“Who’s the cat who won’t cop out when there’s danger all about?” Director Gordon Parks’ iconic SHAFT (1971) tells the story of the eponymous private dick – a suave, two-fisted Black hero hired to search Manhattan for the kidnapped daughter of a Harlem kingpin. Based on the novel by journalist and screenwriter Ernest Tidyman, SHAFT stars Richard Roundtree in his first major film role and marks the motion picture debuts of Gwenn Mitchell and Drew Bundini Brown (the well-known trainer of boxer Muhammad Ali). Isaac Hayes’ unforgettable “Theme from SHAFT” appeared at #38 on AFI’s list of the greatest American movie music – and earned him an Academy Award, only the third in Oscar history ever conferred upon a Black artist.
Visit the AFI Catalog to learn more about SHAFT.
