Madame Sul-Te-Wan
| Madame Sul-Te-Wan | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
Nellie Crawford March 7, 1873 Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | February 1, 1959 (aged 85) Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Stroke |
| Resting place | Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Other names | Sul-Te-Wan Madame Sultewan Madame Wan |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1915–1958 |
| Spouse(s) | Robert Reed Conley (m. 1910; div.?) |
| Children | Otto Conley Odel Conley Onest Conley |
Madame Sul-Te-Wan (born Nellie Crawford; March 7, 1873 – February 1, 1959) was an American stage, film and television actress. The daughter of freed slaves, she began her career in entertainment touring the East Coast with various theatrical companies and moved to California to become a member of the fledgling film community. She became known as a character actress, appeared in high-profile films such as The Birth of a Nation (1915) and Intolerance (1916), and easily navigated the transition to the sound films.
Her career spanned over five decades, and, in 1986, she was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame. Sul-Te-Wan was the first African American actor, male or female, to sign a film contract and be a featured performer.
Nellie Crawford was born in Louisville, Kentucky, USA to freed slaves Cleon De Londa and Silas Crawford. Her father left the family early in her life, and her mother became a laundress who found employment working for Louisville stage actresses. Young Nellie became enchanted by watching the young actresses rehearse when she delivered laundry for her mother. When she was older she moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, joined a theatrical company called Three Black Cloaks, and began billing herself as Creole Nell. She also formed her own theatrical companies and toured the East Coast. After moving to California, Madame Sul-Te-Wan began her acting career in uncredited roles in director D. W. Griffith's controversial 1915 drama Birth of a Nation and the colossal 1916 epic Intolerance. Sul-Te-Wan had allegedly written Griffith a letter of introduction after hearing that Griffith was shooting a film in her Kentucky hometown.
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