Hattie McDaniel
Biography
Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893 - October 26, 1952) was an American actress whose portrayal of Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939) won her the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, making her the first black person to win an Academy Award. After working as early as the 1910s as a band vocalist, Hattie McDaniel debuted as a maid in The Golden West (1932). Her maid-mammy characters became steadily more assertive, showing up first in Judge Priest (1934) and becoming pronounced in Alice Adams (1935). In this one, directed by George Stevens and aided and abetted by star Katharine Hepburn, she makes it clear she has little use for her employers' pretentious status seeking. By The Mad Miss Manton (1938) the character she portrays actually tells off her socialite employer Barbara Stanwyck and her snooty friends. This path extends into the greatest role of McDaniel's career, Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939). Mammy is, in a number of ways, superior to most of the white folk surrounding her. From that point, McDaniel's roles unfortunately descended, with the characters becoming more and more menial. McDaniel played on the "Amos and Andy" and Eddie Cantor radio shows in the 1930s and 1940s, the title character in her own radio show "Beulah" (1947-51), and the same part on TV (Beulah, 1950).
Known For
Mammy
Gone with the Wind
Aunt Dilsey
Judge Priest
Mop Buyer
King Kelly of the U.S.A.
Queenie
Show Boat
Cora, Helen's Maid in New Orleans (uncredited)
Blonde Venus
Aunt Tempy
Song of the South
Isabella
Murder by Television
Hester
George Washington Slept Here
Hattie (uncredited)
Carefree
Fidelia
Since You Went Away
Cozy
Never Say Goodbye
Minerva Clay
In This Our Life
Hilda
The Mad Miss Manton
Malena Burns - Maid Serving Dinner
Alice Adams
Violet
The Great Lie
Rosetta
Saratoga
Callie
They Died with Their Boots On
Celia
The Flame
Cynthia, Sue's Cook
Affectionately Yours
Minnie
The Big Wheel
Phyllis
Family Honeymoon
Martha
The Shopworn Angel
Dehlia
Zenobia
Belvedere
The Shining Hour
Cynthia
Margie
Agatha
Battle of Broadway
Ella
True Confession
Ambrosia
The Crime Nobody Saw
Caroline - the Cook (uncredited)
The Boiling Point
Performer entering radio station
Are You Listening?
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
Maid
Mickey's Rescue
April, Conway's Maid
Janie
April
Janie Gets Married
Bertha
Mickey
Aunt Carrie
Maryland
Hattie - Maid at Prom Dance (uncredited)
Vivacious Lady
Maid
Merry Go Round of 1938
Jenny
Sky Racket
Hannah
Over the Goal
Powder Room Attendant
Hypnotized
Pearl (uncredited)
The Wildcatter
'Gone with the Wind' screen test (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
Manicurist (uncredited)
I'm No Angel
Buckwheat's Mother (uncredited)
Arbor Day
Molly
We're Only Human
Self (archive footage)
Hattie McDaniel: or A Credit to the Motion Picture Industry
Maid (uncredited)
The Washington Masquerade
Cleota
The Male Animal
Mamie (uncredited)
Don't Tell the Wife
Hattie (Amanda in credits)
Music Is Magic
Hattie (uncredited)
Quick Money
Ellen Belle
Valiant Is the Word for Carrie
Mandy - the Maid
Fate's Fathead
Isabel McCarthy, Dolly's Maid (uncredited)
China Seas
Tessie
City Park
Mamie
The Bride Walks Out
Deborah
Postal Inspector
Abby
Racing Lady
Bunny's Maid (uncredited)
Merry Wives of Reno
Abigail (uncredited)
Flirtation
Martha Smith (uncredited)
Traveling Saleslady
Woman in Apartment House
Hello, Sister!
Hattie
High Tension
Maid
3 Is a Family
Gossip in "Ice Cold Katie" Number
Thank Your Lucky Stars
Aida
Johnny Come Lately
Sadie
Reunion
Scrubwoman in Grand Plaza Hall (uncredited)
Libeled Lady
Hattie
Everybody's Baby
Millie
Hi, Beautiful
The Little Rascals - The ClassicFlix Restorations, Volume 5
Maid (uncredited)
The Singing Kid
Mississippi Moods
Rosalie (uncredited)
Babbitt
Injured Patient (uncredited)
The Impatient Maiden
Becky "Mom Beck" Porter
The Little Colonel
Hattie
Star for a Night
Edna the Maid
Good-bye Love
Self
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
Cook
Wig-Wag
Self (archive footage)
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
Self (archive footage)
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
Self (archive footage)
And the Oscar Goes To...
Annie (uncredited)
Operator 13
Woman at Funeral (uncredited)
Imitation of Life
Nellie (uncredited)
Another Face
Dora
The First Baby
Musical Comedy Tonight III
Kitty Silvers
Gentle Julia
Lizzie
Can This Be Dixie?
Ida Johnson
Lost in the Stratosphere
Beulah
45 Fathers
Hattie - Gertrude's Maid (uncredited)
The Chases of Pimple Street
Maid (uncredited)
Okay Toots!
Maid
Anniversary Trouble
Mrs. Walker (uncredited)
Nothing Sacred
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
98
Gender
Female
Birthday
1893-06-10
Place of Birth
Wichita, Kansas, USA
Also Known As
Hattie McDaniels