Don
Cheadle to Bring Story of First Black Millionaire on Wall Street to Theaters
By
The
story of Wall Street’s first Black millionaire won’t be untold
much longer as Don Cheadle is adapting the obscure tale for the big
screen.
“Prince of Darkness: The Untold Story of Jeremiah G. Hamilton, Wall
Street’s First Black Millionaire” is an award-winning biography about the only
Black broker on Wall Street and the sole Black millionaire in 1840s and 1850s
New York. Cheadle scored film and TV rights for the Shane White-written
2015 book and will produce and star in the drama, according to The Hollywood
Reporter.
White’s book states Hamilton was known as more ruthless and
aggressive than his competitors and challenged railroad and shipping
tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt for control
over Accessory Transit Company in the 1850s. Distancing himself from
the Black community and asserting himself among the white and wealthy,
Hamilton ruffled feathers in both communities. He married a white woman and had nine
children with her during their union, which lasted until Hamilton’s death in
1875. Hamilton amassed $2 million — the equivalent of $250 million in today’s
currency — by the time he died and obituaries named him the richest Black man
in the U.S.
Cheadle’s part as Hamilton will add to his list of real-life portrayals,
which include Sammy Davis Jr., street basketball legend Earl Manigault, Rwandan
humanitarian Paul Rusesabagina and, most recently, Miles Davis in “Miles Ahead.” The
last-mentioned film’s screenwriter, Steven Baigelman, will assume the
same role with “Prince of Darkness
I think Don Cheadle I a very good actor. Love most of all his movies. I will be checking this one out.
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