Leigh Whipper
Biography
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.
Filmography
Once Upon a Time in Harlem
2026
as Self (archival footage)
The Young Don't Cry
1957
as Doosy
The Shrike
1955
as Mr. Carlisle
Untamed Fury
1947
as Uncle Gabe
Undercurrent
1946
as George
Young Widow
1946
as Nate (Uncredited)
Young Widow
1946
as Nate (uncredited)
The Negro Sailor
1945
as Editor
The Hidden Eye
1945
as Alistair
Dark Waters
1944
as Office Custodian (uncredited)
Happy Land
1943
as Old Ben (uncredited)
Mission to Moscow
1943
as Haile Selassie (uncredited)
The Ox-Bow Incident
1943
as Sparks (uncredited)
White Cargo
1942
as Jim Fish
Heart of the Golden West
1942
as Rango
The Vanishing Virginian
1942
as Uncle Josh
Bahama Passage
1941
as Morales
King of the Zombies
1941
as Momba
Road to Zanzibar
1941
as Scarface
Virginia
1941
as Ezechial
Robin Hood of the Pecos
1941
as Kezeye
Of Mice and Men
1939
as Crooks
The Symbol of the Unconquered: A Story of the Ku Klux Klan
1920
as Tugi - an Indian Fakir
Within Our Gates
1920