William B. Branch(1927-2019)

Playwright, producer, actor and professor, his brother Frederick was the first African-American officer of the Marines.

Years later when I had an opportunity to study drama formally, I realized that in my father's church were the basic elements of what was called drama. To this day, in my memory, my father remains the most awesome 'stage' figure I have ever seen. He didn't call himself an actor, but let's face it: black preachers are very effective actors.