The First Black Singing Cowboy: Herb Jeffries (1913-2014)

Many of us in our adolescents used to play Cowboys and Indians, the cowboys were the heroes, and the Indians were the bad guys. So many of us thought this game was about fun and action, but we did not understand that this game stemmed from a stereotypical background that found its way into old western movies that found its way on many televisions. John Wayne was an American icon when it came to his heroic roles as cowboys in western movies, but I bet you did not know about Herb Jeffries, best known as the first Black singing cowboy. Best known for his role as Bob Blake in Richard C. Kahn's 1939 film The Bronze Buckaroo, Herb Jeffries was an American actor and songwriter whose voice was a celebrity of its own. Herb Jeffries was born on September 24, 1913, in Detriot, Michigan. His IMDb states, "This velvet-toned jazz baritone and sometimes actor was (and perhaps still is) virtually unknown to white audiences. Yet, back in the late 1930s and early 1940s, Herb Jeffries was very big...in black-cast films. Today he is respected and remembered as a pioneer who broke down rusted-shut racial doors in Hollywood and ultimately displayed a positive image as a black actor on celluloid." Like many of his counterparts, Herb Jeffries was for Black excellence when it came to his movie roles. He took a stand on racial lines that defined the African-American community by turning down platitudinal parts. In addition, "The Detroit native was born Umberto Alejandro Ballentino on September 24, 1911 (some sources list 1914). His white Irish mother ran a rooming house, and his father, whom he never knew, was of mixed ancestry and bore Sicilian, Ethiopean, French, Italian and Moorish roots. Young Herb grew up in a mixed neighborhood without experiencing severe racism as a child. He showed definitive interest in singing during his formative teenage years and was often found hanging out with the Howard Buntz Orchestra at various Detroit ballrooms." Herb Jeffries used his voice as his weapon to define the odds he was of mixed race but did not stop him from seeing himself as a Black man who graced many stages and movie sets with his voice and looks.

The American Lindy Hop Championships Youtube channel provided detailed facts about Herb Jeffries's music and film career; the video titled "Herb Jefferies: The Orginal Black Cinema Hero" included interviews with Herb Jefferies himself and his importance to Black cinema. The video starts with a quote from Herb Jefferies, " I did not set out to make history; that's exactly what happened." Herb Jefferies could not believe it himself that he had a part in molding Black films the way he did with his charm, looks, and soulful voice; the music and the images of Herb Jefferies displayed to viewers the type of artist he was when it came to singing and acting. Herb Jefferies' first love was singing; the video conveys that, "Born in Detroit, he was discovered by Louis Armstrong, it was Armstrong that suggested that he move to Chicago." Louis Armstrong, an American icon in music, saw something in Herb Jefferies, but using the same source, "Jefferies break came during the 1933 Chicago Wold Fair (Century of Progress Exposition); he also got a gig with the Erksine Tale orchestra." Herb Jefferies's music career was taking off; he had many talents, but music became his first art, with his voice soft like velvet and the looks to match. Also, "He toured with the greats Duke Ellington and doing "Jump for Joy" with Dorothy Dandridge, after his music career took off his movie followed right behind." Herb Jefferies worked with the greatest, so it's not a shocker that his film career also took off. Using the same source," He made four films which included Basin Street Blues, The Payback Blues, Harlem on the Prairie, and Harlem Rides the Ranger." Herb Jeffries has many movie and music credits under his name; he earned his nickname "The first Black Singing Cowboy" because, in most of his films, he played a cowboy, who was the hero at the end of the day and can sing while saving the day. The video embraces Herb Jeffries to share his experience with being a fair-skinned actor who dealt with identity problems and pleasing both his Black and White audiences. Herb Jefferies voiced, "I have the right to do the pictures I did and call myself a colored performer because that is what I am." As stated earlier, Herb Jeffries did not face harsh racism, but when he became an actor had to deal with self-identity; he went on to say that he wasn't Black enough for the Black audiences, and he was not White sufficient for his White audiences. Herb Jeffries never denied that he was not African-American; he wore it as a badge of honor. More details from his IMDb biography voices, "As the whip-snapping, pistol-toting, melody-gushing Bronze Buckaroo, Jeffries finally offered a positive alternative to the demeaning stereotypes laid on black actors. Moreover, he refused to appear in "white" films in which he would have been forced to play in servile support. Although he very well could have with his light skin tones, the man dubbed "Mr. Flamingo" never tried to pass himself off as white. He was proud of his heritage and always identified himself as black. In the mid-1990s, westerns returned in vogue and Herb recorded a "comeback album" ("The Bronze Buckaroo Rides Again") for Warner Western. During this pleasant career renaissance he has also been asked to lecture at colleges, headline concerts and record CDs. In 1999-2000, at age 88, he recorded the CD "The Duke and I," recreating songs he did with Duke. It also was a tribute honoring the great musician's 100th birthday." Herb Jeffries was not an actor that would not partake in stereotypical racial parts because he always saw himself as an African-American man, no matter if his skin was light or not. He wanted to uplift his people through his music and films. Even after his film career came to an end, Herb Jeffries paid homage to Duke Ellington, which Jeffries toured with; Herb Jeffries did not let age slow him down from reminding him of his music. At the age of 100, Herb Jeffries passed away on March 25, 2014; Jeffries importance to film and music paid off; the IMDb biography of Herb Jeffries notes, "In 2003 he was inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame and was invited to sing for President Bush at the White House. He is also the last surviving member of The Great Duke Ellington Orchestra, and certainly deserves proper credit for his historic efforts in films and music." Herb Jeffries, our singing cowboy, was inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame; Jeffries left a phenomenal career behind. Even when he second-guessed him, he showed many Black actresses and actors changing history takes a lot of work, but it pays off in the end.

Sources Used: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YOPP0wqUkE.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0420370/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm