In the lore of early Black film history, no director’s footprint matches those of Oscar Micheaux, and if he had a female counterpart on the stage and screen it was Evelyn Preer. BHM AmNewsBHM
In fact, Micheaux often said Evelyn was his muse, and an accomplished, versatile actress who in many ways exceeded even his grand achievements. But it was what they did together that is most unforgettable.
With the popularity of “The Homesteader” and Evelyn portraying the daughter of a Black preacher and enduring a tragic matrimony, Micheaux wisely used her to promote the film and unwittingly gave her a platform that soon made her “the first lady of the screen” in Black films. A year later, she was once again Micheaux’s star in “Within Our Gates,” in which she plays Sylvia Landry, a teacher who needs to raise money to save her school.
The stint on Broadway or other stage dates apparently did not interfere with her films with Micheaux, and from “Deceit” in 1923 to “Blonde Venus” in 1932, she was featured in more than a dozen of his films, including the acclaimed Evelyn was also a more than adequate vocalist and often sang in cabaret and musical theater and occasionally with big bands, including Red Nichols and Duke Ellington in which she recorded with him in 1929 about the same time as talkies began to gather some traction.