Leigh Whipper

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1927: Leigh Whipper as The Crab Man in the original Broadway production of Porgy

Leigh Rollin Whipper (born October 29, 1876 in Charleston , † July 26, 1975 in New York City ) was an African-American actor in theater and film.

Life

Leigh Whipper was born in Charleston, South Carolina, the son of an African American brigadier general from the Northern States. He studied law at Howard University , but turned to acting immediately after graduating. He was the founder of the Negro Actors Guild and the first African American to join the Actors Equity . Leigh Whipper played regularly on Broadway in New York for decades , where he also played the role of Crook in the world premiere of the theater version of Von Mäusen und Menschen . He represented this role again in the film adaptation of the same name by Lewis Milestone from 1939.

Whipper has been involved in numerous film productions since the silent film era, including the 1941 film Lord of the Zombies - King of the Zombies and as a black preacher in the 1943 western classic Ritt zum Ox-Bow . Whipper did not retire from acting until 1972 and died at the age of 98 in New York City.

Filmography (selection)

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Biographical data of Leigh Whipper in: Profiles of African American Stage Performers and Theater People, 1816-1960 , by Bernard L. Peterson, Greenwood Pub Group Inc, 2001, p. 263
personal data
SURNAME Whipper, Leigh
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Whipper, Leigh Rollin (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION African-American actor in theater and film
DATE OF BIRTH October 29, 1876
PLACE OF BIRTH Charleston
DATE OF DEATH July 26, 1975
Place of death New York City