J. Augustus Smith Explained

J. Augustus Smith, also known as Gus Smith (born January 14, 1891),^[1] was an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter.^[2] In 1936 he was one of three theatre artists who succeeded John Houseman in leading the Negro Theatre Unit of the Federal Theatre Project in New York City.

Biography

Smith was born in Gainesville, Florida, in 1891. He made his stage debut during childhood, playing in minstrel shows.In 1911, Smith formed his own minstrel company, with which he toured the United States. He went on to have a career in acting and writing for theatre and film.

Smith wrote and appeared in Drums O' Voodoo (1934).^[3] The film was based on his play Louisiana,^{[4] [5]} which premiered in 1933 on Broadway, starring Smith.^{[6] [7]} The stage production featured an all-Black cast, members of the New Negro Repertory Theater Group, founded by Smith. The cast members reprised their roles for the film.^[8]

Smith co-wrote, co-directed, and co-starred in Turpentine, a play about conditions in turpentine camps in the American South,^[9] for the Federal Theatre Project. In 1936 he was one of a triumvirate of African-American theatre artists who succeeded John Houseman in leading the Negro Theatre Unit of the Federal Theatre Project.^[10]

Smith also wrote Just Ten Days, a folk-comedy that played at parks in the Bronx.^[11]

Smith and Oliver Foster had the lead roles in the theatrical production Walk Together Chillun.^[12]

Theatre

• Louisiana (1933)
• Turpentine (1936)^{[13] [14] [15] [16]}
• Walk Together Chillun (1936)^{[17] [18]}
• Just Ten Days (1937)
• The Case of Philip Lawrence (1937), director
• On Whitman Avenue (1946)^[19]

Filmography

Actor

• Chloe Love Is Calling You (1934)^[3]
• Drums O' Voodoo (1934)
• Murder on Lenox Avenue (1941) as Pa Wilkins
• Stolen Paradise (1941)^[3]
• Sunday Sinners (1941)^[3]
• Hi-De-Ho (1947 film) as Preacher
• Junction 88 as Chinka Lin^[4]
• Boarding House Blues (1948) as Norman Norman
• Killer Diller as Stage Hand

Writer

• Drums O' Voodoo (1934)

Notes and References

1. News: 1936-08-22. WPA Lafayette All-Negro Staff. 9. The New York Age. 2020-06-30.
2. https://diginole.lib.fsu.edu/islandora/object/fsu:168486/datastream/PDF/
3. Web site: AFI|Catalog. catalog.afi.com.
4. Book: Within Our Gates: Ethnicity in American Feature Films, 1911-1960. America Film Institute. Staff. Alan. Gevinson. American Film. Institute. American Film. Afi. May 25, 1997. University of California Press. 9780520209640. Google Books.
5. News: Johns. Vere E.. 1934-05-19. In the name of art. 4. The New York Age. 2020-06-30.
6. News: 1933-02-19. At the Majestic. 53. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. 2020-06-30.
7. News: 1933-02-21. "Louisiana," a play of the South, at Majestic Theatre. 7. Times Union. 2020-06-30.
8. News: 1934-04-28. Broadway stars prominent in voodoo talkie. 18. The Pittsburgh Courier. 2020-06-30.
9. News: 1942-10-11. Actor-author will appear at Gibbs High. 20. Tampa Bay Times. 2020-06-30.
10. Book: Houseman, John . John Houseman . Run-Through: A Memoir . . New York . 1972 . 209 . 0-671-21034-3.
11. News: 1937-08-21. 15,000 see Negro folk play on caravan. 9. The New York Age. 2020-06-30.
12. Book: Peterson, Bernard L.. Early Black American Playwrights and Dramatic Writers: A Biographical Directory and Catalog of Plays, Films, and Broadcasting Scripts. May 25, 1990. Greenwood Publishing Group. 9780313266218. Google Books.
13. Web site: Federal Theatre Project.
14. Web site: Jacob Lawrence The Migration Series, Panel 30. moma.jl.
15. Web site: Turpentine. Library of Congress.
16. Web site: Shared Collection Catalog | NYPL. Shared Collection Catalog | NYPL.
17. Web site: Walk Together Chillun. Library of Congress.
18. Web site: Production stills from Walk Together, Chillun by Frank Wilson, February 2, 1936 | Alexander Street, a ProQuest Company. search.alexanderstreet.com.
19. Web site: J. Augustus Smith. Playbill.