Sidney Thompson

I thank Morgan Freeman for making a clarion call on CNN in 2010 for someone to narrate Bass Reeves's life so that Hollywood would have that story to tell. I happened to be that someone. After thirteen years of research, writing, and schooling (earning my PhD in American fiction and African American narratives at the University of North Texas, in Bass's old backyard, to ensure that the telling would be as authentic as possible), I at last completed my trilogy, the first comprehensive narrative of this iconic American hero's long, innovative and inspiring life. Hollywood indeed came knocking, so thank you, Paramount+! Thank you, Taylor Sheridan and Chad Feehan and David Oyelowo, and so many others! Bass is officially no longer whitewashed. He is winning back his fame. Like Washington, Lincoln, King, and Ali, he is no longer even buried. On horseback, he flies. All we need to do now is follow his remarkable example.