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Faces
of color in chorus lines or in photographs under theatre marquees
no longer cause us shock and awe, since minority presence on
stage now approaches cliché status.
Historian Camille F. Forbes brings us a worthy portrait of arguably
the most seminal African-American trailblazer in Broadway history---Ziegfeld
Follies star Bert Williams, who W.C. Fields famously declared
to be “the funniest man I ever saw, and the saddest man I ever
knew”.
In her scholarly yet readable biography, Forbes does indeed
“introduce” readers to the man who truly brought black performing
sensibility to a mass audience, albeit shadowed by lingering
controversy among his own people.
Egbert Williams was born in 1875 Antigua. His family later settled
in California where Bert joined a minstrel company touring mining
camps, eventually teaming with George Walker in 1893 as vaudeville’s
“Williams and Walker”.
They specialized in musical numbers and humorous skits, initially
with Williams as the slick con man and Walker as his “dumb coon”
victim. However, they later reversed personas, after which,
ironically, the sartorially elegant, intellectual Williams developed
his trademark pantomimic character, the shuffling oaf.
Significantly, Williams used “blackface,” despite his own naturally
dark skin. At that time, his financial survival as a performer
for white audiences demanded it. Blackface continued to be artistically
questionable for vaudevillians, and Forbes thoroughly discusses
its precedents and broader ramifications.
The Williams/Walker duo became increasingly successful as they
attempted to eschew stereotypes and embrace more realistic comedy.
In 1902, their biggest hit, In Dahomey, became the
first black musical to open on Broadway, followed in 1906 by
Abyssinia, in which Williams debuted his signature
song, “Nobody,” a doleful lament spiced with dry wit, which
he would perform for the rest of his life.
When Walker left the act in 1909, Williams languished alone
until Florenz Ziegfeld invited him to join his Follies as its
first African-American performer. Spotlighting a black man in
an all-white show was a potential shock to 1910 sensibilities,
but Williams soon became indispensible to the troupe, despite
ongoing off-stage racial tensions.
He also became one of the world’s top recording artists, thanks
to affiliation with Columbia Records. But after leaving the
Follies in 1917, Williams’ career soon lagged and he died in
1922, at age 46.
Forbes’ fine book will inspire new appreciation for Williams
the man and artist. While she details his fluctuating career
fortunes, she also examines his era’s cultural/social issues
of minstrelsy and blackface. Readers will gain keen insight
into the milieu in which Williams struggled and ultimately triumphed,
all too briefly.
This book is extensively footnoted, including a lengthy bibliography
and well-placed illustrations. It is especially recommended
for students of African-American and/or theatre history.
Thanks to Camille F. Forbes, we know that when Bert Williams
told 1910 audiences that he was “Nobody,” he unknowingly guaranteed
that countless minority performers nearly 100 years later would
indeed be “somebody” on the Broadway stage he loved so much.
Reviewed by:
Catherine Ritchie, Theatre/Film Librarian
Dallas (TX) Public Library
Forbes, Camille F. Introducing Bert Williams: Burnt Cork, Broadway,
and the Story of America’s First Black Star. New York: Basic
Books, 2008. 404p. ISBN 978-0-465-02479-7. $27.50
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