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Remembering Frederick O'Neal

Help fund "Remembering Fred O'Neal", an examination of the remarkable life of Actor, Equity president, and producer, Fred O'Neal. For release in summer 2014.

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Remembering Frederick O'Neal

Remembering Frederick O'Neal

Remembering Frederick O'Neal

Remembering Frederick O'Neal

Remembering Frederick O'Neal

Help fund "Remembering Fred O'Neal", an examination of the remarkable life of Actor, Equity president, and producer, Fred O'Neal. For release in summer 2014.

Help fund "Remembering Fred O'Neal", an examination of the remarkable life of Actor, Equity president, and producer, Fred O'Neal. For release in summer 2014.

Help fund "Remembering Fred O'Neal", an examination of the remarkable life of Actor, Equity president, and producer, Fred O'Neal. For release in summer 2014.

Help fund "Remembering Fred O'Neal", an examination of the remarkable life of Actor, Equity president, and producer, Fred O'Neal. For release in summer 2014.

Ken Sargeant
Ken Sargeant
Ken Sargeant
Ken Sargeant
1 Campaign |
New York, United States
$75 USD 2 backers
0% of $40,000 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal

Greetings:
The "Celebrating Frederick O'Neal" project is a full length 55 minute documentary film examining the life and contributions of this under-recognized American actor. Born in rural Mississippi  in 1905, O'Neal first came to New York at the urging of Zora Neal Hurston, to pursue his dreams of being an actor.
Finding few suitable roles, he and business partner Abram Hill set about the process of establishing "The American Negro Theatre". The theater, which would ultimately launch the careers of Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis, Sidney Poitier , Harry Belafonte and many others, prided itself in providing Black actors, not only with training but also with quality roles . O'Neal's co-production of and groundbreaking performance in Anna Lucasta propelled him onto the national scene, where for a time, film roles were plentiful.
Through it all he was a no nonsense labor advocate, rising for a decade to the reigns of Actor's Equity, and later the AFLCIO. His activism did not go unnoticed and placed him at loggerheads with the nefarious Senator Joseph McCarthy and his blacklist.  This proved to be the undoing of Fred's career as an actor, and eradicated his name from the public consciousness.

Frederick was a sacrificial lamb of sorts, giving up a lucrative career in the limelight in favor of a quieter, behind the scenes role as an agent for change. His actions were, in no small way, responsible for the emergence of quality roles for African Americans in Film, TV, and Theater.

We have done many interviews(notably Woody King, Gertrude Jeanette and Earl Hyman) and gathered all of the collateral materials needed to illustrate the piece. We would like to secure interviews with Harry, Sidney, Felicia Rashad, Audra McDonald, and others who are the benefactors of Fred's theatrical and political largess.

Budgeted at about 100k (we have in kind investment on the order of35k)we need to raise the noted sum to purchase intellectual property, film clips and sound needed for the film , as well as to fund an editor and DP for the remaining interviews.
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