- “A Star Without A Star: The Untold Juanita Moore Story”
- Director: Kirk E. Kelleykahn
- Writer: Kirk E. Kelleykahn, J.W. Nutting, Celeste Walker
- Stars: Sidney Poitier, Louise Fletcher, Amentha Dymally, Art Evans
- Genre: Documentary
One of the unsung stars of Hollywood history is Oscar Nominee Juanita Moore who was best known for “Imitation of Life” as Annie Johnson and first recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science in 1959. Director Kirk E. Kelleykahn’s tear-jerker documentary “A Star Without a Star: The Untold Juanita Moore Story” reveals the demeaning truth about the prejudice behind the selection of a place on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
“A Star Without a Star” is one of the best projects in the 31st Pan African Film Festival located at the Cinemark Baldwin Hills and XD, 4020 Marlton Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90008 that runs through February 20, 2023. Kelleykahn’s film screens on Wednesday, February 15, 2023, at 6:25 p.m. with a running time of 88 minutes. Tickets available onsite at the theater.
“My film is a labor of love and preserves my grandmother’s legacy and history,” said Kelleykahn who is the CEO/President of Cambridge Players Inc. “Not only is Ms. Moore an integral part of Black History but she is Cinema History and World History.”
From all accounts, Moore was a natural star. She was told that she had a kind face, brilliant smile and in her words, “I was beautiful!” Anyone who met Moore, would say she was beautiful inside and out. A talented dancer and singer, Moore was stereotyped early in her career as a domestic worker. “I was tired of carrying trays,” said Moore.
There is no doubt that Moore had the talent of an international superstar as testimonials by actors such as Sidney Poitier who received an Academy Award for Best Actor, two Golden Globe Awards, a British Academy of Film and Television Arts award, and a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album, and Louise Fletcher who was the recipient of Academy Award for Best Actress, a BAFTA Award, and a Golden Globe Award. Poitier died in January 2022 and Fletcher died in September 2022.
Moore passed away on January 1, 2014. She lived to be 99 years old. Just not long enough to see her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The approval from the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce was sent with a 2023 date to honor Moore. The long-awaited star and the documentary will keep her legacy alive.
