People, Locations, Episodes

Novella Nelson, Stage, and Film Actress born

*Novella Nelson was born on this date in 1939. She was a Black actress and singer. Novella Christine Nelson was born in Brooklyn, New York, to James and Evelyn (formerly Hines) Nelson. Her father was a pastor and a taxi driver. Her mother was an executive assistant at magazine publisher Women’s Wear Daily. She attended […]

Dorothy Rudd Moore, Composer and Music Educator born

*Dorothy Rudd Moore was born on this date in 1940. She was a Black composer and music educator. Dorothy Rudd was born in New Castle, Delaware. She was born to a musical family; her mother encouraged her to pursue music studies and explore all her interests, including piano lessons. Moore knew she wanted to become […]

The American Negro Theater is Formed

On this date in 1940, The American Negro Theater (ANT) was organized in Harlem, New York. Coordinators were Frederick O’Neal, Abram Hill, and members of the McClendon Players.

ANT was a pioneering African American theater company and school in which several hundred Black actors, writers, and technicians began their careers. The Academy Award-winning actors Sidney Poitier and Ruby Dee and actor and singer Harry Belafonte, are three of the prominent African-

John O’Neal, Playwright, and Activist born

*John Milton O’Neal Jr. was born on this date in 1940.  He was a Black playwright and activist. His father was a teacher from Mound City, Ill., as was his mother, Rosetta (Crenshaw) O’Neal. In 1962 he received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and English at Southern Illinois University. His daughter said that when he […]

Bob Dylan, Singer, Composer, and Artistic Activist born

*Bob Dylan was born on this date in 1941. He is a white Jewish-American folk music singer, composer, artist, and activist. He was born Robert Allen Zimmerman in St. Mary’s Hospital in Duluth, Minnesota, and raised in Hibbing, Minnesota, on the Mesabi Range west of Lake Superior. Dylan’s paternal grandparents, Anna Kirghiz and Zigman Zimmerman, emigrated from […]

The National Negro Opera Company is Founded

On this date in 1941, opera singer Mary Cardwell Dawson founded the National Negro Opera Company.

Based in Pittsburgh, the Opera Company remained in the steel city until 1960 and lasted outright until 1962.

William Louther, Choreographer born

*William Louther was born on this date in 1942.  He was a Black ballet and modern dancer, teacher, and choreographer.  He was born in Brooklyn, NY.  He studied at the High School of Performing Arts and at the Juilliard School with Tudor and Graham and danced in O’Donnell’s company in 1958. He subsequently performed with […]

Mary Lovelace O’Neal, Artist born

*Mary Lovelace O’Neal was born on this date in 1942. She is a Black artist and arts educator. Mary Lovelace was born in Jackson, Mississippi, and credits her father for nurturing her love of the arts. During her childhood and adolescence, O’Neal’s father, Ariel Lovelace, was the choir director and professor of music at Tougaloo […]

William T. Williams, Artist born

*William T. Williams was born on this date in 1942. He is a Black painter and art educator. William T. Williams was born in Cross Creek, North Carolina. At age 4, his family moved to Queens, New York City, though he spent his childhood summers in Spring Lake, North Carolina. After the family’s move to […]

Gilbert Moses, Stage, and Media Artist born

*Gilbert Moses was born on this date in 1942. He was a Black activist, theater, television, and film actor and director. Gilbert Moses III was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and began acting as a child at Karamu House. He studied at Oberlin College and spent a year at Sorbonne University in Paris before leaving college […]

Sylvia Snowden, Artist born.

*The birth of Sylvia Snowden is celebrated on this date in 1942. She is a Black abstract artist. Sylvia Snowden was born in Raleigh, NC. Snowden attended Howard University, where she studied under David Driskell and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Fine Arts degree. Snowden received a scholarship to Skowhegan School of Painting and […]

Tania León, Composer, Conductor, and Educator born

*Tania León was born on this date in 1943.  She is an Afro Cuban American composer of large-scale and chamber works and a conductor, educator, and advisor to arts organizations. She was born Tania Justina León in Havana, Cuba, and has mixed French, Spanish, Chinese, African, and Cuban heritage. Her grandmother recognized that her granddaughter […]

Judith Jamison, Dancer, and Artistic Director born

Judith Jamison was born on this date in 1943. She is an African American modern dancer, dance director, educator and author.

Altovise Davis, Dancer born

*This date in 1943 marks the birth of Altovise Davis. She was an African American actress and dancer. She also was the wife of Sammy Davis Jr.

Born Altovise Gore in Charlotte, North Carolina she was the only child of Altovise and John Gore. When she was very young her family moved to Brooklyn, N. Y. where she graduated from the School of Performing Arts in 1961. After school she began her career as a dancer on Broadway.

The Barnett-Aden Gallery Opens

*The Barnett-Aden Gallery opened on this date in 1943. This was the first Black-owned nonprofit art gallery in America. Located in Washington, D.C., it was founded by James V. Herring and Alonzo J. Aden, who was associated with Howard University’s art department and gallery. The gallery, operated until 1969, was the first successful Black-owned private […]