In the book on which Hud is based ("Horseman, Pass By") the housekeeper Alma is black. Principal filming on Hud took place in summer 1962. Given these circumstances, had the directors wished to cast a black actress as Alma, who do you think could/should have gotten the part? Dorothy Dandridge perhaps? Or Abbey Lincoln, Ruby Dee, to name just a few.
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diana sands.
probably nowhere near old enough for the role but i've always fancied her, so the hell with it!
I didn't know that. Yes maybe Abbey Lincoln.
"Say anything about me, dahling, as long as it isn't boring."-Talullah Bankhead
Pearl Bailey or Dorothy Dandridge.
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I know this is years later but it's very interesting. Thanks for info Bob (OP). I, too, think Diana Sands would have been superb. Also, Gloria Foster; Abbey Lincoln, and even Eartha Kitt! I wonder if Hilda Simms was the right age, if so, she too would have been right for the part!
Oh, I just thought of Diahann Carroll! ...
:)
I think Pearl Baily would have been great as Alma. She could project an attitude that would counter Hud's persona. She may not be the prettiest, but she would have been the best in that role.
shareYes, Pearl Bailey is another excellent candidate. She would have been wonderfully saucy in the part. I can see a cigarette dangling from her lips.
:)
I'm glad they changed it; Patricia Neal was perfect. There was already more than enough going on in this movie without the added complication of her character being black. A lot of viewers would have made a big deal out of it, distracting attention from the real story.
sharePerhaps Maddie Norman. The previous year she was in Baby Jane as the paid companion to Joan Crawford.
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