Oscar Micheaux to Charles W. Chesnutt, 15 January 1922
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Jacksonville, Fla.,1
Jan. 15, "222
Mr. Chas. W. Chesnutt,
Cleveland, Ohio
Dear Mr. Chesnutt:
I am in Florida where we will film a couple of tropical productions by April, and I am waiting to hear from my office where we have sent out a large volume of notes, taken in the sale of our bond issue, for discount, before starting, and will send you the amount due on our past due note3 as soon as I hear from there which should be very shortly.
Very truly, Oscar MicheauxCorrespondent: Oscar Micheaux (1884–1951) was a Black American writer and film director known for his films about race and racism. Originally from Illinois, he began his career as a novelist and later founded the Micheaux Film and Book Company (ultimately renamed Micheaux Film Corporation) in 1919. He first adapted his early novel The Homesteader to film, and directed and produced over three dozen films in the 1920s and 30s, typically writing the scripts as well as overseeing the low-budget production and distribution of the films. Several of his films were loosely based on the works of Black authors, including Chesnutt. After the demise of his company in 1940, Micheaux founded a publishing business and wrote several more novels.
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. Unless Oscar Micheaux's letter of January 15, 1922, was misdated, it crossed with Chesnutt's January 16 [not 15], 1921, letter to Swan E. Micheaux. Oscar Micheaux had promised a check for the December 15 note on January 1, 1922. The note was not paid until May. [back]
3. 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 was paid on October 1; the October note around November 13; November's on December 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]
