Hattie McDaniel 1895 – 1952

She played among the stars …. Davis, Stanwyck, Temple, Hepburn, Gable and Leigh. But she was denied burial in a star-studded Hollywood cemetery because….she was black. She was the first black actor to win an Academy Award for her role in “Gone With The Wind”. But she couldn’t attend the premiere of that picture in Atlanta because….she was black. She survived widowhood, three failed marriages and a siege of depression that almost cost her life. But in the hearts of America, she will always be remembered for her beaming smile, her comic genius and her ability to open a road in films for all future black actors to follow.

Hattie McDaniel was born into the talented McDaniel family on June 10, 1895 in Wichita, Kansas. Her father, Henry McDaniel was an itinerant preacher who had been born a slave, joined the Union Army during the Civil War and had a penchant for song and dance. He and his family were traveling west at the time with other groups of black people fleeing the segregation of the South. Hattie was the youngest of 13 children, half of whom died at birth or early in infancy.

Hattie was a precocious child in school (she was one of the few black students there) winning over her teachers with her ability at recitation and singing. In 1910, she joined her father and two brothers in their minstrel show and toured Colorado, working at domestic jobs when show dates were in short supply. In 1920, she toured with Professor George Morrison and his “Melody Hounds” and became known as the black “Sophie Tucker’! In 1922, several months before her father died, Hattie married George Langford, son of a well-to-do black family, but within a year George was shot to death. Hattie would marry again….three times…. but they all ended in divorce.

When Hattie arrived in Hollywood in 1931, she had $20, a rabbit’s foot and a Denver newspaper clipping touting her as “a hometown girl on her way to movie stardom”. The $20 didn’t go very far and she was soon back to doing domestic work while she haunted studio doors for film work.

Her first part in a feature film (Fox’s “Golden West” 1932) cast her in the role of a beloved black servant and set the tone for all her roles to come. But it wasn’t until GWTW that she received regular billing. And it was soon apparent that controversy would arise on both sides of the race issue. Black activists, now finding their voice, chided her for being too servile and adding to stereotypical roles for blacks. Racially biased whites considered her too independent and sassy. But, under the radar, Hattie was quietly fomenting change. In GWTW, at her insistence, the word “nigger” was dropped entirely from the script although it was used profusely in the book. In “Since You Went Away” she chose to drop the dialect usually required of black actors.

On February 29th, 1940 Hattie McDaniel became the first black actor to ever attend an Academy Award ceremony and the first to walk off with the prize….an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress! But she wasn’t invited to attend the premiere of GWTW in Atlanta. Clark Gable wanted to protest by staying away himself but Hattie convinced him to go for her.

At one time in the late 40’s, after losing a role she had her heart set on and despondent and lonely, Hattie attempted suicide. Luckily, she had friends watching over her and near enough to save her life. Then, suddenly things changed. Hattie found success in radio! On “The Beulah Show” she became the star of the most popular show on radio from 1947-1950 and it is fondly remembered to this day. It was picked up by ABC-TV in 1950. But after taping the first episode, Hattie was diagnosed with breast cancer. She made 3 episodes before being replaced by Ethel Waters.

Hattie McDaniel died on October 26th, 1952 in the Motion Picture Country Home and Hospital. She was only 57 years old. Her wish to be buried in an all-white casket and laid to rest among her peers was denied…because she was black. So she was buried in Rosedale Cemetery, the first black person ever to be buried there.

However, today 47 years after her death a pink and gray granite monument has been erected in Hollywood Forever Cemetery by the new owners to honor her wishes.

Other of Hattie McDaniels films include:

Imitation of Life (1934)
The Little Colonel (1935)
Alice Adams (1935)
Showboat (1936)
The Bride Walks Out (1936)
Libeled lady (1936)
Saratoga (1937)
Stella Dallas (1937)
The Mad Miss Manton (1938)
They Died With Their Boots On (1942)
Never Say Goodbye (1946)
The Big Wheel (1949)