Nellie Crawford was born March 7, 187, but she was known to the world as Madame Sul-Te-Wan (pronounced Salty One). Sul-Te-Wan began working in films during the silent era, with her first notable role being in D.W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation. She was the first Black actress signed to a studio contract, and would go on to appear in more than sixty films, including the first Tarzan movie, 1918’s Tarzan of the Apes, Hallelujah, and Carmen Jones. Most of the time she played servants, slaves, or some kind practitioner of voodoo. She appeared with her sons Onest and Odel Conley in King Kong, where all three played jungle natives in uncredited roles. Her last film appearance was in 1958’s Tarzan and the Trappers. The following year, Sul-Te-Wan died at the age of 85.
To learn more about actors Madame Sul-Te-Wan, check out my new book Black Film: A History of Black Representation and Participation in the Movies will be released by Ten Speed Press on March 24, 2026. You can pre-order the book here.