Editing The Great White Hope (section)

== Productions ==
''The Great White Hope'' premiered at the Arena Stage in December 1967.<ref>[http://www.arenastage.org/about/history/1960s/1960-1961 "Arena Stage History, see 1967-68"] arenastage.org, accessed September 15, 2015</ref><ref>"Great White Hope' Will Open On Oct. 3", ''The New York Times'', May 10, 1968, p.5</ref><ref>Barnes, Clive. "Theater: 'White Hope' Tale of Modern Othello, Opens in Capital: Howard Sackler's Play Given at Arena Stage Jack Johnson Depicted as a Tragic Hero", ''The New York Times'', December 14, 1967, {{ISSN|0362-4331}}, p.57</ref>

The initial production at Arena Stage, paid for in part by two grants from the [[National Endowment for the Arts]], was so well-received that the entire original cast, including [[James Earl Jones]] and [[Jane Alexander]], moved to Broadway.<ref>{{cite web|title=Arena Stage Takes a Risk on The Great White Hope|url=http://www.nea.gov/about/40th/greatwh.html|publisher=National Endowment for the Arts|date=February 2, 2007|access-date=March 24, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20090711215450/http://www.nea.gov/about/40th/greatwh.html|archive-date=July 11, 2009}}</ref> It was the first time the cast of a regional theater production was brought to Broadway.<ref name=pbs/>  The play opened on Broadway on October 3, 1968, and closed on January 31, 1970, after 546 performances.<ref name=vault>[http://www.playbillvault.com/Show/Detail/886/The-Great-White-Hope "'The Great White Hope' Broadway"] playbillvault.com, accessed September 15, 2015</ref> Using proceeds from his screenwriting contract, Sackler substantially funded the Broadway production by investing a reported US$225,000.<ref name=nyt/> In addition to winning the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Jones won the 1969 [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play]] and Alexander won the 1969 [[Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play]], as well as the [[Drama Desk Award]] for each, for their respective portrayals of Jack Jefferson and Eleanor Bachman.<ref name=vault/><ref name=ibdb>{{cite web|title=The Great White Hope|url=http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=3417|publisher=[[Internet Broadway Database]]|access-date=July 10, 2009}}</ref> A recording of the production was released by [[Tetragrammaton Records]].

[[Yaphet Kotto]] replaced Jones<ref>[http://www.playbillvault.com/Person/Detail/31556/Yaphet-Kotto "Yaphet Kotto Broadway"] playbillvault.com, accessed September 15, 2015</ref> and [[Maria Tucci]] replaced Alexander on September 8, 1969.<ref>[http://www.playbillvault.com/Person/Detail/43195/Maria-Tucci "Maria Tucci Broadway"] playbillvault.com, accessed September 15, 2015</ref>

In 2000, Arena Stage mounted a new production of ''The Great White Hope'' in honor of the theater's 50th season.<ref name=pbs/>