BLACK IN TIME: A Moment In OUR History

Hugh Gaddy · Tuesday, June 30th 2009 at 12:15AM · 142 views

Lena Horne

Entertainment Legend, Lena Horne, Was Born June 30, 1917 In Brooklyn, New York. Lena Horne Began Her Career At 16, As A Chorus Girl At The "Whites-Only" Cotton Club In Harlem. She Then Toured With Noble Sissle's Orchestra And Later Became The First African American To Front A White Band When She Sang With Charlie Barnet's Orchestra. Her Tunes Included "Stormy Weather," "Blues In The Night," "The Lady Is A Tramp" And "Mad About The Boy." During The 1940's Lena Horne Went From Dancer And Nightclub Singer To Hollywood Movie Star. She Was The Second Black Female After Madame Sul-Te-Wan, To Sign With A Major Film Studio. Her Films Include Panama Hattie (1942), Cabin In The Sky (1943), Meet Me In Las Vegas (1956), Death Of A Gunfighter (1969) And The Wiz (1979). She Was The Black Pin-Up Girl For Soldiers During World War II And When Entertaining The Troops For The USO, Refused To Perform "for segregated audiences or to groups in which German P.O.W.s were seated in front of African American servicemen." Horne Won A Tony Award In 1981 For Her Broadway Show, Lena Horne, The Lady And Her Music -- The Longest Running One-Woman Show On Broadway. She Was Also The Recipient Of The Kennedy Center's Lifetime Contribution To The Arts Award. Lena Horne Pays Tribute To Count Basie, (1982)

"In Order For Black History To Live, We Must Continue To Breathe Life Into It." -- Hubert Gaddy, Jr.

BLACK IN TIME: A Moment In OUR History

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