WILSON, FRANK

(1886?-1956)

New York-born African American actor Frank Wilson was trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts before serving as understudy and replacement for the leads in Eugene O'Neill'sAll God's Chillun Got Wings(1924) and Paul Green'sIn Abraham's Bosom(1926). He scored a major success in the title role of Dubose and Dorothy Heyward 'sPorgy(1927), which he played for several years in New York, on tour, and in London. Wilson also wroteWalk Together Chillun(1936), produced at the Lafayette Theatre by the Negro Theatre Unit of the Federal Theatre Project,* where it ran for 29 performances. His later career, which included performances inThey Shall Not Die* (1934), a revival ofThe Green Pastures* (1935),Watch on the Rhine* (1941), andThe Big Knife(1949), illustrates the difficulty faced by black performers in that he was most often cast in servant roles.