Lobby card for Lem Hawkins' Confession: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The lobby card depicts a tinted image of a man in a long sleeve button down shirt, blue denim overalls, and shoes. He is looking straight ahead. His proper right arm is down by his side and his right knee is on the ground. His proper left leg is bent, foot on the ground, and his left arm is resting on his thigh. There is a woman laying in front of the man on a wooden floor. Her body is limp. She is wearing a short sleeve pink collared shirt and a brown skirt, and her eyes are closed. There is blue text at the top which reads [A. BURTON RUSSELL / presents] followed by arched black text which reads [“LEM / HAWKINS’ CONFESSION”]. There is red text on the proper right side of the man which reads [Based on the Sensational / “STANFIELD / MURDER / CASE”]. The red text on the proper left side of the man reads [Written and Directed by / OSCAR MICHEAUX]. There are blue and teal shapes in the background. There is a black textbox on the proper left side of the man with yellow, blue, and red text. It reads [With a Great / ALL STAR CAST / including / CLARENCE BROOKS / DOROTHY Van ENGLE / ALEC LOVEJOY / ANDREW BISHOP / LAURA BOWMAN / LIONEL MONAGAS] and a list of eight other names. There is white text on the bottom left corner which reads [COPYRIGHT / MCMXXV by / MICHEAUX / PICTURES / CORP. / N.Y.C.]. The background of the lobby card is off white in color. The border around the lobby card is also off white and blends in with the background. There is small blue text in the border on the bottom proper left side. It reads [NEW YORK GRAUVRE CORP. --- MADE IN U.S.A.]. The proper bottom right corner is torn. The back of the lobby card is still there, but a section of the front image is missing. There are some other small folds, creases, and areas of discoloration on the lobby card.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1935
• Created by: Micheaux Film and Book Company, American, 1918 - 1940
• Subject of: Alice B. Russell, American, 1889 - 1984
• Subject of: Oscar Micheaux, American, 1884 - 1951
• Subject of: Clarence Brooks, American, 1896 - 1969
• Subject of: Dorothy Van Engle, American, 1910 - 2004
• Subject of: Alec Lovejoy, American, 1893 - 1946
• Subject of: Andrew S. Bishop, American, 1894 - 1959
• Subject of: Laura Bowman, American, 1881 - 1957
• Type: lobby cards
• Medium: ink on paper (fiber product)
• Dimensions: H x W (image): 9 3/4 × 12 1/2 in. (24.8 × 31.8 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (sheet): 11 × 14 in. (27.9 × 35.6 cm)
• Place used: United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Actors
• Topic: Advertising
• Topic: Film
• Topic: Justice
• Topic: Law
• Topic: Race films
• Topic: Race relations
• Object number: 2013.118.122.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The displayed image also has an explicit CC0 designation. The underlying object's rights statement is: Public domain Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.