People, Locations, Episodes

Anne W. Brown, Stage Singer born

*On this date Anne Wiggins Brown was born in 1912, She was an African American singer and entertainer.

Had it not been for Brown, George Gershwin’s folk opera Porgy and Bess might be known by its original name Porgy. From a well-to-do family in Baltimore, Maryland, Brown was obsessed with being a star at an early age. Her mother enrolled her in private schools including the Peabody School of Music where she constantly ran into the barriers of racism. Undaunted, she kept her dreams alive, they included plays and musicals where she sang everything from Bach to Blues.

Bernice Cross, Artist, and Art Instructor born

*Bernice Cross was born on this date in 1912. She was a Black artist and art instructor based in Washington, D.C., for most of her professional career. Her full name was Bernice Francena Cross was born in Iowa City, Iowa, as an only child. Her father was Frank Wallace Cross, a lifelong Iowa resident; her mother was […]

Thelma Streat, Artist born

*Thelma Streat was born on this date in 1912. She was an African American Artist, Dancer, Educator and Folklorist.

Gwendolyn Knight, Sculptor born

On this date we celebrate the birth of Gwendolyn Knight in 1913. She was an African American sculptor.

From Barbados, West Indies, she came to the United States with her family when she was seven. She lived in St. Louis until she was in her early teens, when she moved again with her family to New York. She cannot remember when she first decided to become an artist but recalls completing her first paintings when she was eight or nine years old. Harlem helped raise her. It was a rich time in that part of New York.

‘Buster’ Brown, Tap Dancer born

“Buster” Brown’s birth in 1913 is celebrated on this date. He was an African American Tap dancer and entertainer.

Cholly Atkins, Dancer, and Choreographer born

Cholly Atkins was born on this date in 1913. He was an African American choreographer and dancer.

Born Charles Atkinson in Pratt City, AL, Atkins learned to dance from his mother. After winning a Charleston dance contest in Buffalo, N.Y., in 1923, Atkins became a singing waiter, soon teaming up with William Porter in a tap act called the Rhythm Pals. They broke up in the late 1930s, after which Atkins took the name Cholly, similar to a news columnist of the day.

Samuel Felrath Hines Jr., Visual Artist, born

*Samuel Felrath Hines Jr. was born on this date in 1913.  He was a Black visual artist and art conservator.   Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Hines began studying art in 1926 after receiving a scholarship for youth classes at the John Herron School of Art Saturday School. After graduating high school in 1931, Hines worked for the Civilian […]

‘Speedy’ Huggins, Dancer, and Musician born

L. C. “Speedy” Huggins, an African American dancer and musician, was born on this date in 1913.

Huggins was born in Ft. Smith, AR. His family later moved to Kansas City, Kansas, where he attended Northeast Junior High School. A self-taught tap dancer, by the time he graduated from the eighth grade in 1928, he was dancing in nightclubs throughout the 18th and Vine district. In 1933, he performed on the opening night of the Cherry Blossom Club, one of the area’s premier nightclubs. Huggins performed throughout Europe while serving in the Army during World War II.

William Artis, Sculptor born

*On this date in 1914 William Ellisworth Artis was born. He was an African American artist.

From Washington, N.C. young Artis moved to New York in 1927. He studied sculpture and pottery at Augusta Savage Studios in the early 1930s and was a part of the Harmon Foundation exhibition in 1933. He received the John Hope Prize, which led to a scholarship at the Art Students League in 1933-34. Artis was hired by Audrey McMahon, the director of the College Art Association, along with several other artists to teach crafts and paint murals in churches and community centers.

Inge Hardison, Sculptor born

*Inge Hardison was born on this date in 1914. She is an African American sculptor and photographer.

Charles ‘Cookie’ Cook, Tap Dancer born

*Charles ‘Cookie’ Cook was born on this date in 1914. He was a Black tap dancer. Charles Cook was born in Chicago, Illinois. He was the dance partner of Ernest “Brownie” Brown, whom he performed from the days of vaudeville into the 1960s. They performed in a film with Dorothy Dandridge in 1942, “soundie” Cow Cow Boogie, on Broadway […]

Charles Sebree, Artist, and Playwright born

*The birth of Charles Sebree is celebrated on this date in 1914. He was a Black artist and playwright best known for his involvement in Chicago’s black arts community of the 1930s and 1940s.  Charles Sebree was born in White City, located in eastern Kentucky. In 1924, his mother moved to Chicago, Illinois, which exposed Sebree to […]

Noah Ryder, Choral Conductor, and Educator born

Noah Ryder was born on this date in 1914. He was an African American conductor, singer and educator.

Frankie Manning, Dancer born

*Frankie Manning was born on this date in 1914. He was an African American dancer and choreographer.

From Jacksonville, Florida and raised in New York City, he started dancing in his early teens at a Sunday afternoon dance at the Alhambra Ballroom in Harlem to the music of Vernon Andrade. From there he moved on to the Renaissance Ballroom, which had an early evening dance for older teens with the live swing music of the Claude Hopkins Orchestra. Finally, Frankie “graduated” to the Savoy Ballroom, which was known for its great dancers and bands.

Ernest Crichlow, Artist born

*Ernest Crichlow was born on this date in 1914.  He was an African American social realist artist.   Ernest Crichlow was born in Brooklyn, New York to Caribbean immigrants. He studied art at the School of Commercial Illustrating and Advertising Art in New York and New York University. Crichlow started work as an artist in a studio sponsored by Works Progress Administration’s  Federal Art […]