Alice Childress
Encyclopedia
Alice Childress was an American
playwright
, actor
, and author
.
where she lived with her grandmother on 118th Street, between Lenox Avenue and Fifth Avenue. Though her grandmother had no formal education, she encouraged Alice to pursue her talents in reading and writing. Alice attended public school in New York for her middle school and attended the Wadleigh High School for her high school education, but had to drop out once her grandmother died. She became involved in theater immediately after her high school and she did not attend college.
's Anna Lucasta (1944). There she won acclaim as an actress in numerous other productions, and moved to Broadway with the transfer of ANT's hit comedy Anna Lucasta. Alice also became involved in social causes. She formed an off-broadway union for actors. Her first play, Florence, was produced off-Broadway in 1950.
Her next play, Just a Little Simple (1950), was adapted from the Langston Hughes
' novel Simple Speaks His Mind. It was produced in Harlem at the Club Baron Theatre. Her next play, Gold Through the Trees (1952), gave her the distinction of being the first black woman to have a play produced professionally. Her next work , Wedding Band: A Love/Hate Story in Black and White, was completed in 1962. The setting of the show is South Carolina
during World War I
and deals with a forbidden interracial love affair. Due to the scandalous nature of the show and the stark realism it presented, it was impossible for Childress to get any theatre in New York to put it up. The show premiered at the University of Michigan
in Ann Arbor and later in Chicago
. It was not until 1972 that it played in New York at the New York Shakespeare Festival
. It was later filmed and shown on TV, but many stations refused to play it.
In 1965, she was featured in the BBC
presentation The Negro in the American Theatre. From 1966 to 1968, she was awarded as a scholar-in-residence by Harvard University
at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
.
Alice Childress is also known for her literary works. Among these are Those Other People (1989) and A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich
(1973). Also, she wrote a screenplay for the 1978 film based on A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich
. Childress described her writing as trying to portray the have-nots in a have society.
" by Ben Folds Five
is not related to her. It is a coincidence that there was a woman with the same name that poured water on Ben Folds' wife at the time, Anna Goodman.
Childress is a member of Sigma Gamma Rho
sorority.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
.
Early life
Childress was born in South Carolina, but at age nine, after her parents separated, she moved to HarlemHarlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
where she lived with her grandmother on 118th Street, between Lenox Avenue and Fifth Avenue. Though her grandmother had no formal education, she encouraged Alice to pursue her talents in reading and writing. Alice attended public school in New York for her middle school and attended the Wadleigh High School for her high school education, but had to drop out once her grandmother died. She became involved in theater immediately after her high school and she did not attend college.
Career
She took odd jobs to pay for herself, including domestic worker, photo retoucher, assistant machinist, saleslady, and insurance agent. In 1939, she studied Drama in the American Negro Theatre (ANT), and performed there for 11 years. She acted in Abram Hill and John Silvera's On Strivers Row (1940), Theodore Brown's Natural Man (1941), and Philip YordanPhilip Yordan
Philip Yordan was an American screenwriter of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s who also produced several films.He was also known as a highly regarded script doctor...
's Anna Lucasta (1944). There she won acclaim as an actress in numerous other productions, and moved to Broadway with the transfer of ANT's hit comedy Anna Lucasta. Alice also became involved in social causes. She formed an off-broadway union for actors. Her first play, Florence, was produced off-Broadway in 1950.
Her next play, Just a Little Simple (1950), was adapted from the Langston Hughes
Langston Hughes
James Mercer Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist. He was one of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form jazz poetry. Hughes is best known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance...
' novel Simple Speaks His Mind. It was produced in Harlem at the Club Baron Theatre. Her next play, Gold Through the Trees (1952), gave her the distinction of being the first black woman to have a play produced professionally. Her next work , Wedding Band: A Love/Hate Story in Black and White, was completed in 1962. The setting of the show is South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and deals with a forbidden interracial love affair. Due to the scandalous nature of the show and the stark realism it presented, it was impossible for Childress to get any theatre in New York to put it up. The show premiered at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in Ann Arbor and later in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. It was not until 1972 that it played in New York at the New York Shakespeare Festival
New York Shakespeare Festival
New York Shakespeare Festival is the previous name of the New York City theatrical producing organization now known as the Public Theater. The Festival produced shows at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, as part of its free Shakespeare in the Park series, at the Public Theatre near Astor Place...
. It was later filmed and shown on TV, but many stations refused to play it.
In 1965, she was featured in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
presentation The Negro in the American Theatre. From 1966 to 1968, she was awarded as a scholar-in-residence by Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard is an educational institution in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and one of the semiautonomous components of Harvard University. It is heir to the name and buildings of Radcliffe College, but unlike that historical institution, its focus is directed...
.
Alice Childress is also known for her literary works. Among these are Those Other People (1989) and A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich
A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich
A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich is a 1973 young adult novel by Alice Childress.-Plot:The main character, Benjie Johnson, is a thirteen-year-old heroin addict. The chapters are told in alternating points of view by Benjie and those close to him, including friends, a drug dealer, his mother, his...
(1973). Also, she wrote a screenplay for the 1978 film based on A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich
A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich (film)
A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich is a 1978 film directed by Ralph Nelson. The screenplay was written by Alice Childress, based on her novel of the same name. It was shot on location in South Central Los Angeles. It was Nelson's last film before his death.-Synopsis:A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a...
. Childress described her writing as trying to portray the have-nots in a have society.
Awards
- Off-Broadway Magazine (Trouble In Mind) 1956
- ALA Best Young Adult Bokjnmkiok of 1975 (for A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich)
- Lewis Carroll Shelf AwardLewis Carroll Shelf AwardThe Lewis Carroll Shelf Award was started in 1958 by Dr. David C. Davis with the assistance of Prof. Lola Pierstorff, Director Instructional Materials Center, Univ. of Wisconsin and Madeline Allen Davis, WHA Wisconsin Public Radio. Awards were presented annually at the Wisconsin Book Conference...
(for A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich) - Jane AddamsJane AddamsJane Addams was a pioneer settlement worker, founder of Hull House in Chicago, public philosopher, sociologist, author, and leader in woman suffrage and world peace...
Award for a young adult novel (for A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich) - Paul Robeson AwardPaul Robeson AwardAn award bestowed by the Paul Robeson Citation Award Committee of the Actors' Equity Association.- Recipients :1974 Paul Robeson1975 Ossie Davis & Ruby Dee1976 Lillian Hellman1977 Pete Seeger1978 Sam Jaffe1979 Harry Belafonte1980 Alice Childress...
for Outstanding Contributions to the Performing Arts, 1980 - Honorable Mention, Coretta Scott King AwardCoretta Scott King AwardThe Coretta Scott King Award is an annual award presented by the Ethnic & Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table, part of the American Library Association...
, 1982 - What a Girl, 1985
- Best Young Adult Author,1989
Plays
- Florence (1949)
- Just a Little Simple (1950)
- Gold Through the Trees (1952)
- Trouble in Mind (1955)
- Wedding Band: A Love/Hate Story in Black and White (1966)
- String (1969)
- Wine in the Wilderness (1969)
- Mojo: A Black Love Story (1970)
- Sea Island Song (1977)
- Moms: A Praise Play for a Black Comedienne (1987)
Novels
- Like one of the family (1956)
- A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich (1973) which became a film of the same title in 1978.
- A Short Walk (1979)
- Rainbow Jordan (1981)
- Those Other People (1989)
Trivia
The song "Alice ChildressAlice Childress (song)
"Alice Childress" is a song from Ben Folds Five's 1995 self-titled debut album. It was written by Ben Folds and Anna Goodman. The song is a look from a distance at the breakup of a couple who have fundamental differences in their outlooks on life.-History:...
" by Ben Folds Five
Ben Folds Five
Ben Folds Five is an alternative rock trio formed in 1993 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The group comprises Ben Folds , Robert Sledge , and Darren Jessee . The group achieved mainstream success in the alternative, indie and pop music scenes...
is not related to her. It is a coincidence that there was a woman with the same name that poured water on Ben Folds' wife at the time, Anna Goodman.
Childress is a member of Sigma Gamma Rho
Sigma Gamma Rho
Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. was founded on the campus of Butler University on November 12, 1922, by seven school teachers in Indianapolis, Indiana...
sorority.