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Story of Race Car Driving Pioneer Charlie “Speed King” Wiggins to be Told in Feature Film Biopic “Eraced”

Story of Race Car Driving Pioneer Charlie “Speed King” Wiggins to be Told in Feature Film Biopic “Eraced”

By goodblacknews on July 13, 2021

[Photo: Charlie Wiggins via For Gold and Glory on PBS]

According to deadline.com, the story of Charles “Charlie” Wiggins, the most famous African American race car driver of the 1920s and 1930s, will be told in the feature film Eraced. Producing partners on the film will include racing brands Firestone and IndyCar.

Eraced will chronicle the victories and struggles of the once-legendary-now-little-known Charlie “Speed King” Wiggins, who worked his way from shoe shine to mechanic to star racer despite the brutal inequities of segregation and Jim Crow laws.

After being barred repeatedly from whites-only racing events, Wiggins took the parallel Colored Speedway Association by storm and won the prestigious annual Gold and Glory Sweep-stakes four times between 1926 and 1935. When he suffered a career-ending injury in 1936, Wiggins had to deal with exorbitant medical bills and died almost penniless.

Wiggins will be inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame next week in Detroit.

B. Garida (Reagan & Gorbachev), Courtney Gay Wilson (Bronze), and Madisun Leigh (Raphead Response) adapted the feature screenplay from the Emmy-winning documentary and book, For Gold and Glory: Charlie Wiggins and the African American Racing Car Circuit, both written and produced by Todd Gould.

Check out the documentary below:

Read more: https://deadline.com/2021/07/african-american-racing-pioneer-charlie-wiggins-subject-of-movie-biopic-eraced-indycar-firestone-among-partners-1234791501/

https://theundefeated.com/whhw/charlie-wiggins-the-negro-speed-king/

(amazon paid link)

Legendary Artist Betye Saar and 1st Black Mayor of Chicago Harold Washington Featured in “AfroPoP” Shorts Collection on WORLD Channel Starting April 26

Legendary Artist Betye Saar and 1st Black Mayor of Chicago Harold Washington Featured in “AfroPoP” Shorts Collection on WORLD Channel Starting April 26

By goodblacknews on April 18, 2021

[Betye Saar: Taking Care of Business, airing as part of AfroPoP:The Ultimate Cultural Exchange (image courtesy of LACMA)]

Exploring modern art, human rights and politics, the AfroPoP shorts program premieres on Monday, April 26 at 8 p.m. ET on WORLD Channel and worldchannel.org with films from Christine Turner, Michèle Stephenson and Amir George.

See the teaser for the Shorts Program below:

The episode opens with Turner’s Betye Saar: Taking Care of Business, a look at the trailblazing Los Angeles-based Black visual artist.

In her 90s and still actively creating art, through interviews with Saar and archival footage, the documentary explores her acclaimed method of using collage, assemblage and more to make pieces — including her famous “The Liberation of Aunt Jemima” work — addressing Black culture, racism, feminism, empowerment and more since the 1960s.

[The Liberation of Aunt Jemima, 1972. Wood, cotton, plastic, metal, mixed media. UC Berkeley. de Young]

Later in the episode, AfroPoP examines racism and xenophobia in the Dominican Republic with Elena from filmmaker Michèle Stephenson.

An intimate look at Elena Lorac, a young woman of Haitian descent raised in the Dominican Republic working tirelessly to combat anti-Haitian laws in the island nation. As her parents, who have worked the sugarcane plantations on the island their entire lives, and other Haitians face possible deportation as a result of new government policy, Elena struggles to obtain her own identification papers and also works with social justice groups to increase voting access and legal rights for Dominicans of Haitian descent, efforts made harder by the government at every turn.

The evening closes with Man of the People from director Amir George. Through a mix of sound and archival footage, Man of the People relates the story of political leader Harold Washington, his path to victory to become the first Black mayor of Chicago, and his mysterious death.

Presented by Black Public Media and WORLD Channel, new episodes of AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange premiere each Monday through May 3. All episodes will be available for streaming at worldchannel.org and on the PBS app starting at the time of their TV premiere.

The New York Times Magazine and Pulitzer Prize Winner Nikole Hannah-Jones’ “1619 Project” to Become Docuseries at Hulu

The New York Times Magazine and Pulitzer Prize Winner Nikole Hannah-Jones’ “1619 Project” to Become Docuseries at Hulu

By goodblacknews on April 3, 2021

According to Variety.com, a collaboration between Lionsgate Television, The New York Times, and Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films will create a docuseries for streaming platform Hulu based on The 1619 Project from New York Times Magazine’s and Nikole Hannah-Jones‘ journalistic examination of slavery and racism in the U.S. from 1619 to current times.

Emmy-nominated and Peabody Award-winner Shoshana Guy will serve as showrunner and executive producer. Kathleen Lingo, editorial director for film and TV at The New York Times, will also executive produce along with Caitlin Roper, The Times’ executive producer for scripted film and TV.

Academy Award-winning director Roger Ross Williams will produce and oversee the series with producing partner and co-executive producer Geoff Martz and also direct the first episode.

To quote from Variety.com:

The series falls under a distribution agreement between Lionsgate and Disney General Entertainment Content’s BIPOC Creator Initiative led by Tara Duncan.

The 1619 Project connected the centrality of slavery in U.S. history with an account of the racism that endures in so many aspects of American life today. It was launched in August 2019 on the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in the English colonies that would become the United States. It examines the legacy of slavery in America and how it shaped nearly all aspects of society, from music and law to education and the arts, and including the principles of our democracy itself.

“The 1619 Project is an essential reframing of American history,” Williams said. “Our most cherished ideals and achievements cannot be understood without acknowledging both systemic racism and the contributions of Black Americans. And this isn’t just about the past—Black people are still fighting against both the legacy of this racism and its current incarnation. I am thrilled and grateful for the opportunity to work with The New York Times, Lionsgate Television, Harpo Films and Hulu to translate the incredibly important The 1619 Project into a documentary series.”

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Documentary “Twenty Pearls,” Narrated by Phylicia Rashad, Premieres March 26 on Xfinity Channel

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Documentary “Twenty Pearls,” Narrated by Phylicia Rashad, Premieres March 26 on Xfinity Channel

By goodblacknews on March 26, 2021

The exclusive premiere of the documentary film Twenty Pearls: The Story of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®, starts airing today, Friday, March 26 on Comcast NBCUniversal‘s newly-launched Black Experience on Xfinity Channel.

Narrated by AKA member Phylicia Rashād, directed by filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper and produced by Coffee Bluff Pictures, Twenty Pearls closely examines the founding and legacy of the first Black sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®, which is regarded as one of the most significant and influential Black organizations in history.

The documentary tells a story of sisterhood. In 1908, nine Black women students enrolled at Howard University  created Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.®

Through narration, interviews and rarely seen archival materials, the audience will see the sorority’s impact on World War II, NASA, Civil Rights, Women’s Rights and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) culminating in the historic election of Kamala Harris as America’s first Black and South Asian woman Vice President.

Twenty Pearls features interviews with members of the sorority including Vice President Kamala Harris, Miss Universe Ireland 2019 Fionnghuala O’Reilly, Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch III, Anna Eleanor Roosevelt Fierst, great-granddaughter of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, International President and CEO of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® Dr. Glenda Glover and many more.

Other notable AKAs include NASA mathematician and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Katherine Johnson, civil rights activist and icon Coretta Scott King, tennis champion Althea Gibson, and Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison.

“This is an extraordinary time to look back at our past to serve our future,” added Deborah Riley Draper. “A future where Black women are centered. Helming this documentary love letter to the founders of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the generations of women that followed in their footsteps and to all Black women everywhere is an honor. This is an important history for all of us to know and understand.”

“Telling our own story is essential to preserving our history and uplifting the culture,” said Alpha Kappa Alpha International President and CEO Dr. Glenda Glover. “Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated’s remarkable 113-year journey which began on the campus of Howard University is punctuated by stories of history makers, ceiling breakers, public servants and ordinary women who have changed the course of American history.  Through this beautifully written and narrated odyssey, this film highlights in undeniable ways the vision, courage, tenacity, determination and power of Black women while putting to bed the age-old questions about the relevance of Historically Black Colleges and Universities and the Divine Nine sororities and fraternities.”

Black Experience on Xfinity is a destination of Black entertainment, movies, TV shows, news and more. It features high-quality content from many of Xfinity’s existing network partners, while investing millions of dollars in fostering and showcasing emerging Black content creators.

Black Experience on Xfinity is available at home on Xfinity X1 and Flex, and on-the-go with the Xfinity Stream app,  At home, Xfinity subscribers can visit channel 1622 or simply say “Black Experience” into the Voice Remote to instantly enjoy its content.

Visit https://www.xfinity.com/learn/digital-cable-tv/black-experience to learn more about the Black Experience on Xfinity and other Black programming available on X1, Flex, and the Xfinity Stream app. 

Visit www.aka1908.com to learn more about Twenty Pearls, which premieres on today on Xfinity and is free for subscribers, and will be available on demand nationwide starting on March 30, 2021.

Janet Jackson Two-Night Documentary Event to Debut on Lifetime and A&E Networks in 2022

Janet Jackson Two-Night Documentary Event to Debut on Lifetime and A&E Networks in 2022

By goodblacknews on March 4, 2021

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (@lakinhutcherson)

Finally!

Internationally renowned, Grammy Award-winning, Rock N Roll Hall of Fame inductee Janet Jackson will be the focus of an upcoming documentary on Lifetime and A&E Networks in 2022.

The two-night, four-hour documentary will coincide with the 40th anniversary of Jackson’s first album – no, not Control – that 1986 juggernaut was her third LP and first collaboration with producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis – but rather 1982’s eponymous Janet Jackson, which was released on the A&M records label and offered her early R&B hits “Say You Do” and “Young Love.”

Jackson is an executive producer with Randy Jackson, and according to Variety.com, producing teams from Workerbee and Associated Entertainment Corporation already have been working on the project with Janet for over three years.

To quote Variety.com:

The doc follows Janet as her family is going through the loss of her father, Joseph, the patriarch of the Jackson dynasty who passed in 2018. Producers were granted exclusive access to archival footage and never-before-seen home videos while developing the documentary for the past three years.

“JANET” will also detail the most talked-about moments of her life, including her 2004 Super Bowl appearance with Justin Timberlake in which she inadvertently exposed a portion of her breast, sparking controversy that would hover for more than a decade. The docu will also explore Jackson’s reaction to the death of her brother, the legendary and also controversial Michael Jackson, and her process of becoming a mother.

It’s about time the impact of Janet Jackson and her legacy on popular music and culture will be realized in-depth and, as a major Janet stan since even before her first LP – I’m talking Good Times and Fame days, people – I can’t wait! And I’m sure I’m not alone.

But until then, we’ll always have THIS:

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to Produce Documentary on U.S. Protests for A+E Networks History Channel

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to Produce Documentary on U.S. Protests for A+E Networks History Channel

By goodblacknews on March 4, 2021

Columnist and former NBA All-Star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will be executive producing Fight the Power: The Protests That Changed America with Deborah Morales for the A+E Networks History Channel, according to deadline.com.

The one-hour documentary will examine the effect key protests have had over time on the evolution of America to explore the question: Does the arc of the moral universe bend toward justice when pressure is applied?

This collaboration is the second between the NBA legend and the History Channel, having previously paired up on 2020’s one-hour documentary Black Patriots: Heroes of the Revolution.

Fight the Power is produced by Six West Media with Abdul-Jabbar and Morales exec producing via Iconomy Multi-Media & Entertainment.

“The history of protest in America is also the history of social progress,” Abdul-Jabbar said.

Read more: https://thegrio.com/2021/03/04/kareem-abdul-jabbar-social-progress-documentary/

(paid links)

“A Love Song For Latasha” Debuts Sept. 21 on Netflix, Mini Doc on Latasha Harlins, Teen Fatally Shot in 1991 by Store Owner (WATCH TRAILER)

“A Love Song For Latasha” Debuts Sept. 21 on Netflix, Mini Doc on Latasha Harlins, Teen Fatally Shot in 1991 by Store Owner (WATCH TRAILER)

By goodblacknews on September 19, 2020

On Monday, Netflix will debut A Love Song For Latasha, a short film by first-time filmmaker Sophia Nahli Allison that explores what life could have been like for 15 year-old Latasha Harlins had she not been fatally shot by a Korean convenience store owner in Los Angeles in 1991.

Harlins was shot in the back of the head by Soon Ja Du, then a 51-year-old Korean woman who suspected Latasha was trying to steal a $1.79 bottle of orange juice. Security footage later confirmed that Latasha had money in her hand and intended to pay for the beverage and Du was convicted of voluntary manslaughter.

Though the jury recommended a 16-year prison stint, Du was sentenced to time served, five years probation, community service, funeral expenses and $500 restitution. Harlins’ killing and the trial outcome were factors that served as a catalyst for the unrest that erupted in Los Angeles in 1992 after the police who brutalized Rodney King were acquitted.

 A Love Song For Latasha explores the teenager’s life and dreams through accounts from her family and friends. Watch the trailer below:

To quote from The Grio’s interview with director Allison:

“As an LA native, I’m really interested in what it means to interrogate and conjure and excavate stories of the community and stories of Black women and Black girls,” Allison told theGrio exclusively.

“Being a young girl during the riots, Latasha wasn’t a name I often heard. It was always Rodney King. It’s still a story people don’t talk about and her name is often forgotten. She played such an important and devastating role in that shift that happened in South Central and I wanted to see her story live in its fullness.”

Tupac Shakur immortalized Latasha’s story in several of his hits, including “Keep Ya Head Up,” which he dedicated to the slain teen. He referenced her in other tracks like “Something 2 Die 4,” “Thugz Mansion,” and “I Wonder if Heaven Got a Ghetto” and Ice Cube included a song about her on his album, Death Certificate, entitled ”Black Korea.”

“Latasha could have been a family member, or one of my friends. Latasha could have been me,” said Allison. “I wanted to make sure this archive, this story, and this memory existed for Latasha and that there was this evidence of her outside of just the trauma. Her story needed to exist beyond what we have seen.”

Director and Academy Award-winning writer John Ridley (12 Years A Slave) also devoted a section of his 2017 documentary Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982-1992 to Harlins, her tragic killing and the relative lack of justice her killer faced. Let It Fall can also be found on Netflix.

Unedited “Eyes on the Prize” Interviews with John Lewis and C.T. Vivian Available to Stream at American Archive of Public Broadcasting (WATCH)

Unedited “Eyes on the Prize” Interviews with John Lewis and C.T. Vivian Available to Stream at American Archive of Public Broadcasting (WATCH)

By goodblacknews on July 18, 2020

The American Archive of Public Broadcasting (AAPB) has made John Lewis’ unedited interview for Eyes on the Prize (1987) and for Eyes on the Prize: They Loved You Madly (1979), available to stream on its website, along with Rev. C.T. Vivian’s unedited interview for Eyes on the Prize. 

Lewis’ discussions center on the voting rights movement in Selma, Alabama, his friendship with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the relationship between Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), his view on the philosophy of nonviolence and his involvement in the March on Washington.

Vivian and his interviewer discuss in detail over the course of an hour the Nashville sit-in campaign, the Freedom Rides, the Selma campaign and more.

Eyes on the Prize is the groundbreaking 1987 PBS documentary series that tells the definitive story of the civil rights movement.

These interviews are part of a collection of 127 raw interviews from Eyes on the Prize available to stream via AAPB due to a collaboration between Boston public media producer WGBH and the Library of Congress to preserve and make accessible culturally significant public media from across the country.

The AAPB also contains a two-part raw interview conducted with Vivian in 2011 from American Experience’s Freedom Riders. Part 1, Part 2.

Toni Morrison “The Pieces I Am” American Masters Documentary Airs on PBS Tonight, June 23 (WATCH TRAILER)

Toni Morrison “The Pieces I Am” American Masters Documentary Airs on PBS Tonight, June 23 (WATCH TRAILER)

By goodblacknews on June 23, 2020

Pulitzer Prize winner, prolific author and professor Toni Morrison leads an assembly of her peers and critics on an exploration of the powerful themes she confronted throughout her literary career in The Pieces I Am, an artful and intimate meditation that examines the life and work of the legendary storyteller.

This “American Masters” documentary airs today, Tuesday, June 23 at 8/7c as part of PBS’s summer-long celebration of women trailblazers.

Official website: https://to.pbs.org/2XUCcSc | #ToniMorrisonPBS

“John Lewis: Good Trouble” Documentary to Screen for Free on Juneteenth in Tulsa as Trump Rally Counter-Programming

“John Lewis: Good Trouble” Documentary to Screen for Free on Juneteenth in Tulsa as Trump Rally Counter-Programming

By goodblacknews on June 17, 2020

According to an exclusive Variety.com report, Magnolia Pictures will premiere “John Lewis: Good Trouble,” a new documentary about the Civil Rights icon and longtime congress member, in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Juneteenth.

The film, which Magnolia and Participant are distributing, will screen at Circle Cinema, a non-profit organization that operates from a theater that traces back to 1928.

The screenings will be free (theaters will be at 25% capacity) and are intended to serve as counter-programing to Donald Trump’s political rally on Saturday. That rally ignited a firestorm of backlash and condemnation because it was originally scheduled to take place on Juneteenth, a holiday stemming from Texas that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S.

Tulsa was the site of a race massacre in 1921 that has been called “the single worst incident of racial violence in American history.” Trump later moved the date of the rally back by a day.

“Our city is searching for ideas and ways to do peaceful protest of Trump,” Chuck Foxen, film programmer at Circle Cinema, told Variety. “This feels like a powerful way to celebrate the spirit and meaning of Juneteenth.”

Read more: https://variety.com/2020/film/news/john-lewis-documentary-juneteenth-trump-rally-tulsa-1234637951/