Between the Covers

Unbound. An archive of promotional material for films by Norman Studios which featured African-American actors. All items very good or better.

An archive of ephemera including ticket stubs, handbills, and brochures for the Norman Film Manufacturing Company in Jacksonville, Florida. The studio, founded by Richard Norman in 1916 as Eagle Studios, “offered silent films for African-Americans” and hired all African-American casts. Handbills featured here advertise films such as *The Green-Eyed Monster*, *The Crimson Skull*, *The Flying Ace*, *Black Gold*, and *Maciste in Hell*, boasting that it’s “in sound.” These films, starring African-Americans were referred to as “Race Films.” According to Norman, “the untapped Black filmgoer market and the plethora of talented performers unable to get work in mainstream films lead to the production of race films by Norman Studios.” The production of the films featured here started in 1919 and ended in 1928. The 1928 film, *Black Gold*, a drama set around the oil business, was the most famous of the studios’ endeavors and its last before they started to decline. Collected here are 30 handbills for *Black Gold*, 4 for *The Flying Ace*, one each for *The Crimson Skull*, *Maciste*, and *The Green-Eyed Monster*. Additionally, there are three large posters advertising *Regeneration*, *Black Gold*, and *The Flying Ace*.

Interesting collection of ephemera from an important African-American film studio in Florida in the 1920s.

Item #445578