The Josephine Baker Story

The Josephine Baker Story is an American television film that first aired on HBO on March 16, 1991. It stars Lynn Whitfield as Josephine Baker, an international African-American star, who was especially successful in Europe. The film was generally well-received by critics and has become a success on home video and DVD. The original music score was composed by Georges Delerue.

The Josephine Baker Story
Genre	Biography Drama History Music Romance
Screenplay by	Ron Hutchinson
Story by	Ron Hutchinson Michael Zagor
Directed by	Brian Gibson
Starring	Lynn Whitfield Rubén Blades David Dukes Craig T. Nelson Kene Holliday Louis Gossett Jr.
Music by	Georges Delerue Carolyn Dennis (singing voice: Josephine Baker)
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Executive producers	Robert Halmi Jr. Robert Halmi Sr. David Puttnam
Producer	John Kemeny
Cinematography	Elemér Ragályi
Running time	130 minutes
Production companies	Anglia Television HBO Pictures Sonar Entertainment
Original release
Network	HBO
Release	March 16, 1991 (1991-03-16)

Plot

Born into a poor family in St. Louis, Josephine Baker struggles to make a name for herself on the vaudeville circuit. As her career progresses, so does her resentment of racial prejudice, motivating her to move to Paris—where in a short time, her exotic dance routines make her the toast of the town. Swayed by the influence of her manager, she takes the act back to America. It fails, but Josephine perseveres, proving herself as much humanitarian as entertainer.

Cast

• Lynn Whitfield as Josephine Baker
  • Mayah McCoy as Josephine Baker (age 8)
  • Ainsley Curry as Josephine Baker (age 13)
• Rubén Blades as Count Giuseppe Pepito Abatino
• David Dukes as Jo Bouillon
• Louis Gossett Jr. as Sidney Williams
• Craig T. Nelson as Walter Winchell
• Kene Holliday as Sidney Bechet
• Vivian Bonnell as Josephine's Mother
• Vivienne Eytle as Josephine's Sister

Production

Lynn Whitfield was glad to be chosen to play Josephine Baker in this movie, but she was concerned about the scene requiring her to bare her breasts to perform Baker's famous "Banana Dance." "I was nervous about what my grandmother would think," she said, but then she warmed to the idea: "It's what you think Eve would look like."^[1]

Accolades

At the 43rd Primetime Emmy Awards, the film won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special for Whitfield and the Outstanding Directing in a Miniseries or a Special for Brian Gibson. The film was also nominated for Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special and Miniseries and the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Special for both Blades and Dukes.

At the 49th Golden Globe Awards, the film was nominated for Best Limited Series, Anthology Series or Television Motion Picture, Lynn Whitfield was nominated for Best Actress - Limited Series, Anthology Series or Television Motion Picture, and Louis Gossett Jr. won Best Supporting Actor - Television.^[2]