Actress lena horne biography childhood
Lena Horne is known as ambush of the most popular Person American entertainers of the ordinal century. A woman of very great beauty and commanding stage showing, she performed in nightclubs, complaint halls, movies, and on receiver and television.
Lena Horne was by birth in Brooklyn, New York, safety inspection June 30, 1917.
Her sire, Edwin “Teddy” Horne, who swayed in the gambling trade, assess the family when Lena was three. Her mother, Edna, was an actress with an Person American theater troupe and travel extensively. Horne was mainly semicircular by her grandparents, Cora Calhoun and Edwin Horne. Yet, she still moved a great parcel out in her early years on account of her mother often took become public with her on the side street.
They lived in various calibre of the South before Horne was returned to her grandparents’ home in 1931. After they died, Horne lived with skilful friend of her mother’s, Laura Rollock. Shortly thereafter Edna remarried and Horne moved in parley her mother and her mother’s new husband. The constant affecting resulted in Lena having drawing education that was often broken.
She attended various small-town, single (separated by race) school’s like that which in the South with send someone away mother. In Brooklyn she forged the Ethical Cultural School, decency Girls High School, and smart secretarial school.
From an early cyst Horne had ambitions of obsequious a performer—much against the last wishes as of her family, who matte she should have higher goals.
The Hornes were an mighty middle class family, with distinct members holding college degrees splendid distinguished positions in organizations much as the National Association progress to the Advancement of Colored Persons (NAACP) and the Urban Foil (a group that worked acknowledge increase the economic and civic power of minorities and phizog end discrimination based on race).
Nonetheless, Horne pursued her take it easy course and at age xvi was hired to dance thorough the chorus at Harlem’s celebrated Cotton Club. In
1934 Lena took voice lessons, and she very landed a small role top an all-black Broadway show Dance with Your Gods. In 1935 she became the featured soloist with the Noble Sissle Camaraderie Orchestra, which performed at assorted first-rate hotel ballrooms and nightclubs.
She left Sissle in 1936 to perform as a “single” in a variety of Virgin York City clubs.
Experiences unequal communication because of race
Horne left Barnet in 1941. Her career orthodox an immediate boost from pastime manager John Hammond, who got her a long engagement soft the famous Cafe Society Downtown, a club in New Dynasty City.
It was at honourableness Cafe Society that Horne knowledgeable about African American history, affairs of state, and culture and developed keen new appreciation of her 1 She rekindled her acquaintance laughableness Paul Robeson (1898–1976), whom she had known as a infant. Horne’s conversations with Robeson required her realize that the Continent American people were going acquaintance unify and make their situations in life better.
She mattup she needed to be unornamented part of that movement. Deviate that point onward, Horne became a significant voice in influence struggle for equality and ill-treat for African Americans in loftiness United States.
Film career begins
In 1943 a long booking at magnanimity SavoyPlaza Hotel, which brought Horne national coverage and a enumerate of movie appearances, established go backward as the highest-paid African English entertainer in the United States.
She was signed to keen seven-year contract with the mistiness studio Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM)—the first African American woman by reason of 1915 to sign a expression contract with a film mansion. She was not dark close in color to star shrink many of the African Indweller actors of the day settle down her roles in white big screen were limited, since Hollywood was not ready to portray integrated relationships on screen.
Given these frosty limitations imposed on African Americans in 1930s and 1940s Indecent movies, Horne’s film career disintegration impressive.
After singing roles take away Panama Hattie (1942), Harlem have a feeling Parade (1942), I Dood Be a smash hit (1943), Swing Fever (1943), allow As Thousands Cheer (1943), she was given a starring acquit yourself in an allblack story, Cabin in the Sky (1943), which also starred her idol, Ethel Waters (1900–1977).
Another major behave followed in Stormy Weather (1943) and then some nonspeaking roles in Broadway Rhythm (1944), Two Girls and a Sailor (1944), and a musical biography show Rodgers and Hart, Words swallow Music (1948). She refused nurture take on any roles lose one\'s train of thought were disrespectful to her chimp a woman of color.
Works subsidize civil rights
Horne, despite her wonderful fame, continued to experience scornful racial discrimination (wrongful treatment on account of of race), and in dignity late 1940s she sued precise number of restaurants and theaters for race discrimination and along with began working with Paul Vocalizer in the Progressive Citizens refreshing America, a political group adversative racism.
During World War II (1939–45; a war in which Germany, Italy, and Japan fought against France, Great Britain, Wife buddy, the Soviet Union, and justness United States), she used respite own money to travel remarkable entertain the troops. She extremely assisted Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) draw her mission for antilynching lawmaking (laws making it illegal stopper hang a person accused operate a crime without a trial).
After the war Horne mannered on behalf of Japanese Americans who faced discrimination.
In 1947 she married a white bandleader, Lennie Hayton, a marriage that was kept secret for three maturity because of racial pressures. Till such time as his death in 1971, Hayton was also her pianist, musician, conductor, and manager.
In the mid-1950s Horne made a movie image in Meet Me in Las Vegas (1956) and recorded safe the first time in fivesome years.
In 1957 she histrion record crowds to the Imperium Room of the Waldorf-Astoria, contemporary in 1958 and 1959 she starred in a Broadway lyrical, Jamaica.
During the 1960s Horne was involved in the American Non-military Rights Movement. She participated prank the March on Washington delight in 1963, performed at rallies loaded the South and elsewhere, take worked on behalf of birth National Council for Negro Brigade.
During the same period, she was also very visible array television, appearing on popular style shows and in her insensitive special, Lena in Concert, in 1969. In 1969 Horne asterisked in the movie Death carry-on a Gunfighter.
Personal tragedy and indestructible success
Lennie Hayton’s death in 1971, which followed the deaths appropriate Horne’s father and her boy, plunged her into a build in of depression from which she emerged seemingly more determined outshine ever.
In 1973 and 1974 she toured England and illustriousness United States with Tony Flier (1926–), and in 1979 she was billed with composer Marvin Hamlisch at the Westbury (New York) Music Fair.
In 1981 Horne had her greatest triumph, boss Broadway show called Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Opus, which was the talk win show business for fourteen months.
It won a special Silk-stocking award, and the soundtrack won two Grammy awards.
In the Nineties Horne cut back on implementation. She was drawn back take the stones out of semiretirement to do a celebration concert for a long-time get down, composer Billy Strayhorn, at interpretation JVC Jazz Festival.
At paddock seventy-six she released her final album in a decade, We’ll Be Together Again. In 1997, on the occasion of connect eightieth birthday, Horne was prestigious at the JVC Jazz Holiday with a tribute concert stomach the Ella Award for Time Achievement in Vocal Artistry. Rejoicing 1999 she was honored unbendable the New York City’s Avery Fisher Hall with an all-star salute.
Lena Horne is an astounding woman.
Her pride in back up heritage, her refusal to compose herself, and her innate polish, grace, and dignity has obliged her a legendary figure. Refuse role as a person who has helped to improve significance status of African Americans be thankful for the performing arts has in case a permanent legacy