35TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION Super Hero PAUL ROBESON

Paul Robeson 

Paul Robeson was born April 9, 1898, in Princeton, New Jersey, the son of a minister father, who was a runaway slave, and school teacher mother, who died when Paul was six. After graduating high school with honors in 1915, he won an academic scholarship to prestigious Rutgers University. Though the only Black student there, he was extremely popular. 

Robeson received national attention for his athletic abilities at Rutgers. As an all-around athlete, he earned 12 varsity letters in football, track, baseball, and basketball; he was twice named a football All-American. He excelled just as well in his studies. Robeson won Rutgers' major oratorical contests four years in a row, and he earned Phi Beta Kappa (the nation's highest scholastic honor) in his junior year. In 1919, Robeson graduated as valedictorian of his class. 

After deciding not to become a full-time professional athlete, Robeson entered Columbia University to obtain his law degree, which he did in 1923. He played pro football on weekends to support himself and his wife, Eslanda. She was a fellow Columbia student and a chemist who was the first African American to work at New York's Presbyterian Hospital. 

After graduation, Robeson briefly worked at a prestigious law firm. He soon quit because of the lack of opportunity for Blacks in the legal profession at the time and because of discriminatory practices. Robeson drifted into stage acting, having appeared in amateur productions in college. He met dramatist Eugene O'Neill in 1924 and was quickly signed as lead in O'Neill's All God's Chillun Got Wings and The Emperor Jones. Robeson's booming baritone and acting skills garnered instant acclaim. 

Beginning in 1925, he gave immensely successful concerts of gospel spirituals and folk songs across the country. In 1927, Robeson opened in London in the musical Show Boat and sang "Ol Man River." That song has become an American classic forever associated with Robeson's deep tones. 

With his star steadily rising, Robeson continued giving concerts to capacity crowds and starring in such plays as John Henry and The Hairy Ape. In 1943, when he starred as Othello with an all-white cast, the production set a record for the longest Broadway run of a play by Shakespeare. Some consider it one of the most memorable events in the history of the theater. He also performed the play in London to acclaim. 

By 1945, Robeson had become the most famous Black man in America. He appeared in a dozen movies, including King Solomon's Mines, Proud Valley, Sanders of the River, The Song of Freedom, and the film versions of Show Boat and The Emperor Jones. In most of these movies, Robeson played Black characters with dignity, in contrast to the stereotypical African-American roles of Hollywood films of that day.

Robeson was a staunch opponent of racism and spent much of his time and energy fighting for equality for Blacks in America. His frequent international concert tours colored his world view. He learned more than 20 languages, including Russian, and began to study his African heritage and its culture. Robeson and his family visited the Soviet Union in 1934. After being received warmly, they decided to remain there for several years. 

Robeson became a supporter of progressive causes around the globe, including the rights of oppressed Jews, of anti-Fascist forces in Spain, and of African nations against European colonial powers. The more he studied ideas of universal fellowship and world peace, the more he spoke out in the United States and abroad on the plight of Blacks in America. Robeson met with President Harry Truman to urge him to do something about the lynchings of Blacks in the South. His increasingly vocal opposition drew the ire of some people, who labeled him "un-American." 

In 1950, as the Cold War with the Soviet Union heated up, the State Department withdrew Robeson's passport because of alleged communist affiliations. Robeson vowed that he had never been a member of the Communist Party but would not sign an oath disavowing communism. This brought the great entertainer's singing and acting career to an end. Both Blacks and whites in America turned their backs on him. He was not allowed to travel abroad for eight years. 

The Supreme Court restored his passport in 1958 after declaring the oath he was asked to sign unconstitutional. With his passport returned, Robeson left the country and toured until 1963. Poor health forced him back to America and into retirement. Robeson died January 23, 1976, at age 77.

From Great African Americans.  Copyright, Publications International, Ltd.