A Brief History
On February 29, 1940, for her portrayal of Mammy in the classic motion picture, Gone with the Wind, Hattie McDaniel became the first African American to win an Academy Award, better known as an Oscar. On the last day of February, the month we celebrate as “Black history Month,” we take the time to honor some famous and well loved fictional African American characters. We have previously featured many real great African Americans, but today we take the time to recognize how even fictional characters can present people in a positive light, even as an example for others. (Obviously we are merely scratching the surface here, so feel free to name your favorite African American fictional characters we did not list.)
Digging Deeper
Aunt Jemima
Sadly, this iconic American brand will no longer feature the smiling face of the woman Americans came to love as the premier purveyor of pancakes due to the current state of political correctness or “woke” philosophy. We disagree! We have always loved Aunt Jemima products and her motherly visage and have never found that image to be degrading in any way. We will miss seeing her at breakfast time. (Likewise, Uncle Ben and the guy on Cream of Wheat.)
Black Panther
The comic book turned movie superhero is technically an African, not really an African American, although he does his superhero thing alongside other American Marvel super heroes, so that is good enough for us! His strength, integrity, courage, intelligence and work ethic make him an icon for all American kids of any age.
Luke Cage
Another Marvel superhero, we do not mean to dwell on super hero comic book characters, but as one of our favorite Marvel characters, we have to name this guy. A do-gooder that helps the common people, we give an honorable mention to another similar, though not supernaturally strong character, that being the Equalizer.
Storm
Ok, just one more Marvel superhero, this time a superheroine! Played by Halle Berry and Alexandra Shipp in the movies, the Storm character was “born” Ororo Munroe, but got her better-known moniker for being able to control the weather. And she is Black Panther’s sweetie!
Gavin King (Orpheus)
This time, a DC comics hero, Orpheus builds his superhero alter-ego through hard work and the study of martial arts to protect the weak and downtrodden of Gotham City, He works with Batman, and is not to be confused with the Orpheus of the Matrix franchise, who is another sort of iconic fictional hero in his own right.
Virgil Tibbs
At a time (today) when police are under fire from all sides, especially in the African American community, a fictional Black police hero, the product of novelist John Dudley Ball Jr., stands out a fine example of what a great police officer can be. Mister Tibbs also was featured in top Hollywood movies (starring Sidney Portier in the title role 3 times) as well as the novels. For that matter, Sidney Portier was a magnificent actor and often played African American men worthy of emulation by young Americans. (He died in January of 2022.)
Alex Cross
Need another African American police officer? You got one! Novelist James Patterson created Alex Cross and wrote a slew of great crime novels featuring this African American detective par excellence. Cross also appears in major motion pictures starring Morgan Freeman and Tyler Perry. The books and movies are excellent, as is the character.
Mabel “Madea” Earlene Simmons
Tyler Perry strikes again with his iconic character of Madea, a tough old Black woman that can power her way through any situation. While the Madea movies are basically comedies, Perry manages to use Madea to deliver moral lessons to the audience as well as laughs. Perry based Madea on his own mother and aunt, both apparently strong, capable Black women.
Thumper and Jinx
James Bond, ladies’ man and suave spy, was no stranger to the allures of attractive and competent African American women, in this case Thumper, played by Actress Trina Parks in 1971 and Jinx, played by Halle Berry in 2002. While Thumper was an arch nemesis, the character shows that a Black woman can be smart and ruthless enough to fill the role of a criminal genius and general badass. Jinx, on the other hand, is an undercover (and under the covers!) American secret agent that teams up with Bond to foil the bad guys.
Bosco Albert “B.A.” (Bad Attitude) Baracus
A main character in the 1980’s television series (and later movie), The A Team, BA Baracus was played by Mr. T, complete with muscles and gold jewelry in TV and by Quintin “Rampage” Jackson in the movie (2010). Notable for being physically imposing and tough as they can possibly come, Baracus is also famously afraid of flying in airplanes, something many people can relate to.
John Shaft
“He’s a bad mother… Watch your mouth!” This great Black detective began as a character in a novel by Ernest Tidyman and went on to Hollywood stardom in the movie Shaft (1971). Did we mention the iconic song by Isaac Hayes from the movie? Anyway, the film spawned 4 sequels and 7 made for television movies, so the character is pretty darn popular. The 2019 version calls John Shaft “Hotter than Bond, cooler than Bullitt.” Three were even comic books and a comic strip starring this hero. Nuff said.
Doc (G.I. Joe)
The toy, comics, animated and live action series that calls G.I. Joe “A Real American Hero” would not be complete with representation from the African American community, and one of those characters is called “Doc,” although not because of being a medic or corpsman as is common in the military, but as an actual Doctor of Medicine. In his 1983 debut, Doc was Carl W. Greer, and by 2004 the eponymous character became the niece of the original Doc, this time a female, Carla P. Greer, also a medical doctor. It is notable that these 2 “Docs” are the only G.I. Joe characters with a doctorate (terminal college degree).
Question for students (and subscribers): Who is your favorite fictional African American character? Please let us know in the comments section below this article.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Anna, JR. Inspirational Black Heroes in Contemporary African American History. Independently published,, 2021.
Norwood, Arlisha. Black Heroes: A Black History Book for Kids: 51 Inspiring People from Ancient Africa to Modern-Day U.S.A. Rockridge Press, 2020.
The featured image in this article, a publicity photo for Gone with the Wind, 1939, is in the public domain because it was published in the United States between 1927 and 1963, and although there may or may not have been a copyright notice, the copyright was not renewed. For further explanation, see Commons:Hirtle chart and the copyright renewal logs.
