Paul Robeson: A man of many talents

Paul Robeson:

• Was an athlete, singer, actor, activist, orator, musicologist and scholar
• Was named to the All-American Football Team
• Was the first African-American to play professional football
• Spoke and wrote more than 20 languages
• Has many public schools, libraries and university buildings named in his honor
• Received honorary degrees from Rutgers, Howard, Morehouse and Lincoln Universities
• Was the third African-American to graduate from Columbia Law School
• Was known as "Roby"
• Made 11 feature films
• Won the major oratorical contest four years in a row
• Was the first African-American to demand and receive the right to final approval of films
• Was the first African-American to refuse to work under segregated conditions and to refuse to work in the South
• Was the first major artist to perform inside of the prison system
• Was awarded honorary memberships in major unions, including Longshoremen's and Maritime.

Chronology:

• Born in Princeton on April 9 to the Rev. William Drew and Maria Louisa Robeson.
• Youngest of five children, three brothers and one sister.

• Mother was burned to death when a coal from the stove caught her dress on fire.

• Graduated with honors from Somerville High School in New Jersey.
• Awarded a four-year scholarship to Rutgers University in New Jersey by winning a statewide written competition.
• Third African-American to attend the private college.

• Won 15 varsity letters at Rutgers in baseball, basketball, track and football.
• Star scholar, orator, singer and athlete.
• Elected to all honor societies.

• One of four classmates admitted to Phi Beta Kappa in his junior year.
• Father died at the age of 73.

• Member of Debating Team, Literary Society and Cap and Skull Honor Society.
• Graduated Valedictorian of his class.

• Moved to Harlem and was accepted at Columbia Law School.

• Met and married Eslanda (Essie) Cardozo Goode, a pathology technician who was working at Columbia Medical Center in New York City. Essie became a scientist, anthropologist, journalist and world traveler.

• Played Jim in "Taboo" at the Sam Harris Theater in Harlem (play was re-named "Vodoo").
• Played his last year of professional football.
• Played the title role as Simon in "Simon the Cyrenian" at the Harlem YMCA.
• Played professional football on weekends and coached basketball.

• Received a law degree from Columbia Law School.
• First African-American hired at Stotesbury and Miner, one of New York's most prestigious law firms.

• Lead role in "All God's Chillun Got Wings" in Greenwich Village.
• Lead role in "The Emperor Jones" which opened at the Provinceton Theater in New York.
• Sang his first formal concert at the Copley Plaza Hotel in Boston.
• Starred in his first film "Body and Soul" in New York.

• Toured and recorded four double-sided albums.
• Received 12 ovations in the opening of "The Emperor Jones."
• Appeared in "Shuffle Along" at the Plantation Club.
• Essie quit her job to become Paul's manager.

• Paul Robeson, Jr., (Pauli) was born in New York, their only child.

• Performed in "Porgy" in London.
• Sang Ol' Man River in "Show Boat" at the Drury Theater in London. The theater was so packed that hundreds of people were turned away.
• Prince of Wales Command Performance.

• Appeared in the title role of Shakespeare's "Othello" in London.
• Essie published a biography of Paul Robeson.
• Starred in "Borderline" filmed in Switzerland. Essie starred as Paul's wife in the movie.
• First African-American actor to play in a Shakespearean play.

• First major commercial film "Emperor Jones" was opened at the Rivoli and uptown Harlem at the Roosevelt. Film grossed over $10,000 the first week. More than 200,000 viewers were in attendance.

• Starred in "Sanders of the River" in London.

• Paul and Essie stopped in Seattle to perform in several concerts.
• Completed the filming of "Show Boat" in less than two months.

• Signed a contract to appear in the British production, "Song of Freedom" to appear at London's largest theater.
• Demanded and won the contract to approve the "final cut."

• Filmed "Jericho" in Egypt.
• Changed the words of "Ol' Man River" from 'I'm tired of livin' and scared of dyin' to 'I must keep fightin' until I'm dyin'.
• Co-founder of the Council on African Affairs. This chairmanship was shared with Dr. W.E.B. DuBois.

• Played with Essie in "Big Fella."

• Performed at concerts in Oslo, Copenhagen and Stockholm.
• Live broadcast of "Ballad for Americans" in the Columbia Broadcasting System. CBS received hundreds of telephone calls and audience gave a 20-minute standing ovation.
• "Ballad of Americans" was immediately recorded and sold more than 30,000 copies within one year.

• Republican party selected "Ballad for Americans" for its theme song.

• Performed throughout the country and overseas for Armed Forces.

• Announced that he would no longer act in condescending roles.

• Received 13 encores for last concert tour.
• Spent summer addressing rallies for progressive causes.
• Played lead role in opening of "Othello" on Broadway.
• Received the Abraham Lincoln Medal for notable and distinguished service in human relations.
• Led delegation that requested the baseball commissioner lift the ban against African-Americans in the major leagues.

• 8,000 people attended Paul's 46th birthday party. 4,000 were turned away at the door.
• Awarded the Medal for Good Diction in New York by the American Academy of Arts and Letters (only nine others had previously received this award).
• Received the first Donaldson Award for his outstanding performance. It is equivalent to the Tony Award.

• Received NAACP's highest honor, the Springarn Medal.
• "Othello" closed. It was seen by more than half a million viewers.

• Increased activity and awareness for civil rights.
• Led delegation to the White House and met with President Truman for federal anti-lynching legislation.
• Subpoenaed by the California Legislation Committee and questioned on his political ideas and associations.

• One of the founders of the "Progressive Party." Challenged the Democrats and Republicans in upcoming Presidential elections.
• Eighty-five of his concerts were canceled.

• Attended the World Peace Congress in Paris with 17,000 delegates from all over the world.

• The State Department ordered Paul to surrender his passport.
• Paul refused to surrender his passport, the press released editorials that it was canceled.
• Essie and Paul, Jr., were also requested to cancel passports.
• Filed suit against the State Department for return of his passport.
• Demonstrated in Washington, D.C., to support the Fair Employment Practices Commission Bill.
• Attended the Civil Rights Congress Rally at Madison Square Garden.
• Attended the Harlem Rally sponsored by the Council on African American Affairs.

• 40,000 spellbound listeners gathered to hear Paul sing at the Peace Arch.

• Founded own company and recorded two albums: "Paul Robeson Sings" and "Solid Rock."

• Council on African Affairs was disbanded.
• Invited to address the Bandung Conference in Indonesia. Paul sent a tape-recorded message because he was unable to retrieve his passport.

• Praised Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, nonviolent methods.
• Circumvented passport restrictions by singing on a long-distance telephone call through a public address system to assemblies in London and Wales. Sold-out crowd, hundreds were turned away.
• Authorized to travel to places that did not require passports.

• Celebrated his 60th birthday.
• India declared March 17 as "Paul Robeson Day".
• Published "Here I Stand" autobiography.
• Gave two sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall.
• Passport was returned when the U.S. Supreme Court ruling was won against the State Department.
• More than 4,000 listeners and 5,000 more stood outside of Saint Paul's Cathedral to hear Paul sing.

• Hospitalized and diagnosed with a form of arteriosclerosis.
• Gave the last concert of his career in Australia.

• Hospitalized in Moscow, East Berlin and London for several months.

• Diagnosed with a bone disorder.
• Retired from public life.
• Essie was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

• Almost died from double pneumonia.
• Essie died on the eve of her sixty-ninth birthday.
• "Freedomways" magazine sponsored a welcome home birthday party in New York for Paul.

• Celebrated his 75th birthday.
• Rutgers sponsored a Robeson life symposium.
• Paul Robeson, Jr., organized a "Salute to Paul Robeson" at Carnegie Hall.
• Coretta Scott King spoke in support of Paul's civil rights and human dignity efforts.

• Hospitalized from a stoke on Dec. 28.
• Died on Jan. 23 in Philadelphia at the age of seventy-seven.
• Paul's body was viewed at Benta's Funeral Home in Harlem.
• Over 5,000 mourners attended the funeral services.

• Nineteen years after his death, Paul was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.