Fredi Washington and Lawrence Brown, September 28, 1933
SubjectPortrait of
Fredi Washington
(American, 1903 - 1994)
SubjectPortrait of
Lawrence Brown
(American, 1907 - 1988)
Original OwnerOriginally owned by
Fredi Washington
(American, 1903 - 1994)
PhotographerPhotographed by
Unknown
DateSeptember 28, 1933
MediumPhotography; gelatin silver print on paper
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (image height x width): 6 1/4 x 4 3/8in. (15.9 x 11.1cm) or smaller
Sheet (height x width): 7 x 5in. (17.8 x 12.7cm) or smaller
ClassificationsGraphics
Credit LineThe Newman S. Hungerford Museum Fund
Object number2001.22.149
DescriptionPortrait of Fredi Washington with husband Lawrence Brown posing on a ship deck. Fredi wears a tan-colored, full-length coat with dark shirt and tan-colored skirt. She wears a dark hat and flowers on the left collar of her coat. Fredi clutches a purse in her left hand. Lawrence wears a dark suit with white shirt and patterned tie. Lawrence holds a smoking pipe in his right hand. A small flower is visible in the left lapel of his suit jacket. A range of buildings is visible in the background.
Collections
Subject Note: Fredericka Carolyn "Fredi" Washington was born in Savannah, Georgia in 1903 and died in Stamford, Connecticut in 1994. Fredi began her career as a dancer at the Cotton Club in Harlem during the 1920s. She appeared in Black and Tan, a short film featuring Duke Ellington and his orchestra, in 1929 and went on to career in motion pictures. She is most famous for her portrayal of Peola in Imitation of Life (1934). Fredi helped found the Negro Actors Guild of America in 1937 and served as Entertainment Editor of the People's Voice, established in 1942 by Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., who married Fredi's sister. Fredi was also active in the NAACP. She played opposite the great African-American actor Paul Robeson on several occasions, most notably in the film version of The Emperor Jones in 1933, but also in a 1926 production of Black Boy, at the Stamford Theater. Fredi's first husband was Lawrence Brown, a trombonist in Duke Ellington's orchestra. After they divorced in 1951, she married a Stamford dentist, Hugh Anthony Bell, and moved to suburban Greenwich. Bell died in 1970. In 1975, Fredi was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame; in 1979, she received a CIRCA Award for lifetime achievement in the performing arts. She was 90 years old when she died of pneumonia in 1994. (Finlay 12/29/10)
Status
Not on view
Fredi Washington
January 24, 1928
