Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson (/ˈroʊbsən/ ROHB-sən;[2][3] April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, actor, professional football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his political stances.
This article is about the singer and activist. For his son, see Paul Robeson Jr.
Paul Robeson
January 23, 1976 (aged 77)
- Singer
- actor
- social activist
- lawyer
- athlete
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
219 lb (99 kg)
15
15
15
2[1]
In 1915, Robeson won an academic scholarship to Rutgers College in New Brunswick, New Jersey, where he was the only African-American student. While at Rutgers, he was twice named a consensus All-American in football and was elected class valedictorian. He earned his LL.B. from Columbia Law School, while playing in the National Football League (NFL). After graduation, he became a figure in the Harlem Renaissance, with performances in Eugene O'Neill's The Emperor Jones and All God's Chillun Got Wings.
Robeson performed in Britain in a touring melodrama, Voodoo, in 1922, and in Emperor Jones in 1925. In 1928, he scored a major success in the London premiere of Show Boat. Living in London for several years with his wife Eslanda, Robeson continued to establish himself as a concert artist and starred in a London production of Othello, the first of three productions of the play over the course of his career. He also gained attention in Sanders of the River (1935) and in the film production of Show Boat (1936). Robeson's political activities began with his involvement with unemployed workers and anti-imperialist students in Britain, and it continued with his support for the Republican cause during the Spanish Civil War and his involvement in the Council on African Affairs (CAA).
After returning to the United States in 1939, Robeson supported the American and Allied war efforts during World War II. His history of supporting civil rights causes and Soviet policies, however, brought scrutiny from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). After the war ended, the CAA was placed on the Attorney General's List of Subversive Organizations. Robeson was investigated during the McCarthy era. When he refused to recant his public advocacy of his political beliefs, the U.S. State Department withdrew his passport and his income plummeted. He moved to Harlem and published a periodical called Freedom,[4] which was critical of United States policies, from 1950 to 1955. Robeson's right to travel was eventually restored as a result of the 1958 United States Supreme Court decision Kent v. Dulles.
Between 1925 and 1961, Robeson released recordings of some 276 songs. The first of these was the spiritual "Steal Away", backed with "Were You There", in 1925. Robeson's recorded repertoire spanned many styles, including Americana, popular standards, classical music, European folk songs, political songs, poetry and spoken excerpts from plays.[5]
Theatrical success and ideological transformation[edit]
1923–1927: Harlem Renaissance[edit]
Robeson briefly worked as a lawyer, but he renounced a career in law because of racism.[74] His wife supported them financially. She was the head histological chemist in Surgical Pathology at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. She continued to work there until 1925 when his career took off.[75] They frequented the social functions at the future Schomburg Center.[76] In December 1924 he landed the lead role of Jim in Eugene O'Neill's All God's Chillun Got Wings,[77] which culminated with Jim metaphorically consummating his marriage with his white wife by symbolically emasculating himself. Chillun's opening was postponed due to nationwide controversy over its plot.[78]
Chillun's delay led to a revival of The Emperor Jones with Robeson as Brutus, a role pioneered by Charles Sidney Gilpin.[79] The role terrified and galvanized Robeson, as it was practically a 90-minute soliloquy.[80] Reviews declared him an unequivocal success.[81] Though arguably clouded by its controversial subject, his Jim in Chillun was less well received.[82] He answered criticism of its plot by writing that fate had drawn him to the "untrodden path" of drama, that the true measure of a culture is in its artistic contributions, and that the only true American culture was African-American.[83]
The success of his acting placed him in elite social circles[84] and his ascension to fame, which was forcefully aided by Essie,[85] had occurred at a startling pace.[86] Essie's ambition for Robeson was a startling dichotomy to his indifference.[87] She quit her job, became his agent, and negotiated his first movie role in a silent race film directed by Oscar Micheaux, Body and Soul (1925).[88] To support a charity for single mothers, he headlined a concert singing spirituals.[89] He performed his repertoire of spirituals on the radio.[90]
Lawrence Benjamin Brown, who had become renowned while touring as a pianist with gospel singer Roland Hayes, chanced upon Robeson in Harlem.[91] The two ad-libbed a set of spirituals, with Robeson as lead and Brown as accompanist. This so enthralled them that they booked Provincetown Playhouse for a concert.[92] The pair's rendition of African-American folk songs and spirituals was captivating,[93] and Victor Records signed Robeson to a contract in September 1925.[94]
The Robesons went to London for a revival of The Emperor Jones, before spending the rest of the fall on holiday on the French Riviera, socializing with Gertrude Stein and Claude McKay.[95] Robeson and Brown performed a series of concert tours in America from January 1926 until May 1927.[96]
During a hiatus in New York, Robeson learned that Essie was several months pregnant.[97] Paul Robeson Jr. was born in November 1927 in New York, while Robeson and Brown toured Europe.[98] Essie experienced complications from the birth,[99] and by mid-December, her health had deteriorated dramatically. Ignoring Essie's objections, her mother wired Robeson and he immediately returned to her bedside.[100] Essie completely recovered after a few months.
1928–1932: Show Boat, Othello, and marriage difficulties[edit]
In 1928, Robeson played "Joe" in the London production of the American musical Show Boat, at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.[101] His rendition of "Ol' Man River" became the benchmark for all future performers of the song.[102] Some black critics objected to the play's use of the then common racial epithet.[103] It was, nonetheless, immensely popular with white audiences.[104] He was summoned for a Royal Command Performance at Buckingham Palace[105] and Robeson was befriended by Members of Parliament (MPs) from the House of Commons.[106] Show Boat continued for 350 performances and, as of 2001, it remained the Royal's most profitable venture.[102] The Robesons bought a home in Hampstead.[107] He reflected on his life in his diary and wrote that it was all part of a "higher plan" and "God watches over me and guides me. He's with me and lets me fight my own battles and hopes I'll win."[108] However, an incident at the Savoy Grill, in which he was refused seating, sparked him to issue a press release describing the insult which subsequently became a matter of public debate.[109]
Essie had learned early in their marriage that Robeson had been involved in extramarital affairs, but she tolerated them.[110] However, when she discovered that he was having another affair, she unfavorably altered the characterization of him in his biography,[111] and defamed him by describing him with "negative racial stereotypes".[112] Despite her uncovering of this tryst, there was no public evidence that their relationship had soured.[113]
The couple appeared in the experimental Swiss film Borderline (1930).[114] He then returned to the Savoy Theatre, in London's West End to play Othello, opposite Peggy Ashcroft as Desdemona.[115] He cited the lack of a "racial problem" in London as significant in his decision to move to London.[116] Robeson was the first black actor to play Othello in Britain since Ira Aldridge.[117] The production received mixed reviews which noted Robeson's "highly civilized quality [but lacking the] grand style."[118] Robeson stated the best way to diminish the oppression African Americans faced was for his artistic work to be an example of what "men of my colour" could accomplish rather than to "be a propagandist and make speeches and write articles about what they call the Colour Question."[119]
After Essie discovered Robeson had been having an affair with Ashcroft, she decided to seek a divorce and they split up.[120] While working in London, Robeson became one of the first artists to record at the new EMI Recording Studios (later known as Abbey Road Studios), recording four songs in September 1931, almost two months before the studio was officially opened.[121] Robeson returned to Broadway as Joe in the 1932 revival of Show Boat, to critical and popular acclaim.[122] He received, with immense pride, an honorary master's degree from Rutgers.[123] It is said that Foster Sanford, his college football coach advised him that divorcing Essie and marrying Ashcroft would do irreparable damage to his reputation.[124] In any case, Ashcroft and Robeson's relationship ended in 1932,[125] and Robeson and Essie reconciled, leaving their relationship scarred permanently.[126]
1933–1937: Ideological awakening[edit]
In 1933, Robeson played the role of Jim in the London production of Chillun, virtually gratis,[127] then returned to the United States to star as Brutus in the film The Emperor Jones—the first film to feature an African American in a starring role, "a feat not repeated for more than two decades in the U.S."[128][129] His acting in The Emperor Jones was well received.[129] On the film set he rejected any slight to his dignity, despite the widespread Jim Crow atmosphere in the United States.[130] Upon returning to England, he publicly criticized African Americans' rejection of their own culture.[131] Despite negative reactions from the press, such as a New York Amsterdam News retort that Robeson had made a "jolly well [ass of himself]",[132] he also announced that he would reject any offers to perform central European (though not Russian, which he considered "Asiatic") opera because the music had no connection to his heritage.[133]
In early 1934, Robeson enrolled in the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), a constituent college of the University of London, where he studied phonetics and Swahili.[134][135] His "sudden interest" in African history and its influence on culture[136] coincided with his essay "I Want to be African", wherein he wrote of his desire to embrace his ancestry.[137]
Later years[edit]
1958–1960: Comeback tours[edit]
1958 saw the publication of Robeson's "manifesto-autobiography" Here I Stand.[268]
Paul Robeson had an extensive recording career; discogs.com lists[380] some 66 albums and 195 singles.
Selected albums