First African American Movie Star?

[PictureGuy]

Well, maybe. Black actress Bertha Regustus has only two silent shorts to her credit, but her role in Edwin S. Porter's Laughing Gas is significant in that a black actress has the lead.



Her one other film credit is more of a supporting role.



In this earlier film, Regustus may have been made up to look "blacker." Not uncommon in those days.

The man is played by future cowboy star, producer, and movie executive "Bronco Billy" Anderson.

It is indeed fortunate that both films have survived.

[DOOM!]

Laughing gas, you say? A precursor to what was to become a weapon of mass destruction in the later years. Just like Metropolis.

[Immoral]

Don't really care much who was first. BDW is the best Black actor.

[PictureGuy]

Don't really care much who was first. BDW is the best Black actor.

BDW? Badazz Denzel Washington?

[Immoral]

BDW? Badazz Denzel Washington?

Billy Dee Williams. Also known as Lando lol

[PictureGuy]

Billy Dee Williams. Also known as Lando lol

He's still around?

[Immoral]

Not that I'm aware of.

[Clayton_n]

Most of them had to take some pretty crappy roles cause white people were jerks.

[PictureGuy]

Most of them had to take some pretty crappy roles cause white people were jerks.

I remember when Billy Dee Williams hit stardom. He turned down roles left and right because he only wanted to do quality films. Well, there is such a thing as being too selective. He was out of the public eye too long between movies and lost his following.

[Clayton_n]

I was thinking more in the early days. That's if they were not white people in black face and even then... yikes.

[PictureGuy]

They even had black actors who were not black enough in blackface. Double yikes!