Black managers of Black stars

YEARS OF SHOW BUSINESS, BLACK STARS MANAGED THEMSELVES or were managed by friends and acquaintances, some of them professionals, who counted the house and made dates and travel arrangements. But when Black stardom became a billion-dollar industry involving the destiny of movie companies, record companies and entertainment houses, Americans started drawing a color line between the talent and the money.

To justify that separation, myths were created which said, among other things, that White managers were better equipped--because they were White--to deal with White entertainment magnates and White club owners. One of the first A-stars to challenge those myths was Sammy Davis Jr., who hired a Black woman manager--Shirley Rhodes. Since then, and especially since the revolutions set in motion by the Freedom Movement, an increasing number of stars, including Will Smith (James Lassiter), Queen Latifah (Shakim Compere) and Alicia Keys (Jeff Robinson), have destroyed the myths by hiring Black managers who helped them rise to the top of their fields.

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