I’m thrilled to take part in Dell On Movies‘ Acting Black Blogathon, devoted to black actors as part of Black History Month. The classic noir cycle — style, genre, whatever — is known more for coding race into its opposition of darkness and light than its great roles for black actors. As Kelly Oliver and Benigno Trigo explain in Noir Anxiety, blackness is encoded in the “‘dark’ style of noir [that] puts both protagonists and villains into the shadows, so much so that they appear visually black on the screen” (1). Where the “Negro problem films” of the 1940s and 1950s focus on blacks passing for white, the classic noir cycle of the same era “presents whites who look visually black” (1). Oliver and Trigo thus conclude that “film noir, with its sharp black-and-white contrasts, conjures the specter of race like no other cinematic style” (4).
Nonetheless, there are a few films that address race directly and use black actors and characters to do so. Odds Against Tomorrow (1959), produced and financed by its star, Harry Belafonte, is probably the most famous noir featuring black actors and actively addressing race relations. The lesser-known No Way Out (1950), however, blends noir style and content with the “Negro Problem film” genre even more directly and fully. Sidney Poitier plays Luther Brooks, a talented and earnest young doctor recently hired onto the all-white staff of a large city hospital. The noir tension of the film is between Dr. Brooks and a racist white criminal from the wrong side of the tracks, Ray Biddle (Richard Widmark), featuring such a vicious mouth that rumor has it Widmark apologized to Poitier after every take.
This antagonism becomes more than one criminal seeking what he sees as revenge when his brother dies at the hands of Dr. Brooks, as the film climaxes in a riot between blacks and whites living across town from each other. By moving beyond the focus on tension between two men to broader concerns of racial tension among the underclass, the film includes diverse black voices in a powerful group of black supporting actors, including Ruby Dee (in her first role) and Ossie Davis as Luther’s sister and hot-headed brother, Maude Simmons as his mother, and Mildred Joanne Smith as his wife Cora (her only film role, for she was tragically injured in a plane crash that ended her stage/screen career). One of the most compelling interactions in the film is between Luther and Lefty Jones (Dots Johnson), an elderly elevator operator, showing contrasting attitudes toward issues of uplift. The older man is cynical about whether blacks will ever be treated by whites as equals, while Luther just wants to do his job and be respected for it.

Another compelling scene for the black actors in the cast occurs when Edie Johnson (Linda Darnell), ex-wife of Ray Biddle’s dead brother, flees riotous violence to the home of Dr. Wharton (Stephen McNally), the (white) head of staff of the hospital who gave Dr. Brooks his chance. Despite her overt racism, she is treated with remarkable kindness by Wharton’s housekeeper Gladys (Amanda Randolph, of Amos and Andy fame, among many other appearances). When Luther’s wife also shows up to speak to Dr. Wharton about her husband, Edie finds herself in the midst of a conversation between two black women, talking about their lives: the supportive, worried young wife of a professional and the older domestic servant. Gladys speaks of the pleasure she gets in caring for others, both her own family and the noted white physician for whom she works. Although the scene is written by white men, it shows sensitivity and care, with Edie standing in for the white audience who lacks the kind of personal experience with blacks that can change perspectives and lives.

In the end, it is distressing to see the film’s white actors (Widmark, Darnell, and McNally) given higher billing than protagonist Sidney Poitier. And it is part of a tragic racist Hollywood history that he is the only black actor credited. Nonetheless, No Way Out contains a diverse cast of black characters who share differing perspectives on race relations and self-worth, making it a unique and powerful film for its era and especially for film noir.
February 14, 2016 at 12:08 AM
Interesting. Good post! I’ll look for this movie. Now I remember a movie, can’t remember the title or year, about a black man who is a detective from Philadelphia who is passing through a southern town and there is a murder he ends up helping to solve, but the film deals with all the racism against him in a town where there is no such thing as a black policeman or black detective. Does this ring a bell? made in color, I think in the 60s or 70s?
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February 14, 2016 at 3:06 AM
Thanks for commenting. Do you mean in the Heat of the Night?
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February 14, 2016 at 4:39 AM
Ah, yes. That was it. Thank you. Good movie… now I need to watch some of these others…
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February 14, 2016 at 1:16 AM
he is the only black actor credited
It was a common habit. In Blues in the Night (1941) none of the black actors is credited, which was bad news for singer William Gillespie, whose role was supposed to give a kick start to his musical career. He sung the title song, which received an Oscar nom; the associated hit single was done by Woody Herman instead. It’s a great movie, but at the same time it seems like poetic justice that it’s been largely forgotten, lost in the same oblivion to which its mean-spirited producers condemned Gillespie.
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February 14, 2016 at 3:03 AM
Wow, I didn’t know that about Gillespie and Blues in the Night. Not surprising, but terrible. To me, it’s important to see and know the history, especially as Hollywood racism continues to this day. Just not as overtly most of the time.
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February 14, 2016 at 4:28 AM
Beautiful evaluation of the film. I had seen it prior but without sufficient appreciation. Glad to have more background on the great supporting cast of African-American actors. I noticed the distinguished Frederick O’Neil in one of the photos. Sadly Noir films missed the chance to show diversity in America and to have non-white actors in meaningful roles. In Pick Up on South Street, Widmark, the reluctant hero, goes into a library to get information. The young male librarian who helps him happens to be African-American. Considering the times, this casting was a break-through. Humphrey Bogart was a pioneer in this regard. He dared to have non-white actors presented with dignity, even if they were not always the good guys.
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February 14, 2016 at 4:33 PM
Thank you for your praise. I very much appreciate your response. I need to rewatch Pickup on South Street for that scene; I don’t remember it! As for Bogart, glad to know he cared about race representation.
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February 14, 2016 at 11:21 PM
I have heard of this film only tangetially, so I really must make a point of checking it out. Great review, it makes me sad that many black performers of the era never got the career they deserved due to institutional racism.
Good call with doing a Poitier film, given he just received a fellowship from the BAFTAs! Talk about timing!
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February 15, 2016 at 1:39 AM
Definitely a film worth seeing for its historical value. Didn’t know about Poitier and the BAFTA fellowship! Thanks for commenting.
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February 15, 2016 at 9:40 PM
I have not seen this one. It sounds very intriguing, especially for the era. I’ll have to check this out. Thanks for participating! I really learned a lot reading this.
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February 15, 2016 at 10:03 PM
So glad you enjoyed the piece. Thanks for commenting!
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February 16, 2016 at 3:43 AM
This is an excellent piece. I have a bad tendency to direct everything back to Surrealism, but there are connections between noir and Surrealism. Surrealism was anit-colonial and several Caribbean members were influential in forming the Negritiute movement. Aime Cesaire was mentor to Franz Fanon. Curiously enough the Surrealist/Dada oddity Dreams That Money Can Buy although not noir certainly borrows noir elements, credits the african-american singer Josh White along with his (white) singing partner Libby Holman. Libby Holman tried to get gigs with Josh White for the US army but was turned down as they did not book ‘mixed company’.
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February 16, 2016 at 4:11 AM
Noir is a product of many artistic movements, including German Expressionism and French poetic realism. I’ll have to read up on surrealism, which I studied in art class back in college, but only briefly.
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February 16, 2016 at 1:08 PM
Surrealism didn’t influence noir but they shared a common ancestor in expressionism…most members of dada started out as expressionist…surrealism can be seen more in neo-noir especially david lynch blue velvet and mulholland dr.
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February 16, 2016 at 4:09 PM
Thanks for explaining. It makes perfect sense now.
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February 17, 2016 at 5:54 PM
Interesting perspective on a film that can be tough to watch but is very well acted by all.
In regards to the other actors being billed over Poitier, in fairness whether he was the protagonist or not it was his first film and the other three performers were top line stars at the time, especially Linda Darnell who had been a star for a decade,. Both she and Widmark had significant screen time so in that regard the billing makes sense, although his name should have been swapped with McNally who really is a supporting player in the film. He’s not the only black actor credited though, Mildred Joanne Smith is billed right below Poitier as is Dots Johnson further down the list.
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February 17, 2016 at 9:25 PM
Thanks for the correction re the credits.
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