Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson, (1898-1976). Black US singer and actor. A leading American football player at university, he abandoned his career as a lawyer to become an actor in 1921. He became famous as a singer, particularly for his interpretation of ’01’ Man River’ in the musical Show-boat, filmed in 1936. He also appeared in the title role of Othello (1928; 1943) and in some of Eugene O’Neill’s plays. He was ostracized in the 1950s for his left-wing Politics and lived in Britain from 1958 to 1963.
