James Baskett

James Baskett (b. Indianapolis, February 16, 1904 – d. July 9, 1948) – Actor and singer. A former student at Arsenal Tech High School, Baskett moved from Indy to New York City to perform with Mr. Bojangles (Bill Robinson) as a young man. After appearing on Broadway with Louis Armstrong in an all-black music revue entitled Hot Chocolates in 1929, Baskett pursued a career in the California film industry. After making some “B movies” in the 1930s and 1940s, he landed the role of his career in 1946 as Uncle Remus in Song of the South, which included his classic performance of “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.” By winning an honorary Academy Award in 1948 for Song of the South, Baskett became the first African American actor to win an Oscar. Another important role of his was lawyer Gabby Gibson (1944-48) on the Amos and Andy Show on radio. Dead at age forty-four of a heart attack, Baskett is buried at the Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.