{"product_id":"acts-of-love-black-performance-and-the-kiss-that-changed-film-history","title":"Acts of Love: Black Performance and the Kiss That Changed Film History","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"This book doesn't just fill gaps in film history; it demands that we confront why those gaps existed in the first place. A fascinating read for lovers of film.\"--Ava DuVernay​\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe rediscovery of the first film to depict African American affection revises the history of American cinema.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In 1898, vaudeville actors Saint Suttle and Gertie Brown joyously embraced in a short silent film titled \u003ci\u003eSomething Good--Negro Kiss\u003c\/i\u003e. The first known film to portray African American affection, it was lost for over a century until its rediscovery inspired contemporary audiences with a powerful and enduring depiction of Black love. More than a missing piece in an untold history of Black cinematic performance, \u003ci\u003eSomething Good\u003c\/i\u003e--and the magnetism of Suttle and Brown--attests to the power of Black performance on stage and screen from the nineteenth century to today. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In \u003ci\u003eActs of Love\u003c\/i\u003e, Allyson Nadia Field tells the story of \u003ci\u003eSomething Good\u003c\/i\u003e and recovers the forgotten yet fascinating lives of its performers and their world. Drawing a vivid picture from sparse historical records, \u003ci\u003eActs of Love\u003c\/i\u003e examines popular culture's negotiation of blackness to reconsider the intersections of minstrelsy, vaudeville, and cinema in ragtime America. This book not only presents the story of \u003ci\u003eSomething Good\u003c\/i\u003e, its performers, and the drama of its rediscovery; it shows how the rediscovery of this short early film changes our understanding of American film history.\u003cdiv style=\"display:none\"\u003eISBN-10: 0520392930\u003cbr\u003eISBN-13: 9780520392939\u003cbr\u003eAuthor: Field, Allyson Nadia\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: University of California Press\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"University of California Press","offers":[{"title":"Paperback (Feb 2026)","offer_id":46099796951237,"sku":"9780520392939","price":29.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0708\/6414\/2533\/files\/9780520392939.jpg?v=1776644842","url":"https:\/\/www.inveni.store\/products\/acts-of-love-black-performance-and-the-kiss-that-changed-film-history","provider":"Inveni","version":"1.0","type":"link"}