Author Octavia E. Butler is known for blending science fiction with African-American spiritualism. Her novels include Patternmaster, Kindred, Dawn and Parable of the Sower. Synopsis Octavia E. Butler was born on June 22, 1947, in Pasadena, California. She studied at several universities and began her writing career in the 1970s. Her books blended elements of… Continue reading Profile: Octavia E. Butler
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Profile: Spike Lee
Producer, director, writer and actor Spike Lee creates provocative films that explore race relations, political issues and urban crime and violence. His films include 'She's Gotta Have It' and 'Do the Right Thing.' Who Is Spike Lee? Spike Lee was born Shelton Jackson Lee on March 20, 1957, in Atlanta, Georgia. He was making amateur… Continue reading Profile: Spike Lee
Profile: Nina Simone
Legendary performer Nina Simone sang a mix of jazz, blues and folk music in the 1950s and '60s, later enjoying a career resurgence in the '80s. A staunch Civil Rights activist, she was known for tunes like "Mississippi Goddam," "Young, Gifted and Black" and "Four Women," among many others. Synopsis Born on February 21, 1933,… Continue reading Profile: Nina Simone
Profile: Audre Lorde
Audre Lorde wrote the poetry collections From a Land Where Other People Live (1973) and The Black Unicorn (1978), as well as memoirs like A Burst of Light (1988). Synopsis Born February 18, 1934, Audre Lorde attended Hunter College and Columbia University and was a librarian for several years before publishing her first volume of… Continue reading Profile: Audre Lorde
Profile: Toni Morrison
Toni Morrison is a Nobel Prize- and Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist. Among her best known novels are 'The Bluest Eye,' 'Song of Solomon,' 'Beloved' and 'A Mercy.' Who Is Toni Morrison? Born on February 18, 1931, in Lorain, Ohio, Toni Morrison is a Nobel Prize- and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, editor and professor. Her novels are… Continue reading Profile: Toni Morrison
Profile: Amiri Baraka
Amiri Baraka is an African-American poet, activist and scholar. He was an influential black nationalist and later became a Marxist. Synopsis Amiri Baraka (formerly LeRoi Jones) was born in Newark, New Jersey, on October 7, 1934. After three years in the U.S. Air Force, Jones joined the Beat movement in Greenwich Village. After the assassination… Continue reading Profile: Amiri Baraka
Profile: August Wilson
African-American playwright August Wilson won a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award for his play Fences, and earned a second Pulitzer Prize for The Piano Lesson. Synopsis Famed playwright August Wilson was born on April 27, 1945, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He wrote his first play, Jitney, in 1979. Fencesearned him a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award… Continue reading Profile: August Wilson
