Join us for a special afternoon of honoring Frank Silvera, a pioneer in Black Cinema with a screening of KILLER’S KISS and conversation. Frank Silvera’s daughter, Linda Silvera will also be in attendance. RoxFilm will also be making a very special announcement!

🎞️ KILLER’S KISS

Directed by Stanley Kubrick (USA, 1955, 67 mins). Davey Gordon (Jamie Smith), a New York City boxer aging out of his profession, meets dancer Gloria Price (Irene Kane), and they begin a romance. However, their budding relationship is interrupted by Gloria's violent boss, Vincent Rapallo (Frank Silvera), who has eyes for his employee. The two decide to skip town, but before they can, Vincent and his thugs abduct Gloria, and Davey is forced to search for her among the most squalid corners of the city, with his enemy hiding in the shadows.

ℹ️ABOUT FRANK SILVERA: Frank Silvera (1914–1970) was a remarkable Jamaican-born American actor, director, and mentor who made significant contributions to theater and film while championing African-American artists. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, and raised in Boston, he began his acting career in the 1930s in Boston Ma as part of the Negro Theater and became a prominent figure in the American Negro Theatre in Harlem, helping to usher in a new era for Black performers on Broadway and beyond

Silvera was known for his versatility, playing a wide range of ethnic roles in film and television, and earned a Tony Award nomination in 1963 for his role in The Lady of the Camellias. Deeply committed to civil rights, he openly protested against the limited and stereotypical roles available to Black actors and founded the Theatre of Being in Los Angeles in 1965 to train and empower young Black actors.

Learn more about Frank Silvera and the Frank Silvera Writers’ Workshop Foundation, Inc here: https://thefsww.org/