Acting
Leigh Whipper
EN, NL cinema · 23 credits
Born
29 October 1876
Died
26 July 1975 (aged 98)
Birthplace
Charleston, South Carolina, USA
Also known as Lee Whipper
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Leigh Rollin Whipper (October 29, 1876 – July 26, 1975) was an American actor on the stage and in motion pictures. He was the first African American to join the Actors' Equity Association, and one of the founders of the Negro Actors Guild of America. He is best known for creating the role of Crooks in the original Broadway production of Of Mice and Men, which he reprised in the 1939 film version. Educated at Howard University Law School, he left in 1895 and never practiced as a lawyer. Without any dramatic training, he made his first Broadway appearance in Georgia Minstrels. His first film role was in the 1920 silent film The Symbol of the Unconquered. During the Second World War, Whipper was a member of the steering committee of Negro Division the Hollywood Victory Committee.
Known for
Filmography
Once Upon a Time in Harlem
as Self (archival footage)
The Young Don't Cry
as Doosy
The Shrike
as Mr. Carlisle
Untamed Fury
as Uncle Gabe
Undercurrent
as George
Young Widow
as Nate (Uncredited), as Nate (uncredited)
The Hidden Eye
as Alistair
The Negro Sailor
as Editor
Dark Waters
as Office Custodian (uncredited)
The Ox-Bow Incident
as Sparks (uncredited)
Happy Land
as Old Ben (uncredited)
Mission to Moscow
as Haile Selassie (uncredited)
White Cargo
as Jim Fish
The Vanishing Virginian
as Uncle Josh
Road to Zanzibar
as Scarface
Bahama Passage
as Morales
Virginia
as Ezechial
Robin Hood of the Pecos
as Kezeye
King of the Zombies
as Momba
Of Mice and Men
as Crooks
The Symbol of the Unconquered: A Story of the Ku Klux Klan
as Tugi - an Indian Fakir
