Olympic Pride, American Prejudice is a documentary film which premiered in 2016.
The topic is the Olympic Summer Games of 1936, which were held in Berlin, with special focus on the African American members of the US team.
For this occasion, the US Olympic Committee sent a team of 400 athletes, including the African American athlete Jesse Owens who won four gold medals.
Jesse Owens became famous. His story was told by the mass media. Books and films made sure that Jesse Owens became a household name.
But Jesse Owens was not the only African American athlete on the US team of 1936. The number of African American athletes on the US team of 1936 was 18 (16 men and 2 women).
But until recently, only one person was remembered. The other 17 disappeared from public view. The other 17 were forgotten.
This film does not want to focus on Jesse Owens (although he is mentioned occasionally). The purpose of this film is to focus on the other 17. On the 17 who were forgotten.
Who were they? What was their background? How did they do in Berlin in 1936? And what happened to them when the Olympic Games were over and they returned to the US?
Here is some basic information about this film:
** Director: Deborah Riley Draper
** Narrator: Blair Underwood
** Run time: 82 minutes
When Deborah Riley Draper began to make this film, none of the 18 African American athletes who travelled to Berlin in 1936 was still alive. They had all passed away.
When the director was trying to find someone to interview, she had to look for people who knew them, because they were family members, or people who knew about them.
While looking for information, she was able to find some audio recordings which were made by two of the 18 athletes (James LuValle and Archie Williams).
[The names of the 18 African American athletes are listed at the end of this post.]
Many persons are interviewed in the film. Here are the names of the participants (listed in alphabetical order):
** Dr Susan Bachrach – curator, US Holocaust Memorial Museum
** Gretel Bergmann (1914-2017) - a German athlete who qualified for the 1936 Olympic Games (high jump)
** Dr Dexter Blackman – Professor of African American History, Loyola Marymount University
** Wannetta Brooks – wife of African American athlete John Brooks
** Lonnie G. Bunch III – director, National Museum of African American History and Culture
** Cameron Burrell (born 1994) (son of Leroy Burrell) – American athlete
** Leroy Burrell (born 1967) – 1992 Olympian athlete
** Bill Campbell – African American politician - mayor of Atlanta 1994-2002
** Anita DeFrantz – 1976 Olympian athlete – member of the IOC since 1986
** Dr Daniel Durbin – director, USC Annenberg Institute of Sports, Media and Society
** Bernita Echols – daughter of African American athlete Tydie Pickett
** Dr Harry Edwards – Professor emeritus, UC Berkeley, department of sociology
** Wilfred Fraser, Jr. - son of African American athlete Louise Stokes Fraser
** Joanna Hayes – 2004 Olympian athlete
** Dr Emanuel Hübner – Institute of Sports Science, University of Münster
** Ingeborg Kirchoff – 1936 Olympian youth performer
** Volker Kluge – German journalist and sports historian
** Carl Lewis – four times Olympian athlete = 1984, 1988, 1992 and 1996
** Ralph Metcalfe, Jr. – son of African American athlete Ralph Metcalfe
** Tim Richardson – former board member of USOC
** Dr Tommy Smith – 1968 Olympian athlete
** Dr Daria Brooks Terrell – daughter of African American athlete John Brooks
** Isiah Thomas – 1980 Olympian athlete
** Terence Trammell – two times Olympian athlete = 2000 and 2004
** Werner Viehs (born 1924) – a German citizen who was a spectator during the Olympic Games of 1936 (he was 12 in August 1936)
** Faye Walker – daughter of African American athlete Tydie Pickett
** Fritz Wandt (1923-2018) – a German citizen who was a spectator
during the Olympic Games of 1936 (he was 12 in August 1936)
** Nils Warnecke – curator, German Cinematheque
** Ambassador Andrew Young – US ambassador to the UN 1977-1979
In addition, two old audio recordings – the voices of two African American athletes:
** James LuValle
** Archie Williams
Archive footage is used between the talking heads. Archive footage is used to support and supplement the statements made by the participants. Archive footage is used while the narrator is talking.
Archive footage makes it possible for us to witness key moments of the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936 as well as key moments of the American discussion about Nazi Germany before the games were held:
Should the US boycott the games or not? As we all know, the final answer to this question was No.
What do reviewers say about this film? Here are the results of three review aggregators:
73 percent = Meta
76 percent = IMDb
49 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
100 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)
On Amazon, there are at the moment 89 global ratings and 40 global reviews. The average rating is 4.7 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 94 percent.
As you can see, the ratings are quite good. When you look at Rotten Tomatoes, you can see that there is a big difference between the professional critics and the general audience.
The critics like it more than
the audience. This is a common phenomenon when we are talking about
a documentary film. But on this occasion, the difference between the two groups
is sharper than what is usual.
On this occasion, the critics go all the way to the top and offer 100 percent, while the audience has a very negative attitude which means a rating of only 49 percent.
A difference of 10 or 20 points is easy to understand. It does not mean much. But a big difference like this is hard to understand. The low rating offered by the general audience is not fair.
I like this film and I want to offer a good rating, but I do have one complaint about it. There is a serious flaw. A technical problem.
Let me explain:
As stated above, many persons are interviewed.
Each talking head is identified by an on-screen message which gives a name and an identification to explain how this person is connected with the topic.
** To read the name, we need at least 4 seconds, preferably 5 seconds.
** To read the identification, we need at least 4 seconds, preferably 5 seconds.
** To read the whole on-screen message, we need at least 8 seconds, preferably 10 seconds.
But how long is the on-screen message actually visible? Only for 2 or 3 seconds. This is not enough. When I was watching the film, I actually had to pause it in order to read the on-screen message. Otherwise, I would not know who was talking.
This is, in my opinion, a serious flaw. I blame the editor and the director for this flaw.
This detail shows that the editor and the director do not care much about the viewer. The editor and the director do not think it is important to give the viewer enough time to identify each of the numerous talking heads.
It is odd. First, the director spends much time and effort to find and track down all these individuals who can help us understand the topic. Having done this, the director does not give the viewer enough time to read the on-screen message which identifies the talking head.
What a shame!
There is a minor flaw when the narrator mentions the title of the German anthem which is played as the German Olympic team enters the stadium. He says:
“Deutschland uber Alles.”
The pronunciation of the second word is wrong!
The correct pronunciation is:
Deutschland über Alles.
Obviously, the narrator does not speak German. This is understandable. He does not have to. But he should be able to pronounce a German word properly.
Since the narrator does not know any German, why did nobody tell him? Why did nobody on the team notice the false pronunciation of this German word?
Whatever the reason, I will regard this mistake as a
minor flaw. After all, it is just one word.
CONCLUSION
This is an important film about an important topic. The 17 African American athletes who travelled with Jesse Owens to the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936 are no longer forgotten.
But as you can see, this film has a flaw, which cannot be ignored. I have to remove one star because of this flaw. And therefore, I think it deserves a rating of four stars (80 percent).
THE 18 BLACK MEMBERS OF THE US OLYMPIC TEAM FOR THE SUMMER GAMES OF 1936
Dave Albritton (1913-1994) – high jump
John Brooks (1910-1990) – long jump
James (Jimmy) Clark (1914-1968) – boxing
Cornelius Johnson (1913-1946) – high jump
Willis Johnson (1914-1968) – boxing
Howell King (1918-1949) – boxing
Jimmy LuValle (1912-1993) 400-meter dash
Ralph Metcalfe (1910-1978) – 100-meter dash
Arthur (“Art”) Oliver (1911-1944) – boxing
Jesse Owens (1913-1980) – 100 m, 200 m, 4 x 100 m, long jump
Tydie Pickett (1914-1986) – 80-meter hurdles
Fritz Pollard, Jr. (1915-2003) – 110-meter hurdles
Matthew (“Mack”) Robinson (1914-2000) – 200-meter dash
Louise Stokes (1913-1978) – track and field
John Terry (1908-1970) – weightlifting
Archie Williams (1915-1993) – 400-meter dash
Jack Wilson (1918-1956) – boxing
John Woodruff (1915-2007) – 800-meter dash
REFERENCES
# 1. Books
The Nazi Olympics: Sport, Politics and Appeasement in the 1930s edited by Arnd Krüger and William Murray (2003)
Hitler’s Olympics: The 1936 Berlin Olympic Games by Christopher Hilton (2006) (2008)
Hitler’s Olympics: The Story of the 1936 Nazi Games by Anton Rippon (2006) (2012)
Nazi Games: The Olympics of 1936 by David Clay Large (2007)
Berlin 1936: Sixteen Days in August by Oliver Hilmes (2018) (2019)
Olympic Pride, American Prejudice by Blair Underwood, Deborah Riley Draper and Travis Thrasher (2020) (2021) (this book is a companion to the film)
# 2. Films
Berlin 36 (2009) (100 minutes)
Olympia – Festival of Nations (2012) (100 minutes)
Hitler’s Olympics (2016) (44 minutes)
*****
African American athletes:
Members of the US Olympic team for 1936
*****
Olympic Pride, American Prejudice
by Blair Underwood, Deborah Riley Draper and
Travis Thrasher
(the companion book)
(hardcover 2020, paperback 2021)
*****
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