One For The Road: Happy Early Birthday Melvin Van Peebles

By Chuck Sudo in Arts & Entertainment on Aug 20, 2012 10:40PM

Kim Bellware got actor-director Mario Van Peebles to open up about his Chicago roots and favorite local hangouts last week. the main tie that binds is to that of his father, Melvin Van Peebles, who was born Aug. 21, 1932 in Chicago. The elder Van Peebles was one of Hollywood's first black directors and laid the foundation for the blaxploitation movement with his 1971 classic Sweet Sweetback's Badasssss Song.

Van Peebles funded the film himself (and received a $50,000 loan from Bill Cosby) over a period of 19 days and released the soundtrack to the movie—courtesy of Earth, Wind and Fire—before the film's release.

Badasssss initially wound up being released in only two theaters in the U.S., but strong word of mouth led to more screenings and eventually the film earned $4.1 million and the approval of Huey Newton; the film became mandatory for members of the Black Panthers.

Van Peebles also is a playwright, author, spoken word artist and musician. We recommend searching out his 1969 album Brer Soul.