John Ridley IV is an American screenwriter, film director, and novelist known best for the 2013 film, 12 Years a Slave, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Ridley was born in October 1965, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to an ophthalmologist father, … Read MoreJohn Ridley IV (1965- )
Julian Hudson Mayfield was best known as an American actor, director, writer, lecturer, and civil rights activist. Mayfield was born on June 6, 1928, in Greer, South Carolina, and was raised from the age of five in Washington. He attended Paul Laurence Dunbar High School … Read MoreJulian Mayfield (1928-1984)
Camille J. Billops, artist, filmmaker, archivist, and professor, was born on August 12, 1933, in Los Angeles. Her parents were Alma Gilmore and Lucius Billops, and she has one sister, Billie. She married James V. Hatch, a professor of theater at the University of California, … Read MoreCamille Billops (1933-2019)
Deborah “Debbie” Allen, dancer, choreographer, actress, director, and producer was born January 16, 1950 in Houston, Texas to Arthur Allen, a dentist and Vivian Ayers, a poet. Allen comes from a creative family: Allen’s brother “Tex” Allen is a jazz musician, and older sister Phylicia … Read MoreDebbie Allen (1950- )
Juanita Long Hall, a 20th Century actor and singer, was born in Keyport, New Jersey on Nov. 6, 1901 to an African-American father, Abram Long, and an Irish American mother, Mary Richardson. Raised by maternal grandparents, Long attended New York City, New York’s Juilliard School … Read MoreJuanita Hall (1901-1968)
Chubby Checker, the man credited with inventing “The Twist,” was born Ernest Evans in Spring Gully, South Carolina. He moved to Philadelphia with his parents and two brothers and attended South Philadelphia High School. Evans aspired to become a performer from a young age and … Read MoreChubby Checker (Ernest Evans) (1941- )
As a monumental figure in education and poetry, Mari Evans also played roles in shaping women’s history, politics, music, and drama. Born on July 16, 1923, in Toledo, Ohio, Evans’ mother passed away when Evans was ten. Her father immediately felt the need to encourage … Read MoreMari E. Evans (1923- )
Powell Lindsay, actor, director, playwright, and producer, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He attended Virginia Union University as well as the Yale University School of Drama. At Yale, Lindsay became frustrated by the limited and often stereotypical African American roles presented by the School of … Read MorePowell Lindsay (1905-1987)
Billy Preston, singer and musician, was born William Everett Preston in 1946 in Houston, Texas. He lived in Houston, Texas until his family moved to Los Angeles, California in 1949. Working as Victory Baptist Church’s organist, his mother, Robbie Preston Williams, supported Preston, his sister … Read MoreWilliam Everett “Billy” Preston (1946-2006)
Filmmaker Julie Dash was born on October 22, 1952 in Queens, New York. She received her B.A. in film production from City College of New York in 1974 and went on to earn a two-year fellowship to the Center for Advanced Film Studies at the … Read MoreJulie Dash (1952- )
