BOOK REVIEW / Paperbacks: A Separate Cinema by John Kisch and Edward Mapp, Orion pounds 9.99

Long before Whoopi Goldberg and Eddie Murphy hit the mainstream, when whiteness was still prerequisite to Hollywood success, 'black' cinema was sidelined as an industry and art-form on its own. Introduced by Spike Lee, this eye-opening history documents the rise and fall of black films, and is abundantly illustrated with more than 200 posters. This one advertised a 1932 movie by Oscar Micheaux who cast many of his stars for their 'high yellow' skin colour.