Herb Jeffries
Herbert “Herb” Jeffries
1913 - 2014
Black moviegoers who often were not reflected in Western films, had one star, Herb Jeffries. Jeffries was a larger than life figure. Not just because he occupied the big screen, but because his six foot seven inch frame and handsome features set him apart. From 1937 to 1939, Jeffries starred in four Western musicals. Those four musicals were: Harlem on the Prairie, Two Gun Man from Harlem, Harlem Rides the Range and The Bronze Buckaroo. That last one listed might be familiar, as that musical is what earned Jeffries the nickname Bronze Buckaroo. Jeffries also had the honor of singing with the orchestra of the legendary Duke Ellington.
credit: IMDB
In the 1930s and 1940s, Black actors seldom had opportunities to play legitimate roles. When Black actors appeared on screen it was typically to play the part of a maid, Pullman porter, or merely displaying buffoonery. This meant that Black moviegoers had few role models, or any with real star power. That changed when Jeffries convinced producer Jed Buell to finance a series of Western musicals.
Jeffries gave Black children an on screen hero to root for. Famous blues guitarist B.B. King remembered Jeffries’ Westerns, and explained his childhood appreciation, “I liked Gene Autry and Hopalong Cassidy, but [Herb] happened to be a Black one, and that made it very good.”
Colorism is not a new concept and it had a significant impact on Jeffries career. Despite having two white parents, Herb Jeffries’ Ethiopian great-grandmother distinguished him as Black with consideration for America’s one drop rule. Jeffries was able to thrive in an industry built for white success, despite intentionally wearing darker makeup to accentuate his Blackness when he could have passed as white in most settings.
This is yet another reason, Herb Jeffries was a hero to many Black children, he was unapologetically even when that identity threatened his career.
