Cabin in the Sky 1943 N/R, 99 min. Genre: Musical
Director: Vincente Minnelli Cast: Ethel Waters, Eddie "Rochester" Anderson, Lena Horne, Louis Armstrong, Rex Ingram, Mantan Moreland, Butterfly McQueen, Willie Best, Kenneth Spencer, John William Sublett
In this, Vincente Minnelli's first feature film, the story comes out as somewhat racist. Gambler Little Joe (Eddie "Rochester" Anderson) succumbs to the charms of a beautiful woman (Lena Horne) while his wife, Petunia (Ethel Waters), waits for him to come to his senses.
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The Member of the Wedding 1952 N/R, 88 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Fred Zinnemann Cast: Julie Harris, Ethel Waters, Brandon DeWilde, William Hansen, Arthur Franz, Nancy Gates, James Edwards, Dickie Moore, Danny Mummert, Harry Bolden, Charlcie Garrett, Hugh Beaumont, June Hedin, Ann Carter
The relationship between 12-year-old Frankie (Julie Harris) and her Black nanny (Ethel Waters) is one-sided. Frankie is so caught up in her brother's (Arthur Franz) wedding plans that she ignores her nanny's needs as they prepare for the wedding. Harris, at age 27, was nominated for Best Actress playing 12-year-old Frankie in this, her first film.
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Pinky 1949 N/R, 102 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Elia Kazan Cast: Jeanne Crain, Ethel Barrymore, Ethel Waters, Nina Mae McKinney, William Lundigan, Basil Ruysdael, Griff Barnett, Evelyn Varden, Raymond Greenleaf, Arthur Hunnicutt
The absurdity of racial prejudice is shown in this film about a Black woman (Jeanne Crain) who passes for White in the Deep South. Crain was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar, and both Ethel Barrymore and Ethel Waters were nominated for Best Supporting Actress.
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The Sound and the Fury 1959 N/R, 115 min. Genre: Drama
Director: Martin Ritt Cast: Yul Brynner, Joanne Woodward, Margaret Leighton, Stuart Whitman, Ethel Waters, Jack Warden, Albert Dekker, Francoise Rosay, John Beal, Stephen Perry
This is the film adaptation of William Faulkner's novel about the Comptons–a Southern family that has seen better days.
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Tales of Manhattan 1942 N/R, 117 min. Genre: Comedy
Director: Julien Duvivier Cast: Charles Boyer, Rita Hayworth, Ginger Rogers, Henry Fonda, Charles Laughton, Edward G. Robinson, Paul Robeson, Ethel Waters, J. Carrol Naish, Elsa Lanchester
This comedy/drama/mystery is the story of an expensive coat that appears cursed as it passes from one owner to another, and those who wear it suffer bad luck.
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| 1. Cabin in the Sky (1943)
2. The Member of the Wedding (1952)
3. Pinky (1949)
4. The Sound and the Fury (1959)
5. Tales of Manhattan (1942)
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