Carolynne Snowden: Movies & Filmography

Carrie Artiemissia Snowden, known professionally as Carolynne Snowden, was born on January 16, 1900, in Oakland, California, to Frederick Snowden and Nellie Derrick. She began her career performing on the theater circuit, traveling across the country and earning significant acclaim for her talents. By the early 1920s, she was singing and dancing at New York City's famous Cotton Club, one of the most prestigious venues for African American performers during the era. In 1925, she relocated to Los Angeles to perform at the New Cotton Club and at Club Alabam on Central Avenue, which was the heart of the African American entertainment scene in Los Angeles at the time. She slowly began transitioning into film, landing small roles in Hollywood productions like The Marriage Clause and The Merry Widow, marking her entry into the burgeoning film industry.

Eventually, Carolynne signed a five-year contract with John M. Stahl's Tiffany Pictures, which led to a more prominent role in the 1927 film In Old Kentucky alongside the famous comedian Stepin Fetchit. Throughout the late 1920s and early 1930s, she appeared in numerous films including The Jazz Singer (1927), Show Boat (1929), Playing Around (1930), and Flying Down to Rio (1933), establishing herself as a versatile performer who could sing, dance, and act with great skill. She left Hollywood around 1933 after her Tiffany contract concluded, choosing to take her show on the road and refocus her efforts on live performances of singing and dancing. She was married twice, first to Fontaine Walker (later divorced) and then to Manfred Montagu, and had a daughter named Esther Smith. Carolynne Snowden died on September 5, 1985, in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 85, and was survived by her husband Montagu and her daughter. She is remembered as a pioneering African American entertainer who helped break racial barriers in the entertainment industry during a time of severe segregation and limited opportunities for black performers.