Ira Frederick Aldridge was born in New York City in 1807. Aldridge was an American later British actor and playwright. Aldridge is the only actor of African-American descent among the 33 actors of the English stage honoured with bronze plaques at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon (wikipedia.com). Aldridge was a part of the African Company that eventually built the African Grove Theatre in 1821. Aldridge acting debut was as the Peruvian character Rolla in

Born in 1884 in Metropolis, Illinois. Micheaux was an author, film director, and independent producer of 44 films and decided to focus his career on writing and film making. In total, Micheaux wrote seven novels; his first book The Conquest: The Story of a Negro Homesteader sold 1,000 copies in 1913. His book was based on his own experiences as a homesteader and the failure of his marriage. This novel was eventually made into a film with critical and commercial success which