Paul Robeson
From Harlem Renaissance
Contents |
Family Life
Athletics
When he made the varsity football team, the other players discriminated him because of his race. He was smoked over by the other players before he even took the field. On the field, they tried to hurt and injure him severely. He had to recover from wounds quite frequently. He did not let this stop him from playing football. Later in the season during practice, he stepped out onto the field and played his heart out. At the end of the game five or six white players were being carried off the field on stretchers because of Paul. After this event, he became respected as a player and as a person. After he graduated he decided to apply his athletic skills and started a short career in professional football.
Education
Paul went to Somerville High School, in Somerville New Jersey. He played the bass and sang there. He graduated with honors in singing and acting. He received a four-year scholarship to Rutgers University, making him the third African American to go there. He also was the only African American on campus while he was at Rutgers University. During his stay at Rutgers University, Paul was elected valedictorian of his class. While in the NFL, he earned a law degree at Colombia University, which altered the course of his career. His legal career was stopped after a secretary would not to take dictation because he was black. It was here, Robeson experienced racism, which led to his decision to go back to theater.
Singing and Acting Career
Paul Robeson's acting career began to soar in 1928 when he took the role of Joe in a London assembly of the Show Boat by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein. His singing of "Ol' Man River" received the most praise related to the show and earned him a vast amount of notification from British socialites. Robeson performed concerts in London at Albert Hall and Sunday afternoon concerts at Drury Lane. Although Paul was now famous, he still had to deal with racism. In 1929 he was refused permission to a London hotel. Because of the protest raised by Robeson, five star hotels in London said they would start to serve blacks. After this, Robeson was loved by the media. The New York Times called him "the promise of his race". When he returned to the United States he performed at Carnegie Hall. In 1930, after he bought a house in London, he took on the head role in Shakespeare's Othello. This was preformed at the Savoy Theater. This was also the first time since 1860 a black man acted in the Savoy Theater.
Personal Life
Paul Robeson's personal life was not so great. His wife Eslanda "Essie Goode," filed for divorce in 1932. Her actions were endorsed by the fact that Robeson had fallen in love and planned to marry Yolande Jackson, a white woman. Jackson, who had been called by Paul the love of his life, had originally accepted his proposal, but cancelled the marriage. This happened because a friend of Yolande Jackson said that her father, who was not a fan of colored people, heavily influenced her decision. Even though Eslanda had called of the wedding before, she and Robeson decided to get back together again.
Paul Robeson also experienced racism. He was compelled to use freight elevators and restaurants and hotels would not let him in even when he was at the apex of his popularity. The government would not allow him to make speeches or perform outside the United States because he was black.
Activism
Paul Robeson acted in many films countering racism towards blacks like Black Majesty.” In my music, my plays, my films, I want to carry always this central idea: to be African". He acted in this film when he was in the Soviet Union. He sent his son to school in the Soviet Union so he would not have to deal with racism in the United States. Even though he was popular in the United States, the press was telling people about how negative his actions were. He decided to get out of the United States, but his plans were stalled by the United States government. He could only travel out side of the United States if he did not make any speeches. He still continued writing in the newspaper Freedom about racism. He also traveled within the United States to talk to different ethnic groups about equality and to jive for their dreams. “Freedom is a hard-bought thing and millions are in chains, but they strain toward the new day drawing near.” He then wrote and published his book Here I Stand in a London publishing house.
In 1939 Robeson said he was going to retire from commercial entertainment. He said his first recital in Mother AME Zion Church Harlem where his brother was the pastor. In the same year, Robeson debuted the honorable song "Ballad for Americans" on CBS radio as a sneak peek of a play titled the same name. The song was so well accepted that studio audience gave a standing ovation for 20 minutes. Robeson's popularity in the United States rose tremendously and he continued to be the most praised person in the nation until the mid 1940s. He was presented the admired NAACP Spingarn Medal in 1945 as well as many other awards from civic and professional groups. Robeson's act in the American production of Shakespeare’s Othello in 1943, situated among the elite Shakespearean actors.
Death
Paul Robeson died after having countless strokes on January 23, 1976. His son, Paul Robeson Jr. received his Life Time Achievement Grammy Award in 1998.
Internal Links
W.E.B. Du Bois, Paul Robeson almost married W.EB. Du Bois's daughter, Yolande Jackson
External Links
Paul Robeson, This site explains Robeson's success in athletics and education
Paul Robeson 2, This site explains Robeson's persanol life (Marriage ect.),and his activism in Civil Rights
Paul Robeson 3, This site explains his childhood, and his acting career
Vocabulary
Jive: To pursue; to capture
Smoked Over: Looking over critically
Bibliography
Book: World Book Encyclopedia, 16 vols. Chicago, IL: World Book, Inc., 2008
Book: Harlem Stomp,Hill, Laban. Harlem Stomp!. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 200
"Robeson, Paul (1898-1976)." DISCovering Biography. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Student Resource Center - Gold. Gale. San Francisco Public Library. 4 Mar. 2008
http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/robeson/
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USArobeson.htm
