In 1939, Hattie McDaniel won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind. As the first African American to win an Oscar, she was nonetheless barred from taking home an actual golden statute, but instead received only a plaque bearing her name. She and her escort were seated at a segregated table away from her Gone With the Wind cast mates.
Last night, Octavia Spencer won a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe for her role as Minny [a Mammy] in the summer hit [we don't know why] The Help.
She burst into tears when accepting her award.
