Mr. Joe Liles, Jr. was "Anson County’s First Black Movie Projector Operator in 1956"
Remembering Mr. Joe Liles, Jr. who passed away on November 4, 2020 -- The Express Newspaper of Wadesboro NC issue of February 24, 2016 Page 1 -
"Anson County’s First Black Movie Projector Operator" In the early part of 1956 Robert Brand, the operator of the Ansonia Theatre, hired teenager Joe Liles to work at the theater as a movie projector operator. Joe was employed there from 1956 to 1958 while he was attending high school. “Mr. Liles worked with Bill Cash and Dude Hubbard."
In 1958 a man known as ‘Little Jimmy’ who was a friend of Joe asked a favor of him. “He needed someone to work in his place at the Highway 52 South Drive-In Theater in Wadesboro,” said Joe. “This gave me the opportunity to be the first black man to operate the movie projector at a drive-in theater.”
Joe Liles Jr. graduated from Henry Grove High School in Lilesville in 1958. Based on his experience and talent, he was given the opportunity to work at another theater after moving to Winston-Salem. Joe continued to live in Winston-Salem NC with his wife Georgianna Ellerbe Liles. They were the parents of one son & one daughter and a grandson. Joe was the eldest child of the late Joe Edmond Liles, Sr. and the late Ruth Hubbard Liles. He had six brothers and two sisters.
The following paragraph was copied from Mr. Liles obituary on Smith's Funeral Home website -- Mr. Joe Liles, Jr. was a dedicated and dependable worker throughout his life. As a teenager, he drove the school bus. He also worked for Roadway, E. G. Forest, and Joyce Brothers as a truck driver. After retiring from Joyce Brothers Company, he did some part-time work, but his favorite post-retirement activity was setting up a booth at the flea market. He loved selling and giving away produce.
Posted Apr 9, 2026, 9:16 PM UTC