For over 50 years, Charles ‘Teenie’ Harris traveled the alleys, workplaces, nightclubs and ballparks of his native Pittsburgh, a Speed graphic black & white camera in hand. Whether backstage with Dizzy Gillespie and Lena Horne, in the dugout with Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige, or on the streets of the Hill or Homewood, Teenie Harris documented black Pittsburgh with his well crafted, often beautiful and always haunting honest photographs. A contemporary of Gordon Parks and a successor to the black photographic tradition pioneered by James Vander Zee, Harris shared their passion for capturing the nuances of everyday life in the black communities during segregation.
Teenie worked for the Pittsburgh Courier for 50 years. With a circulation of almost 400,000, the Pittsburgh Courier was once the country's most respected and influential black newspaper. The newspaper gained national prominence by its anti- lynching, Double V, housing, health and education campaigns. The Courier sought to empower African Americans economically and politically.
The documentary is narrated by actor Roscoe Lee Browne and includes interviews with former Courier staffers, historians, and Harris. The video is a picture album of beautiful black and white images from an era of African American life in danger of being forgotten.
56 minutes
"This has got to be by far the largest documentation of African American urban life in existence anywhere." Laurence Glasco, University of Pittsburgh
"To me, this guy was a genius. When people start to understand his achievement, they'll be knocked out." Stanley Nelson, filmmaker, The Black Press: Soldiers Without Swords
"Entertaining and informative. An outstanding asset to programs in African-American studies, Pennsylvania history, and photography for schools and libraries throughout the country." School Library Journal
"An engaging documentary about a national treasure who captured priceless images recounting the 20th century black experience, this is recommended." Video Librarian
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