Arturo Schomburg, son of a Black midwife and a German immigrant to Puerto Rico, was told by a grade school teacher that Black people had no heroes, no history and no accomplishments. This infuriated the young Arturo and he devoted his life to proving his teacher wrong. At St. Thomas College in the Virgin Islands, …
Ida Bell Wells was born into slavery in 1862. After the end of the Civil Wars, Ida’s parents, advocates in Reconstructionist politics, expressed the importance of education to their eldest daughter. Ida attended Rust College until she was expelled following a dispute with the university president. She lived with her grandmother until a yellow fever …
Bass Reeves was born into slavery, but escaped to “Indian Territory” (modern Kansas and Oklahoma) during the Civil War. Bass learned the languages of the Cherokee, Creek, and Seminole tribes, as well as tracking and survival skills. After the Emancipation Proclamation, Bass returned to Arkansas and began farming near the town of Van Buren. Because …
Young Tula Finklea enrolled in ballet lessons to strengthen her legs after a bout of polio. At 14, she auditioned for and danced with Ballet Russe de Monte-Carlo . During a European tour, 22 year-old Tula met a former dancing partner, Nico Charisse, and the couple were married in Paris in 1939. Now using the …
A free spirit from a very young age, Alice Pelkey learned a love of cooking from her mother. After dropping out of college, Alice married Ray Brock, a woodworker and craftsman over ten years her senior. A gift from her mother allowed the couple to purchase an old church in Stockbridge, Massachusetts that was used …
In January 2025, when the announcement of Anita Bryant’s death was made public (nearly a month after the actual occurrence), most people thought that she had already been dead for a long time. That’s because her career died in the late 1970s. Anita Bryant enjoyed a lot of success in the late 50s and early …
I think I’ve made it pretty clear that I love watching television. I grew up in a time before cable, before video-on-demand, before streaming services. When I was a kid there were three networks and you watched programs even though you didn’t like them. If you didn’t watch shows you didn’t like, you’d have to …
Clarence Henry began playing piano at the age of five. He was heavily influenced by New Orleans legend Professor Longhair and often imitated the piano wizard when he performed in local talent shows. In 1955, a scout from Chess Records heard Clarence sing “Ain’t Got No Home,” changing the sound of his voice with each …
Upon the death of label founder Bert Berns, Bang Records was taken over by Ilene Berns, Bert’s widow. One of her first signings for the successful label was a singer named Paul Davis. Paul released a cover of The Jarmels’ 1961 hit A Little Bit of Soap. Paul’s version hit Number 52 on the Billboard …
