James Baskett, February 16, 1904–July 9, 1948, was an American actor known for his portrayal of Uncle Remus in the 1946 Disney feature film Song of the South, for which he was given an Honorary Academy Award for singing the song Zippity Doo Dah, making him the first male performer of African descent to receive an Oscar. In March 1948, Baskett received a special Academy Award for his performance as Uncle Remus. He died a few months later of heart disease. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.