Hattie McDaniel

Hattie McDaniel the First African American Actress to win an Academy (Oscar) Award was born on 10 June 1895 in Wichita City, Kansas State, America. 

Hattie McDaniel (10 June 1893 – 26 October 1952) was a trailblazing African American actress, singer, song writer, and comedian. She is the first African American to win an Academy Award, receiving the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939). Born in Wichita City, Kansas State, and raised in Denver City, Colorado State, America, McDaniel was the youngest of 13 children in a family of former slaves and Civil War veterans. She began her career in vaudeville business shows and radio. She acted in over 300 movies, portraying maids or cooks due to racism. McDaniel defended her roles, stating, “I would rather play a maid than be one.” She took her work to challenge perceptions and open doors for future Black actors. McDaniel faced racism. She was barred from the Gone with the Wind premiere in Atlanta and segregated at the Oscars ceremony. She was also a philanthropist, supporting Black communities and organizations. Later in life, she starred in the radio series Beulah, becoming one of the first Black women to lead a radio show, and in Television also. McDaniel died of breast cancer in 1952 aged 59. She was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975. Posthumously, she received two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Her Oscar was bequeathed to the Howard University. In 2006, she was honored with a U.S. postage stamp.