The Mack

The Mack (1973)

Now that you've seen all the rest... make way for "The Mack"

A recently-released convict becomes the most powerful pimp in Oakland, but tragedy ensues when his activities draw the ire of two corrupt cops and the crime lord he once worked for.

Date of release
1973-04-04
TMDB
6.4 / 10 (67)
Runtime
1h 50m
Genres
Drama, Crime
Director
Michael Campus

Casting

Interesting facts

The Mack is a 1973 American blaxploitation crime drama film directed by California native Michael Campus and starring Max Julien and Richard Pryor. The film also stars Oscar-nominee Juanita Moore and Tony-nominated actor Dick Anthony Williams. Filmed in Oakland, California, the movie follows the rise and fall of Goldie, who returns from a five-year prison sentence to find that his brother is involved in Black nationalism. Goldie decides to take an alternative path, striving to become the city's biggest pimp.

Production

Production for the film took place from early September to late December 1972. According to director Michael Campus, the original script for the film was written on prison toilet paper by Bobby Poole, an inmate at San Quentin. While staying in Oakland for two months, Campus met Frank Ward, a real pimp and drug dealer from Oakland. Max Julien's character of Goldie is based on him.

Although Campus had Ward's protection, the film was also in Black Panther territory. During filming, Black Panther party members would throw bottles and trash cans from rooftops. For filming to run smoothly, an additional deal was made with Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, who were put in charge of providing extras for the film. About halfway through the production of the film, Frank Ward was shot and killed while in his Rolls-Royce.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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