Merle Oberon, 1928
West Bengal
Courtesy of the Merle Oberon papers, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, 039_070946
Sabu Dastagir in The Jungle Book, 1942
Hollywood, California
Photograph by Robert W. Coburn
Courtesy of the Core Collection, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, 1083_070950
Born in Bombay, Merle Oberon was a renowned actress who starred in such films as The Dark Angel (1935) and Wuthering Heights (1939). During a time when mixed-race ethnicity was socially unmentionable, Oberon – whose mother was Anglo-Indian – concealed her identity from the public. Sabu Dastagir, who enjoyed a fruitful career based on his Indian background, is well known for his iconic role as Mowgli in The Jungle Book (1942). After obtaining American citizenship in 1944, Sabu joined the U.S. Army Air Forces and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.