Madame Sul-Te-Wan

From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Madame SulTeWan born Nellie Crawford March 7 1873 February 1 1959 was the first AfricanAmerican actress to sign a film contract and be a featured performer She was an American stage film and television actress for over 50 years The daughter of former slaves she began her career in entertainment touring the East Coast with various theatrical companies and moved to California to become a member of the fledgling film community She became known as a character actress appeared in highprofile films such as The Birth of a Nation 1915 and Intolerance 1916 and easily navigated the transition to the sound films In 1986 she was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame