Entertainment
Nation’s largest black film fest to open in L.A.
WAVE NEWSPAPERS — The nation’s largest black film festival kicks off in South L.A.
LOS ANGELES – The nation’s largest black film festival kicks off in South L.A. this week as thousands of art, film and music buffs flock to Southern California to celebrate and explore African-American life, history and culture.
From Feb. 7-18, more than 170 films from 40 countries in 26 languages will be screened at the Pan African Film & Arts Festival, all focused on exploring narratives that increase cultural awareness and bridge diverse communities from the African diaspora, festival organizers said.
The annual festival, co-founded by award-winning actor Danny Glover, is the largest event of its kind dedicated to film, art, music and creative expression by black people, organizers said.
“It’s been a privilege to be a platform for many filmmakers and talent to share their unique stories through the lens of their own experiences, visions and creative artistry,” said Ayuko Babu, the festival’s executive director and co-founder.
“Amazing Grace,” a 1972 documentary featuring Aretha Franklin and her L.A.-based recording of a gospel album, is the festival’s opening night film on Feb. 7. “Little Woods,” a modern-day Western starring Tessa Thompson, is the centerpiece film on Feb. 13. The closing night film on Feb. 17 has yet to be announced.
Other feature films include: “Where Hands Touch,” a romance film starring Amandla Stenberg; “Buffalo Soldiers: A Quest for Freedom,” directed by the Isabelle Brothers; and “Ali’s Comeback: The Untold Story,” which reveals behind-the-scenes efforts to get Muhammad Ali reinstated into boxing after he refused induction into the U.S. Army.
Babu said the festival’s goal is not only to celebrate black culture, but also to provide a creative space for the development and expression of black storylines through film, poetry, art and music. It also is intended to help show movie distributors the popularity and potential profitability of black narratives.
“The ongoing challenge is … whose story gets told on the small screen and big screen?” he said. “The Pan African Film Festival is a way of showing distributors the stories that matter to people of color.”
In the festival’s 26-year history, scores of filmmakers or celebrities have appeared or contributed works, organizers said, including Denzel Washington, Kevin Hart, Taraji P. Henson, Ava Duvernay, Jamie Foxx, Will Packer and Ryan Coogler, among many others.
This year’s celebrity guests include Bobby Brown, Danny Glover, Erica Campbell, Kelly Price, Laurence Fishburne, LA Reid, Loretta Devine, Nate Parker, Terrence J, and Tyrese, among others.
Held at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza, the festival also will feature industry-related panel discussions and speakers. The festival’s ArtFest will feature an eclectic mix of paintings, sculptures, fashion, jewelry and African artifacts.
Other events include select free screenings during the week for senior citizens, a comedy night on Feb. 11 hosted by J. Anthony Brown and a fashion show on Feb. 17.
For more information, visit the festival’s website at www.paff.org.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024
To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024
To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.
Entertainment
O.J. Simpson, 76, Dies of Prostate Cancer
Orenthal James (O.J.) Simpson, who rose to fame as a college football player who went on to the NFL and parlayed his talents in acting and sportscasting, succumbed to prostate cancer on April 10, his family announced.
By Post Staff
Orenthal James (O.J.) Simpson, who rose to fame as a college football player who went on to the NFL and parlayed his talents in acting and sportscasting, succumbed to prostate cancer on April 10, his family announced.
Born and raised in San Francisco, the Galileo High School graduate was recruited by the University of Southern California after he was on a winning Junior College All-American team.
At USC, he gained wide acclaim as a running back leading to him becoming the No. 1 pick in the AFL-NFL draft in 1969 and joining the Buffalo Bills, where he had demanded – and received — the largest contract in professional sports history: $650,000 over five years. In 1978, the Bills traded Simpson to his hometown team, the San Francisco 49ers, retiring from the game in 1979.
Simpson’s acting career had begun before his pro football career with small parts in 1960s TV (“Dragnet”) before “Roots” and film (“The Klansman,” “The Towering Inferno,” Capricorn One”).
He was also a commentator for “Monday Night Football,” and “The NFL on NBC,” and in the mid-1970s Simpson’s good looks and amiability made him, according to People magazine, “the first b\Black athlete to become a bona fide lovable media superstar.”
The Hertz rent-a-car commercials raised his recognition factor while raising Hertz’s profit by than 50%, making him critical to the company’s bottom line.
It could be said that even more than his success as a football star, the commercials of his running through airports endeared him to the Black community at a time when it was still unusual for a Black person to represent a national, mainstream company.
He remained on Hertz team into the 1990s while also getting income endorsing Pioneer Chicken, Honey Baked Ham and Calistoga water company products and running O.J. Simpson Enterprises, which owned hotels and restaurants.
He married childhood sweetheart Marguerite Whitley when he was 19 and became the father of three children. Before he divorced in 1979, he met waitress and beauty queen Nicole Brown, who he would marry in 1985. A stormy relationship before, during and after their marriage ended, it would lead to a highway car chase as police sought to arrest Simpson for the murder by stabbing of Brown and her friend Ron Goldman in 1994.
The pursuit, arrest, and trial of Simpson were among the most widely publicized events in American history, Wikipedia reported.
Characterized as the “Trial of the Century,” he was acquitted by a jury in 1995 but found liable in the amount of $33 million in a civil action filed by the victims’ families three years later.
Simpson would be ensnared in the criminal justice system 12 years later when he was arrested after forcing his way into a Las Vegas hotel room to recover sports memorabilia he believed belonged to him.
In 2008, he received a sentence of 33 years and was paroled nine years later in 2017.
When his death was announced, Simpson’s accomplishments and downfalls were acknowledged.
Sports analyst Christine Brennan said: “… Even if you didn’t love football, you knew O.J. because of his ability to transcend sports and of course become the businessman and the pitchman that he was.
“And then the trial, and the civil trial, the civil case he lost, and the fall from grace that was extraordinary and well-deserved, absolutely self-induced, and a man that would never be seen the same again,” she added.
“OJ Simpson played an important role in exposing the racial divisions in America,” attorney Alan Dershowitz, an adviser on Simpson’s legal “dream team” told the Associated Press by telephone. “His trial also exposed police corruption among some officials in the Los Angeles Police Department. He will leave a mixed legacy. Great athlete. Many people think he was guilty. Some think he was innocent.”
“Cookie and I are praying for O.J. Simpson’s children … and his grandchildren following his passing. I know this is a difficult time,” Magic Johnson said on X.
“I feel that the system failed Nicole Brown Simpson and failed battered women everywhere,” attorney Gloria Allred, who once represented Nicole’s family, told ABC News. “I don’t mourn for O.J. Simpson. I do mourn for Nicole Brown Simpson and her family, and they should be remembered.”
Simpson was diagnosed with prostate cancer about a year ago and was undergoing chemotherapy treatment, according to Pro Football Hall of Fame President Jim Porter. He died in his Las Vegas, Nevada, home with his family at his side.
He is survived by four children: Arnelle and Jason from his first marriage and Sydney and Justin from his second marriage. He was predeceased son, Aaren, who drowned in a family swimming pool in 1979.
Sources for this report include Wikipedia, ABC News, Associated Press, and X.
-
Community2 weeks ago
Financial Assistance Bill for Descendants of Enslaved Persons to Help Them Purchase, Own, or Maintain a Home
-
Activism4 weeks ago
Oakland Post: Week of April 3 – 6, 2024
-
Business2 weeks ago
V.P. Kamala Harris: Americans With Criminal Records Will Soon Be Eligible for SBA Loans
-
Community2 weeks ago
AG Bonta Says Oakland School Leaders Should Comply with State Laws to Avoid ‘Disparate Harm’ When Closing or Merging Schools
-
Activism3 weeks ago
Oakland Post: Week of April 10 – 16, 2024
-
Community1 week ago
Oakland WNBA Player to be Inducted Into Hall of Fame
-
Community1 week ago
Richmond Nonprofit Helps Ex-Felons Get Back on Their Feet
-
City Government2 weeks ago
LAO Releases Report on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in California Child Welfare System