Known for Acting
Paul Benjamin (February 4, 1935 – June 28, 2019) was an American actor. is an American actor. Benjamin was born in Pelion, South Carolina. He made his film debut in 1969 as a bartender in Midnight Cowboy. After a small role in Sidney Lumet's The Anderson Tapes, he primarily did television work in the 1970s. A few notable exceptions were a major role in Barry Shear's Across 110th Street, and smaller parts in Gordon Parks' biopic Leadbelly, Arthur Marks' Friday Foster, and Don Siegel's prison film Escape from Alcatraz. He gave exceptional performances in the TV adaptations of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings and Gideon's Trumpet. He later starred in the HBO movie The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains, based on the novel by Robert E. Burns. On the big screen in the 1990s, Benjamin worked with some well known directors. He appeared in Spike Lee's Do The Right Thing, Robert Townsend's The Five Heartbeats, Bill Duke's Hoodlum, and John Singleton's Rosewood. On television, he appeared in the 1994 pilot episode of ER, which led to his recurring role of homeless man Al Ervin during the next few seasons. Benjamin also worked on the American Masters documentary of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ralph Ellison, which aired on PBS. After 2000, he appeared primarily in small independent films like Stanley's Gig, The Station Agent, Deacons For Defense, and James Hunter's 2004 drama Back in the Day. He recently made a special appearance in the independent film The Talk Man, directed by Gene Gallerano. Description above from the Wikipedia article Paul Benjamin, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Born
February 4, 1935
Died
June 28, 2019 (age 84)
Birthplace
Pelion, South Carolina, USA
Filmography
40 films, 13 shows


Occupy, Texas
2016 · 1h 33m
country: United States
After years away from home, and receiving news of his parents’ deaths, a disillusioned Occupier is forced from his tent in Zuccotti Park to upper middle class Texas, where he must repair his two sisters, his past, and himself.


Ascension Day
2007
country: Unknown
A drama focused on Nat Turner and the 1831 slave rebellion in Virginia.


Back in the Day
2005 · 1h 43m
country: Puerto Rico
A young man slides back into a life of crime after reuniting with a shady acquaintance from his past.


Deacons for Defense
2005 · 1h 35m
country: United States
Inspired by a true story, this drama is set in 1965, not long after passage of the Civil Rights Act. Despite the Act, the African-American citizens of Bogalusa are still treated like third-class citizens, their fundamental rights as human beings persistently trampled by the white power structure, in general, and the local branch of the KKK. The story follows the formation of local black men, particularly ex-war veterans who after the struggles become too overbearing organizes the group, "Deacons for defense", an all-black defense group dedicated to patrolling the black section of town and protecting its residents from the more violent aspects of "white backlash."


The Station Agent
2003 · 1h 28m
country: United States
When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.


DMX: Angel
2001 · 24m
country: United States
Angel is a fascinating glimpse into the psyche of rap's most conflicted and charismatic MC. DMX commands arena stages, wrecks his competition in battles, and takes time to show fans some tough love. Leading off this two-hour tale of the X is the 20-minute short "Angel" directed by Bill Duke. It's a mini-movie about DMX's rise to super-stardom and his constant fight with evil. Co-stars Mary J. Blige. View "Angel" once and then forget about it... the rest of the DVD is what makes it a must-have. "Tales of X" is a look into the life and times of DMX. You can finally hear him, understand him and enter his world. "One More Road to Cross" documents step-by-step how X and his team lay down an album in the studio and the creative and emotional intensity surrounding the process. A full taste of DMX in front of a hometown audience is given by "Survival of the Illest" shot during his legendary 1999 performance at the Apollo Theater.


Stanley's Gig
2000 · 1h 33m
country: Unknown
An emotionally dysfunctional ukulele minstrel lands a gig at a nursing home where he strikes up an unlikely relationship with an ancient jazz chanteuse and awakens from a lifetime of loneliness and inconsequence.


Last Rites
1999 · 1h 30m
country: United States
A man is executed in the electric chair for having killed several women, but due to lightning striking a transformer at the moment of execution, he survives. As soon as he's well, however, they plan to electrocute him again, but now he has become a changed man and the female criminal psychiatrist attributes it to the electrocution wiping out certain brain cells.


The Breaks
1999 · 1h 26m
country: United States
Derrick, a racially-confused Irishman raised in the hood by a black family is having the worst day ever. Determined to prove to his fed-up mother and would-be girlfriend that he's not a screw-up, he sets out to do one thing right (get some milk) and even that proves to be a challenge! Hilarious encounters with racist red-neck cops, local gangsters and 'flamboyant' pawn shop owners ensue, and along the way Derek shows that he can actually do things for others and maybe even get his own life together.


Hoodlum
1997 · 2h 10m
country: United States
In 1934, the second most lucrative business in New York City was running 'the numbers'. When Madam Queen—the powerful woman who runs the scam in Harlem—is arrested, Ellsworth 'Bumpy' Johnson takes over the business and must resist an invasion from a merciless mobster.


Rosewood
1997 · 2h 22m
country: United States
Spurred by a white woman's lie, vigilantes destroy a black Florida town and slay inhabitants in 1923.


Vanishing Point
1997 · 1h 31m
country: United States
When his wife goes into a troubled labor while he is on the road over 1200 miles away James Kowalski, an ex race car driver and a former Army Ranger, attempts to elude police while trying to get home. After numerous chases he turns into a Native American reservation and reflects on his life, and his wife. He heads off to break through a police roadblock.


Drop Squad
1994 · 1h 26m
country: United States
Controversial film about an underground organization that kidnaps and 'deprograms' African Americans who sell out or deny their cultural heritage. Spike Lee is the Executive Producer.


The Fence
1994 · 1h 31m
country: United States
Having served 12 years in prison for assaulting a corrections officer, Terry Griff is let out of prison early and embarks on a downward spiral.


Back to the Streets of San Francisco
1992 · 1h 35m
country: United States
Mike Stone's back and his old partner, Steve Keller, is missing. So Mike heads up an investigation. At the same time, he is investigating another brutal murder. And he is trying to decide which of two inspectors shall he recommend for the position of Lieutenant; a woman who has a "Dirty Harry" tendency or a man who reminds him of Steve Keller.


The Super
1991 · 1h 26m
country: United States
Louie Kritski is a heartless landlord who has been so negligent in keeping up his ghetto apartment that he is threatened with jail time. The judge gives him another option -- he must live in his rat-infested hell hole until he brings it up to liveable standards.


The Five Heartbeats
1991 · 2h 1m
country: United States
In the early 1960s, a quintet of hopeful, young African-American men form an amateur vocal group called The Five Heartbeats. After an initially rocky start, the group improves, turns pro, and rises to become a top flight music sensation. Along the way, however, the guys learn many hard lessons about the reality of the music industry.


Do the Right Thing
1989 · 2h
country: United States
Sal is the Italian owner of a pizzeria in Brooklyn. A neighborhood local, Buggin' Out, becomes upset when he sees that the pizzeria's Wall of Fame exhibits only Italian actors. Buggin' Out believes a pizzeria in a black neighborhood should showcase black actors, but Sal disagrees. The wall becomes a symbol of racism and hate to Buggin' Out and to other people in the neighborhood, and tensions rise.


The Meeting
1989 · 1h 14m
country: Unknown
Fictional meeting between Dr. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X in Harlem in the early '60's.


Nuts
1987 · 1h 56m
country: United States
A high-class call girl accused of murder fights for the right to stand trial rather than be declared mentally incompetent.


The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains
1987 · 1h 55m
country: Unknown
The true story of Robert Elliot Burns, the prisoner who, after being sentenced to a Georgia chain gang, attempted two daring escapes.


A Stranger Waits
1987 · 1h 34m
country: United States
Most men consider the widow Kate Bennington to be irresistible, but when she dives into a madly passionate love affair with a mysterious younger man, one of her secret admirers sets in motion a terrifying plan to end their relationship, forever.


Deadly Force
1983 · 1h 35m
country: United States
Stoney Cooper, a former Los Angeles police officer, is at a low point in his life. Kicked off the force because of his anti-authority attitude, he now ekes out a living as a freelancer in New York. All this changes when the daughter of an old friend is killed by serial killer terrorizing L.A. Although almost nobody in his old home town is happy to see him back, Cooper pledges to bring the killer to justice before any more innocent people die.


Some Kind of Hero
1982 · 1h 37m
country: United States
A Vietnam vet returns home from a prisoner of war camp and is greeted as a hero, but is quickly forgotten and soon discovers how tough survival is in his own country.


Gideon's Trumpet
1980 · 1h 44m
country: United States
True story of Clarence Gideon's fight to be appointed counsel at the expense of the state. This landmark case led to the Supreme Court's decision which extended this right to all criminal defendants.


Escape from Alcatraz
1979 · 1h 53m
country: United States
San Francisco Bay, January 18, 1960. Frank Lee Morris is transferred to Alcatraz, a maximum security prison located on a rocky island. Although no one has ever managed to escape from there, Frank and other inmates begin to carefully prepare an escape plan.


I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
1979 · 1h 36m
country: United States
Based on writer Maya Angelou's eloquent reminiscences of her days as a gifted youngster growing up in the South during the Depression years where she and her older brother were raised by their grandmother after the divorce of their parents.


One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story
1978 · 1h 40m
country: United States
The true story of baseball star Ron LeFlore, from his days as a street-corner punk with no future to his days behind bars on a petty robbery conviction to his ultimate once-in-a-lifetime chance with the Detroit Tigers, where he became an outstanding baseball player.


Leadbelly
1976 · 2h 6m
country: United States
The life of Blues and folk singer Huddie Leadbetter, nicknamed Leadbelly is recounted. Covering the good times and bad from his 20s to 40s. Much of that time was spent on chain gangs in the south. Even in prison he became well known for the songs he had composed and sung during and before the time he spent there.


Judge Horton and the Scottsboro Boys
1976 · 1h 40m
country: United States
In 1930s Alabama, nine young black men are accused of raping two white women. The judge in the case, unlike the rest of the town, comes to believe that the boys are innocent and, against all advice from his friends and family, sets them free, which turns the entire community against him.


Friday Foster
1975 · 1h 30m
country: United States
Friday Foster, a magazine photographer, goes to Los Angeles International airport to photograph the arrival of Blake Tarr, the richest black man in America. Three men attempt to assassinate Tarr. Foster photographs the melee and is plunged into a web of conspiracy involving the murder of her childhood friend, a US senator, and a shadowy plan called "Black Widow".


Distance
1975 · 1h 34m
country: United States
’Distance’ is an award-winning, independent feature film exploring the distance between men and women through the intertwined stories of two couples. Made by the filmmaker while he was still in his 20s, ‘Distance’ features Oscar-nominee James Woods in his first leading role.


Friendly Persuasion
1975 · 1h 40m
country: United States
During the Civil War, a Quaker couple risks their lives by helping runaway slaves.


The Education of Sonny Carson
1974 · 1h 44m
country: United States
A 1974 film based on the best-selling autobiography of Sonny Carson who joined a gang and committed petty crime before being sent to prison. After his release from prison he changes his life.


The Deadly Trackers
1973 · 1h 45m
country: United States
Sheriff Sean Kilpatrick is a pacifist. Frank Brand is the leader of a band of killers. When their paths cross Kilpatrick is compelled to go against everything he has stood for to bring death to Brand and his gang. Through his hunt into Mexico he is challenged by a noble Mexican Sheriff interested only in carrying out the law - not vengeance.


Mr. Inside/Mr. Outside
1973 · 1h 14m
country: United States
Two New York City cops investigate a drug-smuggling ring that they believe is run by New York-based foreign diplomats.


Across 110th Street
1972 · 1h 42m
country: United States
In a daring robbery, some $300,000 is taken from the Italian mob. Several mafiosi are killed, as are two policemen. Lt. Pope and Capt. Mattelli are two New York City cops trying to break the case. Three small-time criminals are on the run with the money. Will the mafia catch them first, or will the police?


Born to Win
1971 · 1h 28m
country: United States
A smart-mouthed junkie and a former hairdresser spends his days looking for just "one more fix".


The Anderson Tapes
1971 · 1h 39m
country: United States
Thief Duke Anderson—just released from ten years in jail—takes up with his old girlfriend in her posh apartment block, and makes plans to rob the entire building. What he doesn't know is that his every move is being recorded on audio and video, although he is not the subject of any surveillance.


Midnight Cowboy
1969 · 1h 53m
country: United States
Joe Buck is a wide-eyed hustler from Texas hoping to score big with wealthy New York City women; he finds a companion in Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo, an ailing swindler with a bum leg and a quixotic fantasy of escaping to Florida.