Mercedes Gilbert ( – ) was an actress, novelist, and poet. She was African-American."Radio Artist to Appear in Recital Here." (Little Rock) Arkansas State Press, November 26, 1943, p. 1. She performed on stage, in three films, in a television series, and a radio show. She wrote a novel.
Early life and education Gilbert was a native of Jacksonville, Florida. She attended Edward Waters College, where she originally trained to be a nurse before coming to New York and entering the entertainment profession, first as a songwriter and then as a stage actress."Mercedes Gilbert, Stage, Radio Actress." New York Times, March 6, 1952, p. 31. Miss Gilbert was a member of Sigma Gamma Rho sorority.
Career Gilbert portrayed Zipporah, the wife of Moses, in the original touring production of The Green Pastures in 1930.J. Brooks Atkinson, "New Negro Drama of Sublime Beauty." New York Times, February 27, 1930, p. 20. She was still performing in 1950, appearing on Broadway in a new version of the play "Tobacco Road," with an all-black cast.Sam Zolotow, "Stage Committee Aims to Continue." New York Times, March 3, 1950, p. 20. In the mid-1940s, she performed a one-woman show at historically black colleges across the United States."Another Talent," Wichita (KS) Negro Star, December 7, 1945, p. 1.
Gilbert appeared on screen four times: The Call of His People in 1921, Body and Soul in 1925, Moon Over Harlem in 1939 as Jackie's mother, and finally in the episode "The Green Dress" of the TV series Lights Out. She also appeared on radio, most notably in a 1943 tribute to black women in America called "Heroines in Bronze," where she played the role of Sojourner Truth."Footlight Flickers." Kansas City (KS) Plain Dealer, April 2, 1943, p. 6. She performed occasionally on other radio programs, as well as writing and producing several radio skits.
Gilbert authored the 1938 novel Aunt Sara's Wooden God."Latest Books Received." New York Times, October 30, 1938, p. 36.
Death Gilbert died at age 57 in 1952 in Queens General Hospital in New York after a three-week illness.
Filmography The Call of His People (1922) Body and Soul (1925) Moon Over Harlem (1939) as Jackie's mother Lights Out, TV series episode "The Green Dress"
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