Hattie McDaniel was born in Wichita, Kansas on June 10, 1895.
This preacher's daughter started her show business career as a band vocalist, then worked her way into films. She made her film debut as a maid in The Golden West (1932). Though she frequently played the part of a maid, she was distinctive in the way that her characters were not subservient women who would bow to their employers every wish. This is seen in many films including: Judge Priest (1934), Alice Adams (1935), and The Mad Miss Manton (1938). In the film The Mad Miss Manton (1938) she actually tells off her socialite employer, Barbara Stanwyck and her snooty friends. Some of her other early films include: The Little Colonel (1935), with Shirely Temple and Lionel Barrymore, Show Boat (1936, in which she sings "Ah Suits Me"), Libeled Lady (1936), Saratoga, Nothing Sacred (both 1937), and Carefree (1938). In 1939, she portrayed Mammy in Gone With The Wind (1939). She won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Mammy, but ironically was not allowed to attend the premiere of the film because of Georgia's segregation laws. She was allowed to attend the Academy Award Ceremony but she and her escort were seated in the back of the room at a table just for them. It seemed that despite her great success the color of her skin matterted more to people than her acting talent. After Gone With The Wind , she appeared in many films roles including: In This Our Life (1942), with Bette Davis and GWTW co-star Olivia de Havilland, Johnny Come Lately (1943), Since You Went Away (1944), Song of the South (1946), and Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948), and many more. She also played Buckwheat's mother in a number of Our Gang comedies. She was one of several actresses to star in the "Beulah" radio and TV series. Sadly, she died of breast cancer on October 26, 1952 in Woodland Hills, California.
During her life she was married four times to Larry Williams (1949 - 1950) (divorced),
James Lloyd Crawford (1941 - 1945) (divorced),
Howard C. Hickman (1938 - 1938) (divorced), and
George Langford (1922 - 1922) (his death)
