Charles W. Chesnutt to Oscar Micheaux, 23 February 1922
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February 23, 1922.
Mr. Oscar Micheaux,
Jacksonville, Fla.1
Dear Mr. Micheaux:
I am writing your Chicago office today2 with reference to your two notes of $100.00 each, payable December 15, 1921, and January 15, 1922, for picture rights in "The House Behind the Cedars,"3 which have not been mademet as per their terms and our agreement.4
Your letter of January 15th held out the hope of early payment, but this so far has not been realized.5
Kindly give the matter attention and oblige.
Yours very truly, CWC/FLCorrespondent:
1. Oscar Micheaux explored and then abandoned the option of shooting in Jacksonville, Florida out of concern that his Black cast and crew would encounter discrimination. But many of Micheaux's films, including the film version of The House Behind the Cedars, were shot at least partly in the South, namely around Roanoke, Virginia, where the Micheaux Film Corporation had a branch office. [back]
2. See Chesnutt's letter to Swan E. Micheaux of February 23, 1922. [back]
3. The House Behind the Cedars (Houghton Mifflin, 1900) was Chesnutt's first published novel. House evolved over more than a decade from a short story, "Rena Walden," first drafted in the late 1880s. It was the only novel by Chesnutt to be serialized, once in 1900-1901 in the monthly Self Culture and again in 1921-1922 in the Black weekly Chicago Defender. House was also his only novel to be adapted to film (1924 and 1932). [back]
4. Chesnutt came to an arrangement regarding the movie-rights contract for his novel The House Behind the Cedars with Micheaux Film Corporation, which produced a series of five $100.00 promissory ("cognovit") notes, each due on the 15th of the month (September to January). These were paid with delays and incurred additional interest and penalties: The September note on Oct. 1, the October note around Nov. 13, November's on Dec. 4, and December's not until May 1922. The last note was not paid at all. Chesnutt declined several offers of stocks or bonds in the company in trade for the notes, and passed 25% of each payment on to Houghton Mifflin Company. [back]
5. Between January and September 1921, Oscar Micheaux negotiated with Chesnutt to pay $500 in five installments for the film rights to Chesnutt's novel The House Behind the Cedars. This was a low sum for movie rights to a novel, but Chesnutt likely took into account that Black-produced films had low budgets. Ultimately, 25% (rather than the originally suggested 33%) of the money received went to Chesnutt's publisher, Houghton Mifflin Company. Several of the payments were delayed, and Chesnutt never received the final installment. Micheaux's film adaptation was released in December 1924. [back]
