Clarence Muse (October 14, 1889 – October 13, 1979) was an African American actor, screenwriter, director, singer, and composer. He was the first African American to appear in a starring role in a film, 1929’s Hearts in Dixie. He acted for 50 years and appeared in more than 150 films. He was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1973.

As the war in Ukraine surges on and Russia does its best to subjugate or, if that doesn’t work, wipe out the Ukrainians and their culture, it’s worth noting that the Soviet Union did it’s best to do something similar to Sergei Parajanov in the 1960s – 1980s.

MOVIE, RADIO, ANIMATION AND COMIC  Imagine as a child or even an adult of the Depression era finding a fully articulated toy model of your favorite movie, radio, animation, comic or even advertising character!   Joseph Kallus (above) was the supreme designer of such portrait model toys during the era spanning 1925-1945 in which he used composition molding, elastic strung wooden segments and wire armature bodies to create his piece, here is the story:

With Academy Award Season about to begin, we thought it might be appropriate to celebrate four significant screenplays that either won or were nominated for an Academy Award. After all, without a bit of imagination and the written word there would be no movies, no Academy Awards and, of course, no Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. 

Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980), nicknamed the “King of Cool”, was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw during the 1960s and 1970s. In 1974, he became the highest-paid movie star in the world, although he did not act in film for another four years. He was combative with directors and producers, but his popularity placed …