Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks

This classic iconic study of black images in American motion pictures has been updated and revised, as Donald Bogle continues to enlighten us with his historical and social reflections on the relationship between African Americans and Hollywood. He notes the remarkable shifts that have come about in the new millennium when such filmmakers as Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave) and Ava DuVernay (Selma) examined America’s turbulent racial history and the particular dilemma of black actresses in Hollywood, including Halle Berry, Lupita Nyong’o, Octavia Spencer, Jennifer Hudson, and Viola Davis. Bogle also looks at the ongoing careers of such stars as Denzel Washington and Will Smith and such directors as Spike Lee and John Singleton, observing that questions of diversity in the film industry continue. From The Birth of a Nation, the 1934 Imitation of Life, Gone with the Wind, and Carmen Jones to Shaft, Do the Right Thing, and Boyz N the Hood to Training Day, Dreamgirls, The Help, Django Unchained, and Straight Outta Compton, Donald Bogle compellingly reveals the way in which the images of blacks in American movies have significantly changed—and also the shocking way in which those images have often remained the same.

“Mr. Bogle continues to be our most noted black-cinema historian.”

Spike Lee
Track it down. It’s a must. Esquire
A well-researched and lively romp through the history of blacks in films. Far more inclusive and informative than previous books on the subject. Mel Watkins, New York Times

Donald Bogle is one of the foremost authorities on African Americans in film and the arts. He is the author of the classic Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films (Continuum, 2001) and Hollywood Black: The Stars, The Films, The Filmmakers (2019). His best-selling Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams: The Story of Black Hollywood received the Hurston/Wright Finalist Legacy Award in Non-fiction. His other books include the critically acclaimed Dorothy Dandridge: A Biography; Blacks in American Films and Television: An Illustrated Encyclopedia; and Primetime Blues: African Americans on Network Television. He has appeared on such television programs as Entertainment Tonight; Today; Good Morning, America; and Nightline; and has served as a commentator on such documentaries as Spike Lee's Jim Brown: All-American, American Movie Classics' Small Steps . . . Big Strides, and TV Land's three-part series on African Americans on television. He also co-hosted Turner Classic Movies' award-winning series Race and Hollywood. The first edition of his volume Brown Sugar covered eighty years of America's black female superstars and was turned into a highly successful four-part PBS documentary series by Mr. Bogle. In 2023 he was recognized for the Robert Osborne Award for his pioneering studies of African American cinema and his tireless efforts to elevate the achievements of Black performers and filmmakers.

Since the previous edition of Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks (2001), the relationship between African American performers and Hollywood has developed further, calling for another examination. Every year since 2001, at least one African American performer has been Oscar-nominated; some years, there have been two or three. And even as some black directors delve into African American history-Steve McQueen ( 12 Years of Slave ) or Lee Daniels ( The Butler ) , for example-others like F. Gary Gray ( The Italian Job ) and Tim Story ( Fantastic Four ) are becoming mainstream in their interests, making films that do not involve African American themes.. . In this updated edition, the discussion of the controversial films Monster's Ball and Training Day , which saw Oscars going to Halle Berry and Denzel Washington, is continued in-depth and with particular detail. Bogle further examines the particular dilemma of African American women in Hollywood, discussing a huge array of actresses, including Oscar winners Lupita Nyong'o, Octavia Spencer, and Jennifer Hudson and Oscar nominee Viola Davis.

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