Leigh Whipper

By the time of his passing at age 98, Leigh had witnessed the evolution of Black performance from the silent race films of the 1920s to the dawn of the Blaxploitation era.

He remained a mentor to countless actors, proving that a career built on “being natural” could endure for nearly a century.

leighwhipper_12

Personal Reflections

  • On his passion: “I took a LOVE for acting“.
  • On his education: “I never attended drama school… I was too busy earning a living“.
  • The best lesson he received: “The success of acting was to try not to act; be natural. And that’s about the best lesson I’ve ever had“.

Famous Movie Quotes

Whipper delivered some of the most poignant lines in early Hollywood history, often portraying characters who spoke truth to power or highlighted social isolation:
  • As Crooks in Of Mice and Men (1939):
    • “You want me to tell you what would happen? They would take you to a booby hatch. They’ll tie you up with a collar like a dog. Then you’d be just like me. Living in a kennel“.
    • “Come on in. You might as well. Everybody’s coming in. Kinda like a race track“.
  • As Sparks in The Ox-Bow Incident (1943):
    • “Looks like you gonna have a lot of shootin’ to do, Mr. Farnley” (responding to a threat against those who lit cigarettes).
  • As Lodi in Peter Gunn:
    • “The world’s too complicated already. One name’s enough for anybody“.

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LINKS

http://www.blackpast.org/?q=aah/whipper-leigh-1876-1975

http://dogpossum.org/archives/2006/12/http://www.blackpast.org/?

http://www.flixster.com/celebrity/leigh-whipper/http://www.listal.com/leigh-whipper

http://www.sharetheatre.org/tag/of-mice-and-men/

http://www.thelin.net/laurent/cinema/films/tt0036244.html

http://diva-harrington.com/

http://archive.org/details/natural_born_gambler

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0139488/

www.downtownmusicgallery.com

https://samepassage.org/leigh-whipper/

http://nypl.bibliocommons.com/item/show/11903976052_leigh_rollin_whipper_papers

http://nypl.bibliocommons.com/item/show/15110580052_helen_armstead-johnson_miscellaneous_theater_collections

http://nypl.bibliocommons.com/item/show/11486855052_hatch-billops_collection

http://as.sjsu.edu/steinbeck/teaching_steinbeck/index.jsp?val=teaching_of_mice_and_men_major_themes

http://dogpossum.org/archives/2006/12/

http://forum.foreignmoviesddl.org/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=15084&view=next

http://www.emovieposter.com/atg_archive.php?id=671

http://kalamu.com/neogriot/2014/03/08/video-3-micheaux-movies/ 

https://ronfassler.medium.com/leigh-whipper-i-took-a-love-for-acting-4b01f5b9b2ff
http://loismailoujones.com/timeline.html

https://archives.nypl.org/scm/20792

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/leigh_whipper

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EDUCATIONAL – ENTERTAINMENT

DALE RICARDO SHIELDS (2026)

 

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ARCHIVIST, EDUCATOR, HISTORIAN, and ARTiST
Dale Ricardo Shields is highly accomplished African American actor, director, producer, and educator with a distinguished career in theatre and academia.

Here's a summary of his background and achievements:

Early Life and Family:
Born on November 4, 1952, in Cleveland, Ohio.
His family has a strong musical background; his grandfather and father were founding members of the Shields Brothers Gospel Quartet of Ohio, and his mother was part of the Turner Gospel Singers.
He is a cousin of boxing promoter Don King.
Education:
Graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in 1970.
Holds both a BFA (1975) and MFA (1995) from Ohio University.

Career and Contributions
Theatre Professional:
Actor: Has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway, and in regional productions. His television credits include The Cosby Show, Another World, Guiding Light, Saturday Night Live, and the ITV series Special Needs. He has also appeared in commercials and films.
Director and Stage Manager: Has extensive professional credits in these roles, including projects at Lincoln Center, The Henry Street Settlement House (New Federal Theatre), The Negro Ensemble Company, and The Joseph Papp Public Theatre.
Assistant Director: Served as assistant to Lloyd Richards and assistant director for the New Federal Theatre premiere of Ossie Davis's play A Last Dance With Sybil starring Ruby Dee and Earl Hyman.

Educator:
Professor: He is a Professor of Acting, Directing, Black Theatre, Black Studies, and Stage Management. He has taught at various institutions, including Ohio University, The College of Wooster, Denison University, Macalester College, Susquehanna University (as artist-in-residence), and SUNY Potsdam.
Workshops and Programs: Conducted workshops for Joseph Papp's Playwriting in the Schools Program (PITS) at The Public Theatre for six seasons and represented the United States at the ASSITEJ Theatre Festival in London, England, in 1988.
Artistic Activist and Historian:

Iforcolor.org: Creator and archivist for the Black History website Iforcolor.org, dedicated to preserving and sharing information about African Americans and artists of color. He also maintains the "Black Theatre/African American Voices" website on Facebook.
Project1VOICE Liaison: Serves as the Project1VOICE Liaison for the state of Ohio, directing "One Play One Day" events in Cleveland since 2011.

Awards and Recognition:
The Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Award: Recipient in 2017.
Paul Robeson Award: Recipient in 2021 (jointly presented by the Actors' Equity Association and Actors' Equity Foundation).
AUDELCO/"VIV" Special Achievement Award: Received in 2017.
Tony Award Nominee: Nominated for the "Excellence in Theatre Education Award" in 2015 and 2017.
Ebony Bobcat Network (EBN) Legend Award: Received from Ohio University in 2022.
ENCORE AWARD / The Actors Fund: Received in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2024.
Outstanding Professor Awards: Has received two of these and three "Educational Program of the Year" awards as a university professor.
The HistoryMakers archives: Interviewed and included in The HistoryMakers archives, permanently housed in the Library of Congress.
Dale Ricardo Shields is recognized for his profound impact on the lives of his students and his unwavering dedication to preserving and promoting Black theatre history and culture.