Actors - Canada Lee

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	Actors - Canada Lee

Canada Lee, born Lionel Cornelius Canegata, (March 3, 1907—May 9, 1952) was an actor who pioneered roles for African-Americans. His playing of a white character in 1946 (wearing white face) was a first. In addition he was a strong champion in the civil rights movement.

When Canada Lee (1907-1952) walked out on stage in 1946, he shattered a barrier that had never been crossed before. Lee became the first African-American ever to play a white character on the American Stage, and he did it wearing white face. In fact, his landmark portrayal of De Bosola in The Duchess of Malfi was only one of the numerous achievements of this profound man. Nonetheless, most people today have never heard of Canada Lee.

More than just an actor, Lee sacrificed health and wealth fighting for racial equality. Although many who fought for civil rights suffered under the shroud of McCarthyism, persecuted as Communists or Fellow travellers, none suffered a fate quite like Canada Lee. Standing at the forefront of the fight for equality, Canada became a target of FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover. As a result, Canada Lee has been so thoroughly erased from history even an anthology as comprehensive as Black Firsts (Visible Ink Publications, 2005), which covers over 4,000 first-time accomplishments by African-Americans, does not even mention his name. Blacklist: Recovering the Life of Canada Lee seeks to rectify this historic omission, reintroducing Lee to the public stage through the eyes and memories of his widow, friends, and contemporaries.

In 1943, Canada Lee became a champion for racial equality. He was the Jackie Robinson of Hollywood, destroying the prejudicial barriers that barred Negroes from presenting themselves with civility and dignity in the American entertainment industry. Alfred Hitchcock allowed him to rewrite his dialogue for the film Lifeboat
, in order to avoid the stereotypical dialog originally scripted for him. By doing so, Canada became the first African-American to portray a non-stereotyped character on the Silver Screen. In reworking the derogatory dialect, typical of subservient black characters, Lee presented the world with its first alternative: an empowered and thoughtful human being, who need not be comical at his own expense. Lee would single-handedly open the door for generations of African-American actors to come and even perform alongside his most direct successor, Sidney Poitier. This achievement became possible because of a friendship established a few years earlier.

When the curtain rose in 1941 and Canada stood in front of the sold out audience, as Bigger Thomas in Richard Wright’s Native Son, neither he nor his young director, Orson Welles, had any idea just how responsive the Broadway critics would be. The play was a smash hit, and Canada became an instant sensation. The New York Times called him “the greatest Negro actor of his era and one of the finest actors in this country.”

Having worked together in Welles’s 1936 production of the controversial voodoo Macbeth (so named for its all black cast of over 200), Orson and Canada developed a rapport that came full circle in the casting of Native Son. Welles knew without a doubt that Lee was to play the groundbreaking role of Bigger Thomas. So successful were Canada’s triumphs on stage, it would appear to be the result of years dedicated to studying the craft of acting, not the result of a down-on-his-luck boxer who had nothing to lose.

Growing up, Lionel Cornelius Canegata tried his hand at many things. He was a concert violinist at the age of twelve; he ran away from home to become a professional jockey by fourteen, and after growing too large to ride, he decided to try his hand at boxing. It was in the ring that an announcer, stumbling over Lionel’s surname, christened him ‘Canada Lee.’ The name stuck, and Canada Lee quickly rose through the rank and file, positioning himself in line for the Welterweight title.

As fate would intervene in Canada’s life, a glancing blow to his right eye ended his career as a boxer. With his retina soon to detach, Canada left the ring and began to conduct a fifteen-piece orchestra and run a nightclub called The Jitterbug. Amidst the drought of the Great Depression, neither the band or the nightclub lasted very long and Canada found himself out of work, partially blind and impoverished.

Deciding to apply as a laborer at the Harlem YMCA, fate would intervene for a second time in Canada’s life. While wandering the halls to pass some time, Lee stumbled upon an audition and was asked if he would care to give it a shot. Canada Lee graced the stage for the very first time. He was cast in Frank Wilson’s 1934 production of Brother Moses, which played to a crowd ten thousand strong in Central Park. Lee, the only standout mentioned, would continue to pursue a career in acting, attributing his comfort on the stage to his years of experience moving around the boxing ring.

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