Alfred Thomas was yet another black actor who made a career for himself in Rome. An instantly recognizable and highly sympathetic presence, he was active in cinema, television, theater and even fotoromanzi from at least the late 1950s and up until the mid 1980s, yet practically no information is available on him anywhere.
Presumably an African-American who emigrated to Rome (much like John Kitzmiller, Wilbert Bradley, Carl Latimer, Jon Chevron and many others), Alfred Thomas was also a singer and musician, something which was occasionally reflected in the roles he played. According to an article in Radiocorriere N. 37 (1964), he was part of a group called Folk-Studio Spiritual Singers together with Harold Bradley, Ines Carmona, Yvette Dru, Archie Savage and Keefe West.
In film, he appeared in several westerns and peplums, and was especially active in the jungle adventures which were popular in the 1960s. Among these was Luana, la figlia della foresta vergine (1968) in which his villainous part is probably among the largest roles of his career, though he also has a fairly large role in the comedy Incensurato, provata disonestà, carriera assicurata, cercasi (1972).
As with most black actors working in Italian cinema, the majority of Alfred Thomas' roles were uncredited (very often unfairly so) and there are no doubt many more discoveries to be made for him.
FILMOGRAPHY
- Canzone appassionata (uncredited) .... Pianist
1954 - Teodora, imperatrice di Bisanzio (uncredited) .... Bongo player
- Un americano a Roma (uncredited) .... Bar customer
1958 - Ragazzi della marina (credited as "Thomas") .... Fake tourist guide
- Romeo Bar (TV) (credited) .... The pianist
1959 - Ben-Hur (uncredited) .... Oarsman
1960 - I baccanali di Tiberio (uncredited) .... Slave
- Noi duri (uncredited) .... Man lighting cigarette outside nightclub
- Teseo contro il minotauro (uncredited) .... Drummer
1961 - La vendetta di Ursus (uncredited) .... Palace guard
- Le meraviglie di Aladino (uncredited) .... Servant of the Grand Vizier
- Maciste nella terra dei ciclopi (uncredited) .... Team leader in tug-of-war
1962 - Boccaccio '70 - segment: "Le tentazioni del dottor Antonio" (uncredited) .... American musician
- I moschettieri del mare (uncredited) .... Servant on the ship
1963 - Io Semiramide (uncredited) .... Masseur
1964 - Tarzak contro gli uomini leopardo (credited as Al Thomas) .... Native chief
1966 - Amore all'italiana - segment "Playboy" (uncredited) .... Pianist in the hotel bar
- Il grande colpo dei 7 uomini d'oro (uncredited) .... Coast Guard officer
- Il vostro super agente Flit (credited) .... Samuele
- Sicario 77, vivo o morto (uncredited) .... Croupier at the club
- Sugar Colt (uncredited) .... Sammy
1967 - Bersaglio mobile (uncredited) .... Nightclub customer
- Dio perdona... io no! (uncredited) .... Horn player in the funeral band
- Gungala, la vergine della giungla (credited) .... Agnogno
- Matchless (uncredited) .... Soldier
- OK Connery (uncredited) .... Attendee at plastic surgery congress
- Wanted (uncredited) .... Baker houseman
1968 - Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell (uncredited) .... Man at the airport
- Due volte Giuda (uncredited) .... Sam, Barrett houseman
- Il marchio di Kriminal (uncredited) .... Von Beck servant
- Il pistolero segnato da Dio (uncredited) .... Clerigen houseman
- Luana, la figlia della foresta vergine (credited as Al Thomas) .... Ukeke
- Seduto alla sua destra (uncredited) .... Excellency
- The Shoes of the Fisherman (uncredited) .... Cardinal
1969 - H2S (credited) .... Man killed by Tommaso
- Tarzana, sesso selvaggio (credited) .... Kamuru
- Una su 13 (credited) .... Mbama
1970 - Due bianchi nell'Africa nera (uncredited) .... Cannibal chief
- F.B.I. - Francesco Bertolazzi Investigatore (TV series) - episode 1: "Sparita il giorno delle nozze" (credited) .... Mahamud
1971 - The Statue (uncredited) .... U.N. member
- Storie dell'anno Mille (TV mini series) - episode 4 (uncredited) .... Man in ropes
1972 - Il West ti va stretto, amico... è arrivato Alleluja (uncredited) .... Tom, Ferguson butler
- Incensurato, provata disonestà, carriera assicurata, cercasi (credited) .... Bellafronte
- La vita, a volte, è molto dura, vero Provvidenza? (uncredited) .... Thomas
- Le notti peccaminose di Pietro l'Aretino (uncredited) .... Servant holding Nana's horse
1973 - Vogliamo i colonnelli (uncredited) .... African politician
1974 - Moses the Lawgiver (TV mini series) (uncredited) .... Death rite performer
1976 - Emanuelle in America (uncredited) .... African tribal chief
- Il Casanova di Federico Fellini (uncredited) .... Servant
- Il vangelo secondo Simone e Matteo (uncredited) .... Antiques dealer
- Signore e signori, buonanotte (uncredited) .... Assassination victim
1977 - Emanuelle - Perché violenza alle donne? (uncredited) .... Guard in the Emir's palace
1978 - Piedone l'africano (uncredited) .... Airclub employee
1981 - Cornetti alla crema (uncredited) .... Cardinal
1983 - Questo e quello - segment "Quello... col basco rosso" (credited) .... The butler
- Segni particolari: Bellissimo (credited) .... Josephine's father
1985 - Casablanca, Casablanca (credited) .... Sam, the piano player
OTHER WORKS
- Il mattatore (1959) (TV variety show) - episode 3 (credited) .... One-legged man in Harlem