In Remembrance: Dorothy Van Engle

     Dorothy Van Engle, one of the leading Black actresses in America during the late 1930s and 40s, died May 10, 2004. She was 87.

     Born on August 14, 1916 in Harlem, N.Y., Van Engle grew up in the same 145th Street apartment building as singer Lena Horne. Her stepfather, Arvelle "Snoopie" Harris, played saxophone with Cab Calloway's band, and through the family's show business connections, she met director Oscar Micheaux. Van Engle starred in a number of Micheaux’s “race films” of the 1930s, quickly becoming a fan favorite of black audiences. The films may have been low budget and didn’t pay much, if at all, but Van Engle enjoyed the work.

     Her first known role with Micheaux was 1932’s crime/drama, The Girl From Chicago, but she is best remembered for her roles in Murder In Harlem (1935) and Swing! (1938). In Murder in Harlem she plays Claudia Vance, an attorney’s wife who is the one solving the murder mysteries. Van Engle portrayed an assistant producer in Swing!, coming up with the successful idea of saving the show. 

     Other acting credits include 1934’s drama, Harlem After Midnight, 1938’s God’s Stepchildren and 1939’s Lying Lips.

     It’s not well known that Van Engle was a seamstress. Since Micheaux couldn’t afford to pay many of his actors, Van Engle had no other choice but to make the clothes she wore. Once Micheaux ceased making films in the 1940’s, Van Engle quit acting for good to pursue other "paying" work.

     Nonetheless, she was considered a strong actress of her day, carrying a deft sophistication and intelligence that white Hollywood would not allow to be portrayed onscreen. Van Engle helped define the era of “race films" and portrayed the positive side of female Black heritage.

     Van Engle married Herbert Hollon shortly before she left the film business and they had two sons. She later worked at the library in Port Charlotte, FL until four years ago.

-John Gibbon