Veteran Yoruba actor Lere Paimo has challenged fellow veteran Pete Edochie’s recent claim about the beginning of his acting career, saying he started acting four years before the Nigerian film star.
Paimo, 86, made the claim during an interview with actor Kunle Afod, which was shared on YouTube. He said his acting career began in 1958, while Edochie recently identified 1962 as the year he started acting, when he was 15 years old.
“I started acting in 1958. I met Hubert Ogunde, who was senior to me and others, and there were big movies produced back then,” Paimo said.
The comments followed Edochie’s recent discussion about seniority among Nigeria’s veteran actors. During an appearance on Curiosity Made Me Ask, Edochie cited his performance in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice in 1962 as evidence of how far back his acting career dates.
Paimo, however, placed his own career within the Yoruba travelling-theatre tradition, which predates the development of modern Nollywood. He also referenced legendary theatre practitioner Hubert Ogunde, whose theatre group emerged in the 1940s.
According to Paimo, the history of Nigerian indigenous theatre demonstrates that Yoruba-language productions existed before English-language film became prominent. He said he could not independently confirm whether other practitioners, including Baba Olumegbon, started before Ogunde.
The exchange has renewed public interest in the history and evolution of Nigeria’s acting industry, particularly the distinction between stage theatre, travelling theatre, television and modern film.
Paimo began his career in the Yoruba travelling-theatre tradition and worked with the Oyin Adejobi Theatre Group before joining Duro Ladipo’s Theatre Group. He later became widely recognised for his performances in Yoruba theatre and film.
The latest comments add another perspective to the ongoing conversation about seniority among Nigeria’s veteran actors, whose careers span several generations of the country’s entertainment industry.
