Santa Monica College wrapped up Black History Month with a screening of the 2018 documentary film Mr. Soul! which celebrates the impact Ellis Haizlip left on Black history in American television.

Santa Monica College (SMC) ended its celebration of Black History Month with a free screening of the 2018 documentary film "Mr. Soul!" The documentary highlights the life of Ellis Haizlip, producer and first black host on a variety show. It took place at the Student Services Building and was hosted by the Associate Dean for Student Life, Thomas Bui.

In the days when Black Americans were scarcely seen on the picture boxes in shag-carpeted living rooms across the country, Haizlip made his mark on the Public Broadcasting Network with his show "Soul!" The show, which first aired in 1968 on Channel 13, showcased Black artists including poet Nikki Giovanni, musician Stevie Wonder and music group Earth, Wind, and Fire.

SMC student Joanna Rose Hernandez described her experience watching the documentary.

“It was very enriching, very powerful, and I had never heard about Ellis Haizlip before,” said Hernandez. “But I will never forget because he set the tone with his platform for pretty much music and theater and art and poetry for what it is today.”

The screening was also open to SMC staff, alumni and Santa Monica community members.

“I was extremely, extremely excited that this was taking place at my alma mater,” said Leon Clarke, an SMC alumnus who returned to campus to watch the film.

Being an openly gay man himself, Haizlip didn’t shy away from controversial subjects. He brought on guests like Minister Louis Farrakhan, the Nation of Islam leader with a record of homophobic and antisemitic remarks, and Georgia Jackson, the mother of the late George Jackson, to bring humanity to the controversial activist and member of the Black Panther Party.

“He was a very low-key person, soft-spoken,” said Benny Blaydes, the lead counselor at the Office of Student Life. “But the type of artists and the political people he had on the show, that was his activism, and you learn a lot about the era, about the struggle, based on what he did.”

In 1973, after four years of history-making television, "Soul!" was defunded and taken off the air as part of President Richard Nixon’s new set of priorities for public broadcasting. In an attempt to save the show, Haizlip began a campaign that encouraged viewers to write in and show their support. Despite the flood of letters from viewers inside and outside of the Black community, the show came to an end.

Melissa Haizlip, Haizlip's niece, produced, directed and wrote the documentary in order to bring her uncle much-deserved recognition for his work on the show.

“It took his niece to put this together to make sure people knew who he was and the contributions he made,” said Blaydes.

Haizlip created a platform for black Americans to create art on a national platform. The documentary ends with Haizlip stating his vision of the future of American television.

“There’s been a dream of mine, and it still is a dream of mine, and that is that Black people can come together and can form a union of coexisting in an artistic world where everything can be beautiful,” Haizlip said.

The Office of Student Life on campus has purchased the DVD of "Mr. Soul!" Students can borrow the documentary film and screen it on campus at the Orientation Hall in the Student Support Center. "Mr. Soul!" can also be found on the HBO Max streaming service.

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