AGOURA HILLS, Calif. – Richard Roundtree (1942-2023) started acting in 1963 and had many forgettable roles in TV commercials and for print advertising. That is, until producer Joel Freeman took note of him in late 1970 and cast him in what would be the first of several Shaft ‘blaxploitation’ action films that would forever change the way black leading men would be portrayed in Hollywood.
Roundtree’s heirs have decided to send his personal collection from a lifetime in Hollywood to market at GWS Auctions. More than 130 Roundtree lots – from guns to movie artifacts to artwork to baseball memorabilia – join other Hollywood relics now open for bidding at LiveAuctioneers.
Roundtree’s importance to the then-new blaxploitation genre of filmmaking cannot be understated. The Black Panther Party is credited with raising cultural awareness for providing heroic depictions of black men and women, rather than the more traditional Hollywood portrayals. The NAACP was not amused, however, coining the portmanteau from ‘black exploitation’ – in short, targeting black moviegoers with stereotypical depictions of street violence and drug use.
Shaft was far more than that, however. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1971, it was the first blaxploitation film from a major studio and provided a truly heroic lead. Roundtree would benefit from numerous sequels in the 1970s, a TV adaptation that lasted for two years, and revivals in the 2000s. Much of the collection comes from this latter period.
Roundtree was both neighbors and friends with iconic African American pro football player and fine artist Ernie Barnes (1938-2009). At one point, Roundtree had two Barnes originals in his collection, but they went to market prior to the actor’s death, with one achieving $151,000 in 2022. The surviving collection includes seven signed and numbered prints, led by In The Beginning, which GWS estimates at $6,500-$7,000. Numbered 346 from an edition of 750, the image reflects Barnes’ unique ability to portray movement. The Comedian, another Barnes print, is similarly estimated.
From the 2000 revival of Shaft, this time starring Samuel L. Jackson with Roundtree potraying his uncle, comes this crew jacket. It has direct provenance to the estate and is estimated at $2,250-$2,750. Four director’s chair seat back rests embroidered for Roundtree from various productions are together estimated at $2,000-$2,500.
Finally, a 16-by-11in screen print of a Pop Art version of Roundtree’s John Shaft character is affordably estimated at $300-$500. It is signed by the otherwise anonymous artist Jones and is certified to have hung in Roundtree’s Los Angeles home.
