Monte Hawley

According to Laura Wagner in her in-depth article on Monte in the February 2015 issue of Classic Images film magazine, he was the victim of a robbery back in 1917 wherein he received a severe blow to the head. In 1950, Monty died suddenly at the early age of 50 of a cerebral hemorrhage that close friends think was attributed to that head injury incurred some thirty years earlier.

In New York in November 1950, he was temporarily replacing comedian Spider Davis' ailing regular straight man in a fairly long stage engagement when he collapsed and died on stage of a cerebral hemorrhage. Eubie Blake played at his funeral.

Was very discouraged when he was not cast in in the film Lost Boundaries (1949), the story of a light-skinned doctor who passes for white. Swarthy-looking Mel Ferrer got the leading role instead.

Appeared (from 1938-1940) in several Million Dollar Productions which was run by actor Ralph Cooper. Called "race movies," they were vital in that they offered talented black actors an outlet not available to them in Hollywood. Hawley played both heroes and villains.

Made his Broadway bow in the chorus of "Runnin' Wild" in 1923. Later appeared on Broadway in "Bamboola (1929) and "Blackberries of 1932" (1932). He also performed as a comedian in burlesque revues. He returned to Broadway in "Harlem Cavalcade" in 1942 and later toured in an all-black stage version of "Anna Lucasta".

Following his discharge from the U.S. Navy in 1918, the Chicago-born native went back to his hometown and became a member of the Negro Folk Theatre and the Avenue Associated players, both black acting companies.

Monte Hawley was the top black actor of stage and screen of his time of the independent black cast films and of Harlem's Golden Era. Monte Hawley was a handsome and talented actor, he was most used in black films than any other black actor. He was born October 25 1901, in Chicago and got an early start in Show Business. Richard B. Harrison who gained fame as "De Lawd" in "Green Pastures" spied Monte when he was still in his teens. He liked the youth's "get up and go" and his natural flair for acting. He took young Monte under his wing, becoming his first tutor. From then on it was show business for Monte. He was a member of the famous Lafayette Players who scored such successes both in Chicago and later on the West coast in Hollywood and Los Angeles. Monte's first big time shows were "Shuffle Along" and "Runnin' Wild," in addition to several strictly road shows. It was while he was a member of the Lafayette Players in Hollywood that he cracked silent movies, becoming known as "one shot Monte" because he never had to make a retake. Then followed films with Louise Beavers and Hattie McDaniel and even one with Lena Horne which was her first movie, incidentally - which was made when Hawley was already a veteran actor - the picture was The Duke is Tops, and Monte also did a glorious film Gang Smashers with another top Black actress of the time Nina Mae McKinney. In Vaudeville, Monte was teamed for long periods of time with Mantan Moreland and Eddie Rochester Anderson before those men struck it big. In between Monte sandwiched pictures with Warner Brothers, Republic and Columbia, but was too handsome and too talented for the Hollywood studios, and wouldn't play the stereotypical uncle-Tom roles. He appeared for many years with various stage shows at Chicago's Regal theater and in several hits on Broadway. Monte achieved his greatest screen fame working for Harry Popkin's Million Dollar Productions where he and Ralph Cooper were the top actors. He was very versatile and often played the role of a comedic policemen, relentless detective or tack-less gangster or gambler in kind of the same style of Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, Robert Taylor, Pat O'Brien and Clark Gable. When baseball star, Jackie Robinson, made his tour a couple of years ago, Monte was his emcee, as he was previously with the Scottsboro boys. In later years, he became affiliated with the play "Anna Lucasta," as stage manager and also acting in the play.