From the vantagepoint of most moviegoers, it would seem that African-American actors have made giant leaps in the way that they are represented on film. And they would be right. The contrast of African-American actors in films today, compared to their counterparts in films of the past, is as different as night and day, or black and white. The roles that they are given, the way that they are viewed by the public, and the respect that they receive from their white peers, demonstrates that the African-American actor has become more than just comic relief, or a scene decoration, or even a token. African- Lazy, shiftless, slow-witted. These are just a few of the words used to describe how African-Americans were portrayed in film in the early days of Hollywood, and the one actor who epitomizes that view the most would have to be Stepin Fetchit. Even though he is considered to be a pioneering African-American actor, his negative and stereotypical portrayal of blacks on screen is looked upon with disgust and disdain, even today.

From his very first film, 1927’s, ‘In Old Kentucky,’ through the majority of his career, Stepin Fetchit consistently played the uncle Tom role to a tee. A good example of that would be his role in the 1952 film, ‘Bend of the River.’ What seems to stand out the most about the character that Fetchit plays, is the child like quality he exhibits, innocent and non-threatening, something that was very common in the majority of films that featured African-American characters, especially between the 1920’s and 1940’s. And even though this film was made in the 1950’s, where some changes were just over the horizon, Stepin Fetchit had been playing his signature role for so long, that to see him as anything other than the lazy, shiftless character moviegoers grew to know, would be shocking to say the least.

The fact of the matter is, Stepin Fetchit was cast in this film, as well as all the previous films that he had been in, for one reason, and one reason only, comic relief, and that example is displayed in several scenes, including one scene where he has comical interchange with an African-American actress dressed up like ‘Aunt Jamima.’ The unfortunate truth about all of this is that Stepin Fetchit was a very intelligent and talented actor, as were many of his African-American contemporaries. But none of them were ever able to portray that on film.

Stage Two: The Great Black Hope

As America moved into the 1950’s, changes were slowly being made, as African-Americans started to show that they could be more than just butlers and maids, but were human beings with brains, just like white people. And on the movie screen, the same types of changes were taking place as well, America was introduced to a new image of the African-American, and his name was Sidney Poitier. Proud, articulate, confident,attractive. Sidney Poitier became the first African-American matinee idol. He was a complete 180-degree opposite of the African-American image that had been perpetuated by Stepin Fetchit. Throughout the remainder of the 1950’s, and even into the 1960’s, Poitier showed a type of quiet defiance in all of his roles, including a landmark performance in the 1967 classic, ‘In the Heat of the Night.’ In the film, Poitier plays a Philadelphia homicide detective in Mississippi, helping to solve a murder. From the moment that Poitier’s character steps off the train, he is a stranger in a strange land, a black man with dignity and self-esteem in the racially heated south. His character respects himself and demands just as much respect from others, as he demonstrates when he speaks the classic line, “they call me Mr. Tibbs.”

In another scene, and probably one of the most powerful in film history, Poitier’s character is questioning one of the town’s very important men. Upset with the line of questioning, the man slaps Poitier across the face, and without missing a single beat, Poitier slaps him back. Sidney Poitier showed a side of the black man that had never been seen before. Audiences were not used to a black person being the smartest, coolest, most civilized person in the group, especially when that group included whites. The strides that Sidney Poitier made on screen were very defining and influential, and would pay huge dividends for African-American actors in the decades to come.

Stage Three: From Zero to Hero

For years, there’s always been the joke, that in horror movies, the first person to get killed was always the black dude. But in 1968, a low-budget horror film by director George Romero changed that view by having “the black dude” not only the last to die, but also the hero the film. Borrowing from an image of African-Americans started by Sidney Poitier, the black lead in Romero’s ‘Night of the Living Dead,’ seems to be the one who is able to keep his cool and stay calm and level-headed, when it seems like the whole world is coming to an end around him.

George Romero himself has said that the reason he put a black actor in the lead role was not because he was trying to make some sort of political statement. It was because he was the best actor that Romero knew among his friends. Whatever the reason, the fact that the hero was African-American was a very significant moment in film history. And it showed that the image of the movie hero could be more than just John Wayne or Jimmy Stewart.

Stage Four: Partners

It’s nice to be the hero, but sometimes saving the world or fighting crime requires a little help, no matter what your skin color, as demonstrated by the popular buddy cop movies. After a while the formula began to grow tired, then along came ‘Lethal Weapon,’ another buddy cop movie with a twist. One partner was black, and the other white, and it changed the face of the buddy cop movie forever. What’s interesting is the juxtaposition of the two cops: on the one hand you have the African-American cop who lives in a nice surburban neighborhood with a stable family, and you have the white cop who lives alone and is portrayed as the oddball or outcast. And as is typical with most buddy cop movies, the initial meeting between the two is less than cordial. But through the course of the film, their relationship grows to the point that the white cop becomes like an adopted member of the family, from having dinner with them to spending Christmas with them. In the end, the movie isn’t about a black cop and a white cop. It’s about two cops who build a friendship.

Stage Five: Black Power

A very well-dressed attractive woman stands before a group of reporters, and announces, “ladies and gentlemen, the President of the United States.” At this point, out walks a middle-aged African-American man with salt and pepper hair, and a mustache. No, it’s not the latest comedy movie starring Eddie Murphy. In fact, it is a drama, and the African-American man is Morgan Freeman, one of the most respected and acclaimed actors of the past twenty years. And in the1998 film ‘Deep Impact,’ it’s a scene that never would have been imagined, even ten years earlier, but was now being played out on movie screens across the country. At moments Freeman's portrayal of the most powerful man in the world seemed more presidential than some of the real life presidents that have held the office. There was a time when an African-American would have never been thought to possess the characteristics needed to make a good president: strong, decisive, and intelligent. But those times have changed, and it is reflected on the big screen. As a matter of fact, there have been several films over the past ten years, that have had African-Americans as presidents, or presidential candidates, including comedies.

Stage Six: The Best Man

One of the best films ever made was ‘The Manchurian Cndidate,’ a 1960’s political thriller that starred the legendary Frank Sinatra. So who do you get for the 2004 remake? Mel Gibson? Bruce Willis? Brad Pitt? How about Denzel Washington? Well, the fact is, Denzel Washington is who they got, and whether he was the studio’s first choice or their last, they felt that he had enough star power, even as a black man, to carry such a movie. Even in Sidney Poitier’s heyday, it is probably safe to say that he never would have been considered to reprise a classic role originated by a white movie star. But “the times, they are a-changing,” to quote a classic Bob Dylan song. No longer is color an issue when it comes to casting a film: even comic book characters who were white in print, are recast as black on film. More and more, studios are casting based, not on color,but on what the actor can deliver at the box office. What is next? Will Smith as James Bond? Wesley Snipes starring in a remake of On the Waterfront? The possibilities are endless, as long as Hollywood’s mind is open, and their eyes are closed.

Stage Seven: The Last Taboo

For the longest time, one of the biggest taboos in film has been the subject of interracial relationships between the sexes. As other racial barriers in film steadily fell aside, interracial romance seemed to take a little longer. The best example of this taboo would have to be two earlier versions of William Shakespeare’s, ‘Othello’ (1952,1965) a story that deals with the subject of interracial romance. In both cases, white actors in black face were cast to play the famous Moor of Venice. Flash-forward to 1995, and you get a different story. This time around, actor Lawrence Fishburne is cast in the lead role. A black actor playing a black character, what a breakthrough! But that is only part of the story. The most telling thing about the changing climate that has taken place in film concerning the issue of interracial romance, is the graphic lovemaking scene between Fishburn’s ‘Othello,’ and Desdemona. Even something as little as a kiss between a black man and a white woman on screen would have caused a riot during Hollywood’s golden age. The film did not even feel the need to shy away from Othello’s jealous and violent tendencies, something that could be thought to show an African-American in a negative light. Instead the filmmaker showed a man dealing with issues that can affect a man of any color.

In this more enlightened era of filmmaking, an African-American Othello isn’t the only change. The whole racial dynamic has been turned on its head when it comes to relationships between men and women. A very good example of this would be 1999’s ‘The Wild Wild West,’ starring Will Smith and Kevin Kline, one black man and one white man, vying for the affections of the same woman. Another good example is the 1995 movie ‘Money Train.’ In it, Wesley Snipes beats out co-star Woody Harrelson to win the heart of a woman that they are both interested in. What was considered groundbreaking in 1967 with the film, ‘Guess who’s Coming To Dinner,’ has now become commonplace today. And by doing so, it only strengthens the notion that love is color- blind.

This has been just a very brief look at how Hollywood has changed in respect to the African-American actor; the story is much, much bigger than these few pages can tell. The impact that African-Americans have made in the film industry over the past several decades has grown by leaps and bounds, and continues to grow even more. From African-American directors, writers, and producers, to Academy Award winners, the strides that have been made over the years do not just benefit African-Americans, they benefit everyone.