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IMDbPro

Donald Bogle

  • Writer
  • Producer
  • Director
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Donald is a noted African American film historian and prize-winning author and is one of the leading authorities on African Americans in the movies. The most notable of his works are "Dorothy Dandridge: A Biography"; as well as the classic study of Black images in film, "Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films"; and "Brown Sugar: Over One Hundred Years of America's Black Female Superstars," which was adapted into a four hour, four part series for PBS. His most recent book is "Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams: The Story of Black Hollywood." Other books are "Primetime Blues: African Americans on Network Television" and "Blacks in American Films and Television: An Illustrated Encyclopedia." "Let's all nod in appreciation to Donald Bogle," filmmaker Spike Lee wrote, "for putting everything in historical perspective. Mr. Bogle continues to be our most noted black-cinema historian."

He has lectured at universities and museums around the country and abroad. On Turner Classic Movies, he organized and co-hosted a 38-film series on changing images of African Americans in the movies. He has also appeared on such television programs as "The Today Show," "Good Morning American," "Charley Rose," "Tavis Smiley," "Entertainment Tonight," and others.

Bogle grew up in a suburb outside Philadelphia and divides his time today between New York City and Los Angeles.
BornJuly 13, 1944
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BornJuly 13, 1944
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
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    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Known for

    Brown Sugar (1986)
    Brown Sugar
    8.5
    TV Mini Series
    • Writer
    Hollywood Black (2024)
    Hollywood Black
    7.3
    TV Series
    • Writer
    Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television (2025)
    Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television
    6.6
    TV Mini Series
    • Producer
    Moguls & Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood (2010)
    Moguls & Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood
    8.5
    TV Mini Series
    • Self - Interviewee
    • Self - Film Director
    • Self - Film Historian

    Credits

    IMDbPro

    Writer



    • Hollywood Black (2024)
      Hollywood Black
      7.3
      TV Series
      • inspired by a book written by
      • 2024
    • Brown Sugar (1986)
      Brown Sugar
      8.5
      TV Mini Series
      • Writer
      • 1986–1990

    Producer



    • Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television (2025)
      Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television
      6.6
      TV Mini Series
      • consulting producer
      • 2025
    • Brown Sugar (1986)
      Brown Sugar
      8.5
      TV Mini Series
      • executive producer
      • 1986

    Director



    • Brown Sugar (1986)
      Brown Sugar
      8.5
      TV Mini Series
      • Director
      • 1986–1990

    Personal details

    • Born
      • July 13, 1944
      • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
    • Other works
      Biography: "Dorothy Dandridge."

    Did you know

    • Trivia
      He graduated from Lincoln University in 1966. Located in southern Chester County in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the historically black institution is also the alma mater of such prominent individuals as Langston Hughes, Thurgood Marshall, Roscoe Lee Browne and Kwame Nkrumah.
    • Quotes
      I'm an entertainment fan and a teacher of history.

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