American comedian and film actor Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry (May 30, 1902–November 19, 1985). A stage name, also called a screen name, is a Pseudonym used by Performers and Entertainers such as A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience primarily by making them laugh An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works Events 1416 - The Council of Constance, called by the Emperor Sigismund a supporter of Antipope John XXIII burns Jerome of Prague following Year 1902 ( MCMII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Events 1095 - The Council of Clermont, called by Pope Urban II to discuss sending the First Crusade to the Holy Land Year 1985 ( MCMLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays 1985 Gregorian calendar) His typical film persona and stage name have long been synonymous with the stereotype of the servile, shiftless, simple-minded black man in early 20th Century American film. A stereotype (from Greek: stereo + týpos = "solid impression" is a generalized perception of first impressions behaviors presumed by a group The twentieth century of the Common Era began on There has been a more recent revisionist view that sees his film persona as ultimately subversive of the status quo. ^[1] Perry parlayed the Fetchit persona into a successful film career, eventually becoming a millionaire, the first black actor in history to do so.

Contents 1 Biography 2 Selected filmography 3 See also 4 References 5 Sources 6 External links

Biography

Born in Key West, Florida, to West Indian immigrants, Perry began entertaining in his teens as a comic character actor. Key West is a city in Monroe County Florida, United States. The city encompasses Key West, the namesake island the part of Stock Island The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting A character actor is an Actor who predominantly plays a particular type of role rather than leading ones His stage name was a contraction of "step and fetch it," suggesting a servile character. He played comic relief roles in a number of films, all based on his character known as "The Laziest Man in the World. Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character or scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work often to relieve tension " Despite this, Perry was an actor in the truest sense of the word; "Stepin Fetchit," no matter what the names of the roles he played on screen, was himself a Perry character. In fact, Perry was highly literate and had a concurrent career writing for the Chicago Defender, one of the nation's best-respected black newspapers. The Chicago Defender was the United States ’ largest and most influential black weekly newspaper by the beginning of World War I.

If the Fetchit persona derives, too, from a common manipulation technique used by blacks to mitigate their status by pretending to be unintelligent and fulfilling the low expectations of whites, Perry himself was not afraid to use it off screen. Auditioning for a role in a remake of In Old Kentucky, Perry stayed in character before and after the audition, often feigning low intelligence or skipping or mumbling lines he did not like.

Perry starred in Hearts in Dixie (1929), one of the first all-talkie, big-studio productions to boast a predominately African-American cast. Hearts in Dixie ( 1929) is one of the first all-talkie big-studio production to boast a predominately African-American cast Events The days of the Silent film were numbered A mad scramble to provide synchronized sound was on African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa For his role as Joe in the 1929 part-talkie film version of Show Boat, Perry's singing voice was supplied by Jules Bledsoe, who had originated the role in the stage musical. A part-talkie film is a film which was made during the early sound era (anywhere from 1927 to 1930 which is partly a Silent film and partly a Talkie. Show Boat ( 1929) is a film based on the novel by Edna Ferber. Jules Bledsoe (1898 - 1943 was a once renowned but now semi-forgotten Baritone, and the first African American artist to gain regular employment on Broadway Curiously enough, however, Fetchit did not "sing" Ol' Man River, but instead a new song used in the film, The Lonesome Road. " Ol' Man River " (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) is a song in the 1927 musical Show Boat, that tells Bledsoe was actually seen singing Ol' Man River in the sound prologue shown preceding the film.

Perry did not invent the stereotype to which his stage name became synonymous, but Stepin Fetchit's image was used to popularize it. Many black characters in the movies were based on Stepin Fetchit, including Stymie in the classic Our Gang comedies, though like Perry (a fact often forgotten about him), Stymie had his ways of outwitting his assumed superiors. For the English film actor (born 1989 see Matthew Beard (British actor. "The Little Rascals" redirects here For other uses see The Little Rascals (disambiguation. (As it happens, Perry repaid the reference: he guest-starred in an Our Gang short, A Tough Winter, intended as the pilot film for a Fetchit short subject series producer Hal Roach had planned but which never materialized. Short subject is a format description originally coined in the North American Film industry in the early period of cinema. Harold Eugene "Hal" Roach Sr ( January 14, 1892 – November 2, 1992) was an American film and )

In due course, the Stepin Fetchit image came to be seen as degrading enough that Perry's films rarely get a screening now. Nor have they seen widespread video release. On the rare occasions the films are shown, most of his segments are deleted. But film historians across racial lines have come to see that Perry was in fact a gifted comic. The history of film spans over a hundred years from the latter part of the 19th century to the beginning of the 21st century. He was also the first black actor to become a millionaire. Unfortunately, Perry was a far better actor than he was a manager of his own money, and he was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1947. Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay their Creditors Creditors may file a bankruptcy petition against Year 1947 ( MCMXLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1947 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Perry converted to Islam in the 1960s and became a friend of heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali, with both men claiming Perry taught Ali a particular punch. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 This is a chronological list of world heavyweight boxing champions since the introduction of the Marquess of Queensberry rules: Championship recognition Biography Early life Cassius Clay Jr was born on January 17 1942 But Perry also found himself in conflict during his career with civil rights leaders who criticized him personally for the film roles he portrayed. See also Protests of 1968 Historically the civil rights movement was a concentrated period of time around the world of approximately twenty years (1960-1980 in However, Perry had something of the last laugh: in 1976, the Hollywood chapter of the NAACP awarded him a Special NAACP Image Award, acknowledging that, whatever the stereotype his famous alter ego had inspired, his had been a trailblazing career without which many black film careers might have been more difficult to make. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, usually abbreviated as NAACP, is one of the oldest and most influential Civil rights organizations The NAACP Image Awards is an award presented annually by the American National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to honor outstanding People of color Two years after that, Perry was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame. The Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame Inc (BFHFI was founded in 1973 Oakland California, United States.

He appeared in 54 films between 1925 and 1976, and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the category "Motion pictures". The following is a list of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, including the category and location of each star The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a Sidewalk along Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood Los Angeles California, USA, that A stroke in 1976 ended Perry's acting career, and he died November 19, 1985 from pneumonia.

Selected filmography

• Hearts in Dixie (1929)
• Show Boat (1929)
• The Ghost Talks (1929)
• Salute (1929)
• Big Time (1929)
• Carolina (1934)
• Stand Up and Cheer! (1934)
• The World Moves On (1934)
• Judge Priest (1934)
• One More Spring (1935)
• Charlie Chan in Egypt (1935)
• Steamboat Round the Bend (1935)
• On the Avenue (1937)
• Zenobia (1939)
• Bend of the River (1952)
• Amazing Grace (1974, cameo appearance with Moms Mabley)
• Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? (1975)

See also

• Blackface
• Uncle Tom
• Jar Jar Binks (Allegations of racism and bigotry)
• Mantan Moreland
• List of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (Fetchit)

References

Sources

• Watkins, Mel (2005). Stepin Fetchit: The Life and Times of Lincoln Perry. Pantheon Books. Pantheon Books is an American imprint with Editorial independence that is part of the Knopf Publishing Group which was acquired by Random House ISBN 0-375-42382-6.  
• Clark, Champ (2005). Shuffling to Ignominy: The Tragedy of Stepin Fetchit. iUniverse. ISBN 0-595-37125-6.  

External links

• Stepin Fetchit at the Internet Movie Database

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