Women's History Month: Hattie McDaniel

studio publicity black and white photo of actress Hattie McDaniel

Hattie McDaniel, born in Wichita, Kansas, was a groundbreaking actress, singer, and comedian. She made history in 1940 when she became the first African American actor to win an Academy Award for her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind (1939). Off-screen, she also stood up for civil rights, helping organize Black homeowners in Los Angeles’ West Adams neighborhood in 1945 to fight restrictive racial housing covenants. The group won their case, marking an early victory for fair housing. McDaniel earned two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and helped pave the way for generations of performers.

Check out more amazing women from Kansas history during Women's History Month by visiting the Kansas Room at Main Library!

Featured Items
movie cover for Gone with the Wind from 1939

Gone with the Wind (1939) DVD

Focuses on the life and loves of the beautiful and selfish Scarlett O'Hara. The story begins on the O'Haras' Georgia plantation of Tara in antebellum days and moves through the Civil War and Reconstruction.
Awards:
Academy Awards, 1939: Best Picture; Best Actress (Vivien Leigh); Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Hattie McDaniel); Best Director (Victor Fleming); Best Writing (Screenplay) (Sidney Howard); Best Cinematography (Color) (Ernest Haller, Ray Rennahan); Best Art Direction (Lyle Wheeler); Best Film Editing (Hal C. Kern, James E. Newcom); Special Award (To William Cameron Menzies for outstanding achievement in the use of color for the enhancement of dramatic mood in the production of Gone with the Wind); Scientific or Technical Award (Class III).
book cover for " Hattie: the Life of Hattie McDaniel"

Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel

Hattie McDaniel was the first black to ever win an Oscar. She was also the first black woman to ever sing on American radio. In this fresh assessment of her life and career, Carlton Jackson tells the inside story of her working relationships, her personal life, and the many obstacles she faced as a black performer in the white world of show business during the first half of the twentieth century.

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