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Robeson, Paul

A twentieth-century African-American actor and singer, best known for his roles in Porgy and Bess and in the movie version of Show Boat, in which he sang “Ol' Man River.”

Note

Robeson was politically controversial because he compared the treatment of black people in the United States unfavorably with their treatment in the Soviet Union. He lived outside the United States for many years.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.