Comments on: James Edwards: “Someone Must Make a Stand”

By: Honut Sinti

Honut Sinti — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 02:38:47 +0000

Great article.

Thanks!

By: vincent John Vanasco

vincent John Vanasco — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 14:31:14 +0000

In the 1980′s working as an Investigator, I was at a blck entertainment office on Broadway and W.66th street. The owner of the agency did not know the person I was looking for. She had tons of black entertainment pictures on her walls. I looked high and low and no James Edwards. I asked her about what I considered a gross oversight. She said “who was he? I told her about him for 10 minutes. I told her find out and try to see “Home of the Brave” He predated Poitier and Belafonte, and to me he was much better. I must have watched the film on Channel 9′s Million Dollar Movie 14 times that one week. I was mesmorized by his performance. That is right up there as one of my alltime favorites. I saw all his other movies and he was always remarkable. He coulda and shouda been one of the greatest. I never knew him but felt his impact in my life. He was a contender, but to me he was a WINNER. I never thought of him as anything but a man, a very talented man, and not a black man per se. I shared this picture with my children who are all movie buffs as well, and they having worked on T.V. and various movies in N.Y. shared my sentiments.

By: JD

JD — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 05:40:58 +0000

I was gonna be wordy, pithy and professorial, but Loren (see previous post) beat me to it. Thank you, moirafinnie, for writing this splendid piece on James Edwards (and Woody Strode)and a MAJOR MAJOR THANK YOU and ALL PRAISE IS DUE to PATRICK CULLITOM for your stellar contribution to these replies. (Actually, they’ve all been rather good; there’s some real thinking people out there. It’s scary.)

By: L. Spain

L. Spain — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 04:43:12 +0000

I’m African-American, and I wish I had authored this little biography of James Edwards. It’s generously written, respectful without patronizing its subject, and highly descriptive of the inner qualities of the man that make him so compelling to those of us who feel his power.

Unfortunately, James Edwards had the kind of irresistible voice, piercing physical presence, and projected personality that made, and still makes, certain types of white people feel uneasy. Edwards didn’t appear to be eager to “set folks at ease”; in fact, a lot of times he looked like he was barely able to restrain himself from kicking somebody’s you-know-what. I believe that’s what prevented him from becoming popular with white audiences; there was an undercurrent of threat in his presence, regardless of whatever his actual demeanor may have been.

His inner awareness of the sharpness of looks, his commanding voice and acting skill must have been a cause of great inner torment for him as he wrestled with the brutal lack of opportunity that kept him so nearly-invisible to movie audiences. I imagine that he knew he was being wasted, and who can deal with that kind of knowledge without experiencing a major crisis of identity, of self-esteem?

Thank you for taking the time to remember Mr. Edwards, and so eloquently at that.

LOREN

By: Tarun Dobbins

Tarun Dobbins — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 05:12:56 +0000

Great to have documented and personal friends relate to the history and contribution of this great Actor Mr. James Edwards.

Mr. Edwards was a very personal Actor with great talent and had the emotions to convey the character of very diverse expressions of a complete venerable human being.

May God always bless him and his family.

By: Faiza

Faiza — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 01:30:43 +0000

Watching James Edwards on screen makes me realize that a great actor does not have to be famous in order to be memorable. Reading the other comments from those who feel as I do, it is satisfying to know that his small onscreen stage presence was just as powerful as the actors whose careers were more obvious. I hope that the Tuner Classic movie station compiles a historical profile of this distinquished actor to make more people aware of the great contribution James Edwards made to the African American Actors’ community.

By: RP

RP — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 03:44:14 +0000

In remembrance of James Edwards, on THIS day, January 4, 2011, the 41st anniversary of that day in 1970, when he left us…..too early and much too young.

Though I did not yet know much about him, I DID remember him, upon reading a brief history of his too-short career.

He stood out in my mind, when as a young child in the 1950′s, I saw him on several Saturday mornings in his roles on “Ramar” of the Jungle. I cannot recall WHY I remembered him so well, but I did. I was glad to find out who this man was, FINALLY, a couple years ago.

And THEN, I learned of his many other acting roles, and just over two years ago, rented many of the movies he appeared in. There are still a few I have yet to see.

Today, it is probably a good day to begin to see the rest of those movies, in memory of him.

Sir, You KNOW you led the way!

Some of us, here, also know that you did.

May you reap the rewards in Heaven that you were not allowed to have here…..in this imperfect world.

James, I pray that you Rest in Peace!!!

Sincerely,

By: Patrick Culliton

Patrick Culliton — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 02:55:56 +0000

I have recently put up a web page about Amos ‘n’ Andy. Very few people know that the weekly, night time, Amos ‘n’ Andy radio show featured a largely black cast and often had black guest stars. At the height of his fame, James Edwards guested on the show.
http://www.houdinisghost.com/amosandy.html

By: cj

cj — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 23:11:39 +0000

Unfortunately his career was thwarted by the political Hollywood machine and those people who were in charge of the studios at the time. It was NOT the general populace it was the people who pulled the strings at the studios that ruined him…not the people of this country>

By: W.Wray

W.Wray — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 02:25:23 +0000

I saw “The Set-Up” the other night on TCM and was reminded of my childhood memories of James Edwards. I recalled a handsome Black actor whose performances were notable for their dignity, which made them stand out from many others of that era. I wondered if others felt the same way. After some on-line research I wound up (not surprisingly) back at the TCM site. Ms. Finnie’s thoughtful article was truly a revelation and Mr. Cullitom’s remembrances were quite enlightening. It’s wonderful to see the reservoir of affection and information that does exist for this fine actor. I can’t help but think: Are we long overdue for a major biography or doctoral dissertation on the man and his work?