Though less than 30 seconds long, “Something Good — Negro Kiss,” a short film directed by William Selig from 1898, casts a hypnotic spell. In the clip, vaudeville performers Gertie Brown and Saint Suttle play lovers lost in the sweetness of their embrace. They flirt, hold hands, laugh and tease one another in front of a cloth backdrop, their playful moments giving way to a flurry of kisses. It is cited as the earliest on-screen kiss between a Black couple.
Source: ‘Regeneration: Black Cinema 1898-1971’ Fills in Film History Gaps | Artbound | Arts & Culture | KCET