there were no major black stars of the theater. >> rose: robeson. >> well, robeson and canada lee. i think you could name four. and they only worked occasionally. it waso black theater, there was no broadway for us. there was no hollywood for us. and certainly there were no planes for us because nobody spent time writing about frederick douglass and toussaint or all the great figures in black history. we were... there was a paucity of plays and things we could do. and... but we also... it was interesting because i was in a play and when the casting was done at the american negro theater i was cast to be the juvenile lead in the play. and sidneyas my understudy. (laughter) >> rose: you say that with a certain... (laughter) >> that arrangement was very satisfactory. (laughter) >> and in order to do the play-- we were not paid, it was a community theater-- i had a job as a janitor's assistant and at 9:00 every night i had to haul the garbage. i had to get the dumb waiters back there, get the cans back up start them cleaning and smelling fresh and that job was critical to my existence.

what did you do for your friend paul robeson? he got maltreated in every imaginable way. he is your mentor. >> it was the way in which he treated his mistreatment. the way he handled all of those things thethrew at him. i saw this man as uniquely courageous. there were no romantic trappings. i looked at him and i listened to him. each day that i heard my own horror stories, he is one of the people i would go to to discuss, how does one handle an environment that does the kinds of things that were being done to me in so many others. his guidance, i found a way in which to manipulate my own experience through his eyes and his courage. how he went out pure. he went our hard, but noble and with dignity. he went out heroic. all of these things attested to the fact that this man possessed guts. human kindness. human power. to follow his path and to listen to his council was the reward of my journey, not the anguish of it. what angers me is that we were not more successful at saving him from so much cruelty. through that sacrifice and experience, as much as dejesus has inspired

paul robeson came to see me. mulligan and shelby lynn. that is next time.e will see you then. >> every community has a martin luther king boulevard. it's the cornerstone we all know. it's not just a street or boulevard, but a place where walmart stands together with your community to make every day better. >> nationwide insurance supports tavis smiley. with every question and every answer, nationwide insurance is proud to join tavis in working to improve financial literacy and remove obstacles to economic empowerment one conversation at a time. nationwide is on your side. >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. [captioning made possible by kcet public television] >> be more.