Hattie McDaniel

@Black Actresses, Timeline and Family

Hattie McDaniel was an African American actress, singer and radio performer

Jun 10, 1895

KansasAfrican American ActressBlack ActressesAmericanFilm & Theater PersonalitiesActressesGemini Celebrities
Biography

Personal Details

  • Birthday: June 10, 1895
  • Died on: October 26, 1952
  • Nationality: American
  • Famous: African American Actress, Black Actresses, Film & Theater Personalities, Actresses
  • City/State: Kansas
  • Spouses: George Langford, Howard Hickman, James Lloyd Crawford, Larry Williams, Nym Lankfard
  • Siblings: Etta McDaniel, Orlena McDaniel, Otis McDaniel, Sam McDaniel

Hattie McDaniel born at

Wichita

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Birth Place

Hattie McDaniel married several times. Her first marriage was with George Langford in 1922. Langford died in the same year.

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Personal Life

In 1938, Hattie McDaniel got married to Howard Hickman but the couple divorced in the same year.

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Personal Life

The actress married her third husband James Lloyd Crawford who was a real estate salesman in the year 1941. She divorced Crawford in 1945 after she suffered a false pregnancy and fell into a depression.

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Personal Life

Hattie McDaniel was born on 10 June 1895, in Wichita, Kansas to Henry McDaniel and Susan Holbert. Both her parents were former slaves. Her father was a soldier and had fought in the Americal Civil War. Hattie was the youngest child in the family and had 12 siblings.

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Childhood & Early Life

Her family moved to Colorado in 1900, first staying in Fort Collins and thereafter in Denver and Hattie completed her graduation from a school called Denver East High School.

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Childhood & Early Life

Hattie McDaniel’s brother Sam McDaniel acted as a butler in a short film titled “Heavenly Daze” that was released in 1948; actor Etta McDaniel was Hattie’s sibling too.

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Childhood & Early Life

Hattie McDaniel commenced her career in professional dancing, singing and performing skits in various shows while she was still in school. Eventually, in 1909, Hattie made up her mind to drop out of her school so that she could have her entire focus on career while performing with her brother’s own troupe.

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Career

During the 1920s, Hattie collaborated with the orchestra of Professor George Morrison and toured with his troops for five years from thereon. Eventually, by the middle of the same decade, invitations were sent to her for performing on KOA radio station of Denver.

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Career

During this time, she was quite popular in the vaudeville circuit as a blues artist. Despite her talent, she found it difficult to find work and had to take up odd jobs to support herself.

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Career

Hattie’s siblings who were already in Los Angeles and were working in minor roles asked her to come to Hollywood. Her brother who was part of the radio show called ‘The Optimistic Do-Nuts’ asked Hattie to do a segment in his program. Hattie was quite a hit among the listeners.

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Career

She got her first brief role in a Hollywood musical in 1931 as an extra. She featured as a housekeeper in 1932 in a movie titled ‘The Golden West’.

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Career

Her role as Mammy in ‘Gone with the Wind’ is probably the most celebrated work of her career. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her stupendous portrayal of a brave and upfront servant in a rich white household in a war-torn Southern state.

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Major Works