Horace Jackson is an American screenwriter, filmmaker and educator.
Early life and education
editBorn in Philadelphia, the youngest son of 21 children, Jackson described his upbringing as "a tough life".[1] Jackson graduated high school at John B. Stetson School in Kingston, Pennsylvania.[2] His father, a coal yard worker, along with his mother wanted their children to obtain a college education.[1] Jackson attended Temple University theological school for one semester[3] before moving to California becoming a Baptist preacher, a job he later left to pursue film making.[4] Later, he attended Los Angeles City College for three years.[1]
Career
editJackson's first film, Living Between Two Worlds debuted in 1963, a film he independently financed. The film was publicized as the first full-length feature film independently financed, written and produced by African Americans with an all African American cast.[5][6] While the low budget film performed well, it did not earn money personally for Jackson so he continued with his education at Los Angeles City College. Later he got a job as a recreational director for Los Angeles city school, then as a music cutter's apprentice for Paramount while he wrote the script for The Bus Is Coming.[1]
With the help of a Paramount executive, in 1970 he formed K-Calb Productions (black spelled backwards) initially to produce The Bus Is Coming with Wendell James Franklin as director.[1] Located in Compton, California, a Los Angeles suburb with a substantial Black middle-class population, D-Calb's aim was to produce Black-themed films from a Black perspective. Jackson noted films such as Hearts in Dixie and The Liberation of L.B. Jones "have presented a distorted view of blacks because most of them have been how whites perceive us".[7] Further plans for the production company included constructing Compton's first theater and training programs for Compton's youth in the film making industry.[8]
With a small budget of $175,000, financial issues persisted during the making of The Bus Is Coming. Jackson and his family were evicted from their home and production of the film ceased for a period to raise more funds. After reading about Jackson's issues, a former casket dealer provided the additional funding.[1] In July 1971 the film premiered at the Compton High School Auditorium to benefit the Compton Cinema Center Fund.[9] While the film grossed $4 million, Jackson reportedly received only a small profit.[10]
In 1974, Jackson released Tough, a G-rated family film.[11][12][13][14]
In 1975, was honored with a key to the City of Detroit for his film Deliver Us From Evil with Detroit City Council member Emma Henderson stating "Mr. Jackson has produced a film the entire family can enjoy" and recognized him one of the pioneers of Black films in the sixties and seventies.[15]
Filmography
edit- Living Between Two Worlds (1963)
- The Bus is Coming (1972)
- Tough, also known as Johnny Tough (1974)
- Deliver Us From Evil (1976)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f Thomas, Bob (June 15, 1971). "Man Refused To Give Up; Developed Movie Brain Child". The Columbia Record. p. 23 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Gaghan, Jerry (September 15, 1964). "Leaving a Winner After 11 Years". Philadelphia Daily News. p. 33 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Crist, Judith (August 5, 1974). "Star's Trek". New York Magazine. p. 53. Retrieved October 2, 2022 – via Google Books.
- ^ Miller, Jeanne (January 21, 1964). "Negro-Produced Movie, 'Two Worlds' Opens Soon". San Francisco Examiner. p. 19 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Seidenaum, Art (February 17, 1964). "A Negro's Sermon on Film". Los Angeles Times. p. 57. Retrieved October 1, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Sieving, Christopher (2011). Soul searching : Black-themed cinema from the March on Washington to the rise of blaxploitation. Middletown, Conn.: Wesleyan University Press. p. 45. ISBN 978-0-8195-7134-2. OCLC 726747945 – via Google Books.
- ^ Smith, Vern (February 8, 1971). "Bus Is Coming' In Compton:Negro Film Goes On Camera". Independent. Long Beach, California. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Movie center plan emerges". The Southwest Wave. July 1, 1971. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Thomas, Kevin (July 9, 1971). "The Black Experience". The Los Angeles Times. p. 65 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "AFI|Catalog". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
- ^ "[Grindhouse Gems] Uncovering Johnny Tough • EBONY". July 23, 2016.
- ^ Ward, Renee (December 28, 1975). "'The Crossover' Goes Beyond Blaxploitation". The Los Angeles Times. p. 283 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Thomas, Kevin (October 10, 1974). "Why Johnny Can't Relate". The Los Angeles Times. p. 81 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tarantino, Rodriguez bask in Death and Terror". Reuters. March 15, 2007. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
- ^ "Black Producer Honored". The Atlanta Voice. August 23, 1975. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com.
