Goodbye, winter caps—hello, summer hats! It’s that glorious time of year where many of us can switch from content creators to content consumers. NYWIFT members Mellini Kantayya and Kathryn O’Kane have put together #SummerHours, a series of fun summer books, movies, and TV shows by or about women.
By Kathryn O’Kane
Ruby Dee (NYWIFT Muse honoree ’97) and her husband Ossie Davis were enduring actors, who fought for civil rights from Washington, DC to Hollywood. In 1965, Ms. Dee starred in King Lear and The Taming of the Shrew, becoming the first black woman to appear in major roles at the American Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, CT. Both Ms. Dee and Mr. Davis appeared in Spike Lee’s career-launching film Do The Right Thing. Throughout their careers, they often portrayed the lives of black Americans, both extraordinary and ordinary, on the stage and in film, seeking out films that explored racial inequality in America. They were married for nearly 60 years.
Their 1998 joint memoir In This Life Together begins with an anecdote about dining with President Clinton after being honored by at the Kennedy Center Honors. From there, they reflect on their journeys, weaving parallel stories of their upbringing (Ms. Dee in Harlem; Mr. Davis in rural Georgia), their groundbreaking careers, and their relationship to each other. Throughout their ups and downs, they both had profound respect for the other, even at times when they didn’t feel as close. Writes Mr. Davis of Ms. Dee, “I have no hungers that you do not feed.”
They detail their involvement in the civil rights movement, from their role as emcees at the March on Washington in 1963 and their friendship with Malcolm X, to advocating for more employment for black people in Hollywood both in front of and behind the camera. Mr. Davis explained, “We would train black technicians on our own then pressure the unions to let them in. Knowing this would take a long time, we decided to produce black films on our own…starting Third World Cinema in 1971.”
Ms. Dee offers this prescient advice: “The largest piece of business for humankind is poverty. Spiritual as well as material. Racism yes and sexism too…struggle is all there is, and we are still committed.”
The audio book is read by both and is particularly poignant now that they are gone.
(Cover photo by Bridgette Matthews)
busyk
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Meryl Jacobs
Welcome to NYWIFT, Meryl Jacobs! Driven by a lifelong passion for the arts, Meryl Jacobs creative professional has built an inspiring career spanning advertising, Broadway stage management, and post-production as an award-winning video editor and business owner. Embracing challenges with optimism, she believes in the power of self-belief and continuous growth. After returning to New York post-pandemic, she launched her own company, Gotham Edit Inc., confident in the value she provides to clients. Among her proudest achievements are collaborations with Universal Pictures, a corporate branding reel for Tumi, and a recognized PSA for the City of Los Angeles on senior scams. Grateful for every opportunity, she remains dedicated to creating impactful work that helps others. Read on to learn more about her fascinating career!
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Pia Mechler
Welcome to NYWIFT, Pia Mechler! Pia Mechler, born and raised in Germany with German, Chilean, and Polish heritage, is a versatile actress, writer, and director. Studying film in Denmark and beginning her acting career in Berlin, she took her skills to the UK and then New York City in 2010, where she also took up directing. Pia wrote, directed, and starred in the web series Almost Settled and made her feature directorial debut with Everything is Wonderful, which premiered at the Thessaloniki Film Festival and was a finalist at the Chelsea Film Festival. Her latest project, Black Hole, which she wrote to address the challenges of female aging and ageism from a humorous perspective, is currently on its festival tour. Read on to discover her inspiring international background, her dedication to her projects, and her process when it comes to making films.
READ MORENYWIFT Member Spotlight: Myrta Vida
Myrta Vida is an award-winning writer and independent filmmaker specializing in features, shorts, documentaries, and stage productions. She serves as a producer at 3DMC, the production company behind the John Cassavetes Award-winning feature Premature (2019) and the Sundance Award-winning hybrid documentary The Infiltrators (2019). Since 2010, Myrta has worked as a story consultant and script doctor for independent filmmakers worldwide. A proud Army veteran from Puerto Rico, she earned her MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Missouri-St. Louis and completed a conservatory program in screenwriting at the New York Film Academy, both with summa cum laude honors. Additionally, she holds a certificate in sketch comedy writing from the Upright Citizens Brigade and was a 2022 Fellow with Third World Newsreel. Get to know her in our latest interview!
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Marci Clark
NYWIFT is excited to welcome new member Marci Clark! Whether you were tuning into MTV during the mid-90s or consider Super Bowl ads to be immersive entertainment, there is a good chance you’ve engaged with remarkable content in which Marci has left an indelible mark! Marci is now Co-owner & Chief Marketing Officer of a location agency, The Scout Source, representing over 800 production-friendly locations in the Tristate area. Check out her blog feature where we converse about the evolution of her dynamic career in the film and television industry as a marketing professional, her talent and enthusiasm for linking content creators to incredible location sites for them to shoot their projects, and the iconic cartoon character who she “butted heads” with (no pun intended)!
READ MORE
1 Comment