Hugh Lincoln Hurd (1925 â€" July 15, 1995) was an American actor and
civil rights activist. Hurd is known for his lead role in John
Cassavetes' debut 1959 feature film Shadows and for his organizing
activities for African-American actors.Hugh Lincoln Hurd was born in
1925. His most notable acting roles were as the male lead in the 1959
film Shadows directed by John Cassavetes and a major role in the
Japanese film The Catch (1961), as a prisoner of war. He also had
roles in The Winner (1963), For Love of Ivy (1968), The Hot Rock
(1972), Blade (1973), A Woman Under the Influence (1974), The First
Deadly Sin (1980), Liebestraum (1991), Jumpin' at the Boneyard (1992),
and Who's the Man? (1993). He performed other minor roles in
television and commercials. His last film appearance was in the 1995
documentary Anything for John. Hurd performed minor theatrical roles
in The Threepenny Opera, The Little Foxes, and Four Saints in Three
Acts.Hurd was active in organizing work that combated racial
discrimination against African Americans in general and
African-American actors in particular. In the late 1950s at the
Village Gate nightclub, he co-organized with Godfrey Cambridge and
Maya Angelou to fund raise $9,000 for Martin Luther King Jr. during
the civil rights movement. He co-founded the Committee for the
Employment of Negro Performers with Godfrey Cambridge in 1962.In 1964,
Hurd was the subject of a portrait painted by the noted artist Alice
Neel. The painting is titled "Hugh Hurd" and is currently held by
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
civil rights activist. Hurd is known for his lead role in John
Cassavetes' debut 1959 feature film Shadows and for his organizing
activities for African-American actors.Hugh Lincoln Hurd was born in
1925. His most notable acting roles were as the male lead in the 1959
film Shadows directed by John Cassavetes and a major role in the
Japanese film The Catch (1961), as a prisoner of war. He also had
roles in The Winner (1963), For Love of Ivy (1968), The Hot Rock
(1972), Blade (1973), A Woman Under the Influence (1974), The First
Deadly Sin (1980), Liebestraum (1991), Jumpin' at the Boneyard (1992),
and Who's the Man? (1993). He performed other minor roles in
television and commercials. His last film appearance was in the 1995
documentary Anything for John. Hurd performed minor theatrical roles
in The Threepenny Opera, The Little Foxes, and Four Saints in Three
Acts.Hurd was active in organizing work that combated racial
discrimination against African Americans in general and
African-American actors in particular. In the late 1950s at the
Village Gate nightclub, he co-organized with Godfrey Cambridge and
Maya Angelou to fund raise $9,000 for Martin Luther King Jr. during
the civil rights movement. He co-founded the Committee for the
Employment of Negro Performers with Godfrey Cambridge in 1962.In 1964,
Hurd was the subject of a portrait painted by the noted artist Alice
Neel. The painting is titled "Hugh Hurd" and is currently held by
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
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