Lime Kiln Club Field Day
4 Episodes
The oldest known surviving film starring an entirely Black cast, this unfinished 1913 romantic comedy—the footage of which was miraculously recovered from the vaults of the bankrupt Biograph film studio, alongside outtakes and a trove of still images from the production—stars legendary Bahamian-American vaudeville performer Bert Williams as a dandy competing with two rivals for the love of a woman (played by Harlem entrepreneur and actress Odessa Warren Grey). Williams—wearing blackface makeup in a concession to entertainment standards of the day—proves to be a leading man of striking depth, blending impressive slapstick gifts with emotional range. Reconstructed by the Museum of Modern Art from the extant fragments, LIME KILN CLUB FIELD DAY is a remarkable living vision of Black love, joy, and comic creativity.
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23:51Episode 1Lime Kiln Club Field Day Intro
Episode 1
The following conversation between Ron Magliozzi, film curator at the Museum of Modern Art, and Jacqueline Stewart, professor of cinema and media studies at the University of Chicago and former director and president of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, was recorded in 2024.
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LIME KILN CLUB FIELD DAY: Trevor Mathison Score
Episode 2
Directed by Edwin Middleton and T. Hayes Hunter • 1913 • United States
Starring Bert Williams, Odessa Warren GreyThe oldest known surviving film starring an entirely Black cast, this unfinished 1913 romantic comedy—the footage of which was miraculously recovered from the vaults of the bankrupt ...
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LIME KILN CLUB FIELD DAY: Donald Sosin Score
Episode 3
Directed by Edwin Middleton and T. Hayes Hunter • 1913 • United States
Starring Bert Williams, Odessa Warren GreyThe oldest known surviving film starring an entirely Black cast, this unfinished 1913 romantic comedy—the footage of which was miraculously recovered from the vaults of the bankrupt ...
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07:40Episode 4LIME KILN CLUB FIELD DAY Outtakes
Episode 4
Directed by Edwin Middleton and T. Hayes Hunter • 1913 • United States
Starring Bert Williams, Odessa Warren Grey
