The Newman S. Hungerford Museum Fund, 2001.22.108, the Connecticut Historical Society.

Images(2)

Fredi Washington and friends seated on steps, August 10, 1937

SubjectPortrait of Fredi Washington American, 1903 - 1994

Original OwnerOriginally owned by Fredi Washington American, 1903 - 1994

DateAugust 10, 1937

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

DescriptionPortrait of Fredi Washington with a man and woman sitting on steps of an outdoor landscape. Fredi wears a white pantsuit with keyhole neckline. A purse strap is visible across the front of her pantsuit. The woman wears a light-colored, full-length dress and white heels. The man wears a dark suit with white shirt and tie. Two large plant vases flank the group on either side. A cluster of large trees is visible in the background.

Object number2001.22.108

MarkingsStamped on the back of the photograph in green ink: "10 POINT NUTONE PROCESS / BY THE / TAYLOR PHOTO COMPANY / 'CERTIFIED PHOTO FINISHING' / AUG 10 1937".

Stamped in black ink at top of photograph's verso: "495".InscribedAccession number 2001.22.108 is inscribed on verso, top right.NotesSubject Note: The man and woman in the photograph are likely the same pictured in 2001.22.102. (Dixon 5/22/2020)

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)

Subject Terms