In Memorian: Gordon Parks 1912-2006

Gordon Parks: 1912-2006
Gordon Parks, who became the first black staff photographer at Life magazine in the late 1940s and broke more ground in Hollywood two decades later as the first black person to direct a major studio film, "The Learning Tree" - which was followed by the landmark black private-eye crime thriller "Shaft" - died yesterday at age 93. Although his films widened his fame, it was as a photographer and social documentarian that Mr. Parks first made his mark as an artist and achieved his greatest acclaim. As a staff photographer at Life for more than two decades, Mr. Parks shot acclaimed photo essays on segregation in the Deep South, the slums of Rio de Janeiro and Black Muslims. He also shot intimate portraits of celebrities, ranging from Muhammad Ali to Barbra Streisand. Mr. Parks had a second successful career as an author, beginning in the late 1940s with two instructional photography manuals. The Learning Tree, a semi-autobiographical novel about a smart and sensitive 15-year-old boy who experiences racism, love and loss in a Kansas town in the 1920s, became a 1963 bestseller. With support from actor-filmmaker John Cassavetes, Mr. Parks was hired by Warner Bros.' Seven Arts Studio to write, direct, score and executive-produce the 1969 screen version of The Learning Tree. In 1989, the film was among the first 25 films honored by the U.S. Library of Congress to be preserved in the National Film Registry. Mr. Parks produced and directed his second film, "Shaft," the 1971 action thriller that gave America its first black private eye hero, who became a role model for many young men. Starring Richard Roundtree as John Shaft and featuring Isaac Hayes' Oscar-winning theme song, "Shaft" was a box-office hit that crossed racial lines. Mr. Parks received numerous honors over the years, including the National Medal of Arts from President Ronald Reagan.