DuBose Heyward: A Charleston Gentleman and the World of Porgy and Bess

by James M. Hutchisson

In 1924 DuBose Heyward (1885-1940) was a businessman absorbed in his Charleston heritage. One year later he was the world-famous author of Porgy , the first major southern novel to portray blacks without condescension. Just a decade later George Gershwin had transformed Heyward's book into an opera that would become one of the most enduring masterworks of American music. As a young man Heyward was immersed in the Gullah culture of his city. Especially through his mother, a performer and interpreter of Gullah life in folktale and song, he discovered the gateway into the fascinating world he would immortalize in the characters of Porgy, Bess, Maria, and other denizens of Charleston's Catfish Row. In this full-dress biography Heyward is seen for the first time as a southerner who overcame social restrictions to perceive humanity beyond the class and color lines. Drawing on nearly fifty years of private papers and on previously untapped personal correspondence, this book places Heyward in the social and cultural framework of his time and marks the power and empathy of his extraordinary achievement. Until now, Heyward's role in the writing of George Gershwin's acclaimed opera Porgy and Bess has remained almost unknown. He wrote the libretto singlehandedly, and nearly half the arias are by him. Long thought to have been merely an assistant to Gershwin, he actually was involved in most phases of the production. Although the opera eclipsed Heyward's book, it was Gershwin's foundation stone. Mainly known today as the author of Porgy , Heyward was a versatile artist equally at ease with verse, short fiction, novels, plays, and Hollywood screenwriting. He and his wife Dorothy helped to energize the nascent black theater movement in New York. A cofounder of the Poetry Society of South Carolina, the first regional poetry circle in America, Heyward became a vigorous promoter of southern writing that was to peak in the great southern literary renaissance. Pulled by tradition into a way of life he did not completely accept, he developed a growing social conscience through writing. He began as a social conservative but ended his life as a staunch progressive committed to the advancement of African Americans.

224 pages, Hardcover

First published March 6, 2000

About the author

James M. Hutchisson, Charleston, South Carolina, is professor of English and director of graduate study in English at The Citadel. His books include Poe and DuBose Heyward: A Charleston Gentleman and the World of Porgy and Bess, both published by University Press of Mississippi.

Reviews

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

This a a fitting biography of DuBose Heyward, but not very much about the world of "Porgy and Bess." The author often mentions the Gullah people or alludes to them, but we never learn anything about them. Despite Heyward's good intentions, he never completely overcame the racism of his native Charleston. However, his plays did serve as a vehicle for black actors and actresses during the 1930s. As popular culture, several songs from "Porgy and Bess" have become standards, especially "Summertime."Suprisingly, the author, James Hutchisson told us very little about the black stars who performed in Heyward's plays. One would like to know more about Todd Duncan, Ethel Waters, and others. He did not mention that Duncan was from Kentucky, or that Ethel Waters had major roles in a number of movies, but then there are other books that correct Hutchisson's myopia. After reading this book, I want to read "Porgy" and see the film version with Sidney Poitier and Dorothy Dandridge one more time.

[Gene · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that stands out above all the trash

A book well worth reading. A writer/play right who deserves a better remembrance than he has gotten. And with the courage to portray black people in the 1920s and 1930s as real people.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always been a fan of PORGY AND BESS so was happy to find a book about the author. very informative work. learned much about the south of the time HEYWARD wrote his books. Have seen the opera many times but still have not found a copy of the book PORGY. will look on ebay right now.