Timely, poignant and powerful ( Kirkus Reviews) The Butler also explores Eugene Allen and his family's background along with the history of African Americans in Hollywood and also features a foreword by the film's director Lee Daniels. The Butler (full title Lee Daniels The Butler) is a 2013 American historical drama film directed and co-produced by Lee Daniels and with a screenplay by Danny Strong. Unfortunately, Eugene never had the chance to see the movie. Lee Daniels produced the movie starring Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey and David Oyelowo. But even as Allen witnessed the Civil Rights legislation develop, his family, friends, and neighbors were still contending with Jim Crow America. Wil Haygood successfully published the book, The Butler is based on Eugene’s life.

Johnson's work during the Civil Rights Movement and Ronald Reagan getting tough on apartheid. An African American who came of age during the era of Jim Crow, Allen served tea and supervised buffets while also witnessing some of the most momentous decisions made during the second half of the twentieth century, including Lyndon B. It’s a poignant American story by a writer who also has spent a lifetime as a witness to history. Timely, “poignant and powerful” (Kirkus Reviews) The Butler also explores Eugene Allen and his family’s background along with the history of African Americans in Hollywood and also features a foreword by the film’s director Lee Daniels.This mesmerizing companion book to the award-winning film, The Butler traces the Civil Rights Movement and explores crucial moments of twentieth century American history through the eyes of Eugene Allen-a White House butler who served eight presidents over the course of thirty-four years.ĭuring the presidencies of Harry Truman to Ronald Reagan, Eugene Allen was a butler in the most famous of residences: the White House. The award-winning movie, The Butler, was released in 2013 and Haygood’s book, The Butler: A Witness to History, recounting the full life story of Eugene Allen who was born on a Southern plantation in 1919, was published in tandem with the movie. But even as Allen witnessed the Civil Rights legislation develop, his family, friends, and neighbors were still contending with Jim Crow America. Johnson’s work during the Civil Rights Movement and Ronald Reagan getting tough on apartheid. This mesmerizing companion book to the award-winning film, The Butler traces the Civil Rights Movement and explores crucial moments of twentieth century American history through the eyes of Eugene Allen-a White House butler who served eight presidents over the course of thirty-four years.ĭuring the presidencies of Harry Truman to Ronald Reagan, Eugene Allen was a butler in the most famous of residences: the White House.

The Butler by Wil Haygood