In honor of TCM and their “Summer Under the Stars” series, we launch our companion series, Summer Madness. The series will spotlight the achievements and films of one Black actor, daily throughout the month of August.
Day 5
Woody Strode (July 25, 1914 – December 31, 1994) was an African American decathlete and football star who went on to become a film actor. He was nominated for a Golden Globe award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Spartacus in 1960.
As an actor, the 6 ft 4 in Strode was noted for film roles that contrasted with the stereotypes of the time. Strode made his first credited appearance in 1941 but gained acclaim playing dual roles in The Ten Commandments (1956) as an Ethiopian king as well as a slave, and in 1959 portrayed the cowardly Private Franklin in Pork Chop Hill. His close friendship with director John Ford, resulted in him getting the title role in Sergeant Rutledge (1960) as a member of the Ninth Cavalry falsely accused of rape and murder; he appeared in smaller roles in Ford’s later films Two Rode Together (1961), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), and 7 Women (1966). Strode played a heroic sailor on a sinking ship in the 1960 film, The Last Voyage. In 1966, he landed a major starring role as a soldier of fortune and expert archer in The Professionals, a major box-office success that established him as a recognizable star.
Another notable part was as a gunslinger in the opening sequence of Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West (1968). Strode won rave reviews for his thinly-disguised portrayal of Patrice Lumumba in Black Jesus. He remained a visible character actor throughout the 1970s and 1980s in such films as Scream (1981) and has become widely regarded (along with Sidney Poitier and Brock Peters) as one of the most important black film actors of his time. His last film was The Quick and the Dead (1995), which starred Gene Hackman, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Russell Crowe. The closing credits dedicate the film to Strode. #SummerMadness #Strode
Recommended films:
Sergeant Rutledge (’60)
Spartacus (’60)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (’62)
Once Upon A Time in the West (’68)
Posse (’93)
