The Jamaican connection to the Oscars Best Picture “Green Book”
Green Book won the coveted title of Best Picture of The Year of 91st Academy Awards.
The Green Book is said to be a true story about a black virtuosic piano player, Donald Shirley, 1962 tour through the Jim Crow South with his racist driver, Tony “Lip” Vallelonga.
The movie had 5 Oscar nominations, 3 winners
Original screenplay
Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly
Winner
Best picture
“Green Book”
Winner
Actor in a supporting role
Mahershala Ali
Winner
Actor in a leading role
Viggo Mortensen
Nominee
Film editing
Patrick J. Don Vito
Nominee
Donald Walbridge Shirley was born on January 29, 1927, in Pensacola, Florida, to Jamaican immigrants, Stella Gertrude (1903–1936), a teacher, and Edwin S. Shirley (1885–1982), an Episcopal priest. According to some reports, his birthplace was sometimes given as Kingston, Jamaica, because promoters advertised him as being Jamaican-born.
Dr Don Shirley is a world-class African-American pianist, who is about to embark on a concert tour in the Deep South in 1962. In need of a driver and protection, Shirley recruits Tony Lip, a tough-talking bouncer from an Italian-American neighbourhood in the Bronx. Despite their differences, the two men soon develop an unexpected bond while confronting racism and danger in an era of segregation.
New York City bouncer Frank “Tony Lip” Vallelonga is searching for new employment after the nightclub where he works is closed for renovations. He is invited to an interview with “Doc” Don Shirley, an African American pianist who is looking for a driver for his eight-week concert tour through the Mid-West and Deep South. Don hires Tony on the strength of his references. They embark with plans to return to New York on Christmas Eve. Don’s record label gives Tony a copy of the Green Book, a guide for African-American travelers to find motels, restaurants, and filling stations that would serve them.
