SOUL!, America’s first “Black Tonight Show.” From 1968 to 1973, the public television variety show SOUL!, guided by the enigmatic producer and host Ellis Haizlip, offered an unfiltered, uncompromising celebration of Black literature, poetry, music, and politics—voices that had few other options for national exposure, and, as a result, found the program an improbable place to call home.
The series was among the first to provide expanded images of African Americans on television, shifting the gaze from inner-city poverty and violence to the vibrancy of the Black Arts Movement. With participants’ recollections and a bevy of great archival clips, Mr. SOUL! captures a critical moment in culture whose impact continues to resonate.
Its viewership in the African American community was enormous: a 1968 Harris poll estimated that more than 65% of African American households with access to the show watched it on a regular basis. In 1970 it was carried by 72 public television stations.
Ellis Haizlip, Producer, 61, Dies; Mentor to Many Black Performers, January 30, 1991
Ellis Haizlip, Producer, Soul first performance variety television program Amanda Seales (Insecure, Smart Funny & Black) will guest host the Mr. SOUL! Premiere Kickback A rare, special, live, virtual talkback celebrating the film's Opening Weekend and The March on Washington.
Video: Mr. SOUL! Trailer
Video: Spectrum News
Mr. SOUL! Virtual Cinema Release announced on Spectrum News 1 SoCal with morning Co-Anchor Melvin Robert and Producer / Director Melissa Haizlip! Go to www.mrsoulmovie.com and click on the Screenings tab, choose a favorite cinema near you and get your tickets for Mr. SOUL! Support your local cinema and support independent Black film.
Mr. SOUL! | Virtual Cinema (2020) AND Soul! | Episodes (1968 – 1973)
"How to Virtual Cinema"
Go to the Mr. SOUL! Website
▪ Go to www.mrsoulmovie.com
▪ Click on the Screenings Page
▪ Choose your favorite theater you'd like to support
▪ Click to buy your tickets for Mr. SOUL!
▪ Once you unlock the film, you'll have 72 hours to watch and enjoy it as many times as you like!
▪ Go to www.mrsoulmovie.com
▪ Click on the Screenings Page
▪ Choose your favorite theater you'd like to support
▪ Click to buy your tickets for Mr. SOUL!
▪ Once you unlock the film, you'll have 72 hours to watch and enjoy it as many times as you like!