Ollie Harrington
Encyclopedia
Oliver Wendell Harrington (February 14, 1912 – November 2, 1995), of multi-ethnic descent, was called by Langston Hughes, "America's greatest African-American
cartoonist
," an assessment that has stood the test of time. An outspoken advocate against racism
and for civil rights
in the United States
, Harrington lived in East Berlin
for the last three decades of his life.
, Harrington was the eldest of five children. He began cartooning to vent his frustrations about a viciously racist sixth grade teacher and graduated from DeWitt Clinton High School
in 1929. Immersing himself in the Harlem Renaissance
, Harrington found employment when Ted Poston, city editor for the Amsterdam News became aware of Harrington's already considerable skills as a cartoonist and political satirist. In 1935, Harrington created Dark Laughter, a regular single panel cartoon, for that publication. The strip featured the debut of his most famous character, Bootsie, an ordinary African-American dealing with racism in the U.S., whom Harrington described as "a jolly, rather well-fed but soulful character." During this time, Harrington also found time to undertake a degree (which he was unable to complete with the outbreak of World War II) in Fine Arts at Yale University
.
, the Pittsburgh Courier
sent Harrington to Europe and North Africa. In Italy, he met Walter White
, executive secretary of the NAACP, and after the war, White gave Harrington the job of creating the organization's public relations
department, where he became a visible and outspoken advocate for civil rights. In that capacity, Harrington published "Terror in Tennessee," a controversial expose of increased lynching violence in the post-W.W. II South. Given the publicity Harrington's sensational critique garnered, Harrington was invited to debate with U.S. Attorney General Tom C. Clark
on the topic of "The Struggle for Justice as a World Force", during which he confronted Clark for the U.S. government's failure to curb lynching
and other racially motivated violence.
Harrington left the NAACP and returned to cartooning in 1947, but his prominence brought him scrutiny from the Federal Bureau of Investigation
and the House Un-American Activities Committee
. Hoping to avoid further government scrutiny, Harrington moved to Paris in 1951. In Paris, Harrington joined a thriving community of African-American expatriate writers and artists, including James Baldwin
, Chester Himes
, and Richard Wright
, who became a close friend. Harrington was shaken by Wright's death in 1960 and suspected that he was assassinated as part of the ongoing campaign of harassment directed towards the expatriates by the American embassy.
East German administration erected the Berlin Wall
, and Harrington was unable to leave. Harrington spent the rest of his life in East Berlin, finding plentiful work and a cult following illustrating and contributing to publications such as Eulenspiegel, Das Magazine, and the Daily Worker
. Harrington had four children. Two daughters are U.S. nationals; a third is a British national. All were born before Harrington went to East Berlin. His youngest child, a son, was born several years after Harrington married journalist, Helma Richter.
Black
Black is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
," an assessment that has stood the test of time. An outspoken advocate against racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
and for civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Harrington lived in East Berlin
East Berlin
East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city...
for the last three decades of his life.
Early years
Born to Herbert and Euzsenie Turat Harrington in Valhalla, New YorkValhalla, New York
Valhalla is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place that is located within the town of Mount Pleasant, New York, in Westchester County. Its population was 3,162 at the 2010 U.S. Census...
, Harrington was the eldest of five children. He began cartooning to vent his frustrations about a viciously racist sixth grade teacher and graduated from DeWitt Clinton High School
DeWitt Clinton High School
DeWitt Clinton High School is an American high school located in the Bronx, New York City, New York.-History:Clinton opened in 1897 at 60 West 13th Street at the northern end of Greenwich Village under the name of Boys High School, although this Boys High School was not related to the one in Brooklyn...
in 1929. Immersing himself in the Harlem Renaissance
Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s. At the time, it was known as the "New Negro Movement", named after the 1925 anthology by Alain Locke...
, Harrington found employment when Ted Poston, city editor for the Amsterdam News became aware of Harrington's already considerable skills as a cartoonist and political satirist. In 1935, Harrington created Dark Laughter, a regular single panel cartoon, for that publication. The strip featured the debut of his most famous character, Bootsie, an ordinary African-American dealing with racism in the U.S., whom Harrington described as "a jolly, rather well-fed but soulful character." During this time, Harrington also found time to undertake a degree (which he was unable to complete with the outbreak of World War II) in Fine Arts at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
.
Career
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the Pittsburgh Courier
Pittsburgh Courier
The Pittsburgh Courier was an American newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which was published from 1907 to 1965. Once the country's most widely circulated Black newspaper, the legacy and influence of the Pittsburgh Courier is unparalleled.A pillar of the Black Press, it rose...
sent Harrington to Europe and North Africa. In Italy, he met Walter White
Walter Francis White
Walter Francis White was a civil rights activist who led the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for almost a quarter of a century and directed a broad program of legal challenges to segregation and disfranchisement. He was also a journalist, novelist, and essayist...
, executive secretary of the NAACP, and after the war, White gave Harrington the job of creating the organization's public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
department, where he became a visible and outspoken advocate for civil rights. In that capacity, Harrington published "Terror in Tennessee," a controversial expose of increased lynching violence in the post-W.W. II South. Given the publicity Harrington's sensational critique garnered, Harrington was invited to debate with U.S. Attorney General Tom C. Clark
Tom C. Clark
Thomas Campbell Clark was United States Attorney General from 1945 to 1949 and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States .- Early life and career :...
on the topic of "The Struggle for Justice as a World Force", during which he confronted Clark for the U.S. government's failure to curb lynching
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
and other racially motivated violence.
Harrington left the NAACP and returned to cartooning in 1947, but his prominence brought him scrutiny from the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
and the House Un-American Activities Committee
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
. Hoping to avoid further government scrutiny, Harrington moved to Paris in 1951. In Paris, Harrington joined a thriving community of African-American expatriate writers and artists, including James Baldwin
James Baldwin (writer)
James Arthur Baldwin was an American novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic.Baldwin's essays, for instance "Notes of a Native Son" , explore palpable yet unspoken intricacies of racial, sexual, and class distinctions in Western societies, most notably in mid-20th century America,...
, Chester Himes
Chester Himes
Chester Bomar Himes was an American writer. His works include If He Hollers Let Him Go and a series of Harlem Detective novels...
, and Richard Wright
Richard Wright (author)
Richard Nathaniel Wright was an African-American author of sometimes controversial novels, short stories, poems, and non-fiction. Much of his literature concerns racial themes, especially those involving the plight of African-Americans during the late 19th to mid 20th centuries...
, who became a close friend. Harrington was shaken by Wright's death in 1960 and suspected that he was assassinated as part of the ongoing campaign of harassment directed towards the expatriates by the American embassy.
Exile
In 1961, Harrington went to East Berlin after Aufbau Publishing commissioned him to illustrate a series of translated American classics. While in the city, the pro-KhrushchevNikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
East German administration erected the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
, and Harrington was unable to leave. Harrington spent the rest of his life in East Berlin, finding plentiful work and a cult following illustrating and contributing to publications such as Eulenspiegel, Das Magazine, and the Daily Worker
Daily Worker
The Daily Worker was a newspaper published in New York City by the Communist Party USA, a formerly Comintern-affiliated organization. Publication began in 1924. While it generally reflected the prevailing views of the party, some attempts were made to make it appear that the paper reflected a...
. Harrington had four children. Two daughters are U.S. nationals; a third is a British national. All were born before Harrington went to East Berlin. His youngest child, a son, was born several years after Harrington married journalist, Helma Richter.
Publications
- Dark Laughter: The Satiric Art of Oliver W. Harrington, ed. M. Thomas Inge (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1993).
- Why I left America and Other Essays, ed. M. Thomas Inge (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1993).
- Laughing on the Outside: The Intelligent White Reader's Guide to Negro Tales and Humor (New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1965). [With Philip Sterling and J. Saunders Redding].
- Bootsie and Others: A Selection of Cartoons (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1958).
- Hezekiah Horton (Viking Press, 1955). [with Ellen Tarry]
- Terror in Tennessee: The Truth about the Columbia Outrages (New York: "Committee of 100", 1946).