Cora Urquhart Brown-Potter
(Mrs. James Brown-Potter)

New Orleans socialite, wife of millionaire James Brown Potter (1877), and amateur actress turned professional in London under the adoring eyes of the future, King Edward VII. She would divorce her husband in 1900 in the wake of a decade of scandals. Her last appearance on the London stage was in 1912. She made a further stage appearance in 1919 for a benefit production in Guernsey.

She died on February 12, 1936, aged 78, at her villa in Beaulieu-sur-Mer.

“With regard to Mrs. Brown-Potter, as acting is no longer considered absolutely essential for success on the English stage, there is really no reason why the pretty bright-eyed lady who charmed us all last June by her merry laugh and her nonchalant ways, should not--to borrow an expression from her native language--make a big boom and paint the town red. We sincerely hope she will; for, on the whole, the American invasion has done English society a great deal of good. American women are bright, clever, and wonderfully cosmopolitan.” - Oscar Wilde

William “Billy” McClain

“Multi-talented William C. McClain was a minstrel and Hollywood motion pictures actor as well as a dancer, musician, playwright, songwriter, and short story writer. He played cornet in Lou Johnson's Minstrels and spent many years with the minstrels in Europe, living in Paris, France, from 1906-1913. He was also a member of Orpheus McAdoo's Jubilee Singers and Concert Company in Australia.

One of McClain's works was The Smart Set, written in 1901. He wrote several songs, including Shake, Rattle, and Roll. McClain had also trained as a boxer, and he managed and trained famous heavyweight boxer Sam McVey. On the screen, McClain played the role of The King in Nagana in 1933. He appeared in more than 20 movies, the last in 1946.

He played various restricted roles, such as a servant, butler, footman, cook, and janitor. In 1938 he played the uncredited role of Zeke in Kentucky and in 1939 the role of a horse groomer in Pride of the Bluegrass [aka Steeplechase]. William C. McClain was the husband of Cordelia McClain and the father of actress Teddy Peters. At the time of his death, his age was estimated to be 93, but his birth year has also been given as 1866, and his birth location has been given as Kentucky and Indianapolis, IN.

He died in Los Angeles, CA, on January 28, 1950.”

Notable Kentuckian African-Americans Datebase

Paul Hudson