The Tallest Tree in Our Forest
Encyclopedia
The Tallest Tree in our Forest is a 1977
documentary film directed and written by Gil Noble
, about singer, actor and activist, Paul Robeson
. The tallest tree was shot on 16mm and was started shortly before Robeson's death at age 77 in 1976. The film features rare archival footage, interviews, and still photography from the 20th century. The title is taken from a 1940s
statement made by Mary McLeod Bethune
describing Paul Robeson. The film was originally available in a three part format for use on Public-access television
channels and in classrooms for ages fourteen and above.
1977 in film
The year 1977 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*In the Academy Awards, Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway and Beatrice Straight win Best Actor and Actress and Supporting Actress awards for Network....
documentary film directed and written by Gil Noble
Gil Noble
Gil Noble is an American television reporter and interviewer. He was the producer and host of New York City television station WABC-TV's weekly, Like It Is, originally co-hosted with Melba Tolliver...
, about singer, actor and activist, Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
. The tallest tree was shot on 16mm and was started shortly before Robeson's death at age 77 in 1976. The film features rare archival footage, interviews, and still photography from the 20th century. The title is taken from a 1940s
1940s
File:1940s decade montage.png|Above title bar: events which happened during World War II : From left to right: Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching "Omaha" Beach on "D-Day"; Adolf Hitler visits Paris, soon after the Battle of France; The Holocaust occurred during the war as Nazi Germany...
statement made by Mary McLeod Bethune
Mary McLeod Bethune
Mary Jane McLeod Bethune was an American educator and civil rights leader best known for starting a school for African American students in Daytona Beach, Florida, that eventually became Bethune-Cookman University and for being an advisor to President Franklin D...
describing Paul Robeson. The film was originally available in a three part format for use on Public-access television
Public-access television
Public-access television is a form of non-commercial mass media where ordinary people can create content television programming which is cablecast through cable TV specialty channels...
channels and in classrooms for ages fourteen and above.
Interviewees
- Paul RobesonPaul RobesonPaul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
- Harry BelafonteHarry BelafonteHarold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
- Lloyd BrownLloyd BrownLloyd Brown may refer to:* Lloyd Brown * Lloyd Brown * Lloyd L .Brown, USA, trade unionist and Civil Rights organiser, author of Iron City and latterly secretary to Paul Robeson, Jr....
- Dizzy GillespieDizzy GillespieJohn Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
- Paul Robeson, Jr.Paul Robeson, Jr.Paul Robeson, Jr. is an American author, archivist and historian.-Biography:Robeson was born in New York City to entertainer and activist Paul Robeson and Eslanda Goode Robeson. As his family moved to Europe he grew up in England and Moscow, in the Soviet Union. In Moscow he attended an elite...
- John Henrik ClarkeJohn Henrik ClarkeJohn Henrik Clarke , born John Henry Clark, was a Pan-Africanist American writer, historian, professor, and a pioneer in the creation of Africana studies and professional institutions in academia starting in the late 1960s.He was Professor of African World History and in 1969 founding chairman of...