Madame Sul-Te-Wan

Birthday: 1873-03-07
Deathday: 1959-02-01
Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, USA
Gender: Female
Owned By: Unowned

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Madame Sul-Te-Wan (born Nellie Crawford; March 7, 1873 – February 1, 1959) was the first African-American actress to sign a film contract and be a featured performer. She was an American stage, film and television actress for over 50 years. The daughter of former slaves, she began her career in entertainment touring the East Coast with various theatrical companies and moved to California to become a member of the fledgling film community. She became known as a character actress, appeared in high-profile films such as The Birth of a Nation (1915) and Intolerance (1916), and easily navigated the transition to the sound films.

In 1986, she was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame.

Credits

Year Title Character
Squirrel Food Flirt
1958-12-11 The Buccaneer Good Luck Charm Vendor
1958-01-01 Tarzan and the Trappers Witch Woman
1957-08-03 Band of Angels Flower Vendor (Uncredited)
1957-05-08 Something of Value Midwife (Uncredited)
1954-10-28 Carmen Jones Hagar – Carmen's Grandmother (Uncredited)
1949-11-12 The Story of Seabiscuit Libby
1949-07-27 Mighty Joe Young Young Family Servant (Uncredited)
1943-09-25 Thank Your Lucky Stars Bit in "Ice Cold Katie" Number (uncredited)
1943-09-17 Revenge of the Zombies Beulah
1942-04-01 Mokey Miss Cully, Old Black Woman (Uncredited)
1941-11-30 Sullivan's Travels Church Harmonium Player (Uncredited)
1941-05-14 King of the Zombies Tahama
1940-12-27 Love Thy Neighbor Lady McBeth
1940-07-19 Maryland Naomi
1940-06-14 Safari Native Woman
1939-08-12 Torchy Blane.. Playing with Dynamite Ruby (uncredited)
1939-06-12 Tell No Tales Jim Alley's Mother (uncredited)
1938-12-30 Kentucky Lily
1938-09-09 The Affairs of Annabel Benzedrina (uncredited)
1938-06-10 The Toy Wife Eve, a Black Servant (Uncredited)
1938-04-15 In Old Chicago Hattie
1938-04-01 Island in the Sky Scrubwoman (Uncredited)
1937-02-12 Maid of Salem Tituba
1936-06-26 San Francisco Earthquake Survivor (Uncredited)
1935-12-20 So Red the Rose Slave (Uncredited)
1934-11-23 Imitation of Life Cook (uncredited)
1934-06-15 Black Moon Ruva
1934-06-08 Operator 13 Slave at Medicine Show ( Uncredited)
1934-04-21 A Modern Hero Mme. Azais' Neighbor ( Uncredited)
1933-03-15 King Kong Native Handmaiden (uncredited)
1933-02-04 Ladies They Talk About Mustard (uncredited)
1932-10-18 Queen Kelly Kali Sana – Aunt's Cook (Uncredited)
1932-09-12 Jungle Mystery Native Woman in Stockade (Uncredited)
1931-11-27 Heaven on Earth Voodoo Sue
1931-09-07 The Pagan Lady Carla the Servant
1930-08-09 The Thoroughbred Sacharine
1930-03-14 Sarah and Son Belloc's Maid (Uncredited)
1929-06-20 Thunderbolt Bit Role
1929-03-02 The Carnation Kid The Maid (Uncredited)
1927-11-04 Uncle Tom's Cabin Slave at Wedding (uncredited)
1927-09-10 College Cook (uncredited)
1925-01-25 The Golden Bed Boarding House Maid (Uncredited)
1925-01-04 The Narrow Street Easter
1924-05-18 The Lightning Rider Mammy
1922-09-24 Manslaughter Prison Inmate (uncredited)
1922-03-19 The Show Maid (uncredited)
1920-05-21 Why Change Your Wife? Sally's Maid (Uncredited)
1919-02-22 His Musical Sneeze Maid (uncredited)
1918-06-30 Who's Your Father? Black Mother (uncredited)
1918-05-18 Old Wives for New Viola's Maid (uncredited)
1918-01-27 Tarzan of the Apes Esmeralda - Jane's Maid (uncredited)
1917-02-25 Stage Struck Uncredited
1916-11-26 The Children Pay Uncredited
1916-09-04 Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages Girl at the Marriage Market (uncredited)
1916-03-26 Hoodoo Ann Black Cindy
1915-02-08 The Birth of a Nation Black Woman
1915-01-29 The Cause of It All Mary - The Hotel Cook