Adversity in Harlem

Spud Webb

2010-07-01T07:36:00.000-07:00

His amazing story began on July 13, 1963, when Anthony "Spud" Webb was born in Dallas, Texas. Living in a small, three-bedroom home with his parents and five brothers and sisters, Webb began playing basketball at an early age and dreamed of being in the NBA. Although he was much smaller, he could always jump higher than the bigger kids...Book Spud Webb for a Corporate Appearance or Speaking Engagement

One day after trying countless times to dunk, the skinny teenager grabbed a basketball and started running towards the basket. He soared into the air, cleared the ground by more than four feet and dunked the basketball through the hoop with two hands. Those who witnessed Spud's dunk that day realized that he was a special basketball player.

Spud tried out for his junior high school team, however he was told to sit in the stands because he was too small. It wouldn't be the last time that he was denied a chance to succeed because of his height. One day Spud finally convinced his coach to let him play and he scored 20 points in his first game.

In high school, Spud tried out for the Wilmer-Hutchins High School Varsity team, but was told to play on the junior varsity team because he was too small. He was so disappointed that he even thought about quitting, but instead practiced even harder. When Spud was finally given the opportunity to play, he led his team to the playoffs.

Spud had a stellar high school career averaging 26 points a game. In his senior year, he was named Player of the Year and was also selected, as one of 10 players out of 5,000, to the All-State team. Despite his incredible high school accomplishments, Spud was not heavily recruited by Division I-A colleges because of his size. He refused to give up and decided to play at Midland Junior College where he led his team to the junior college national title in 1982.

In 1983, North Carolina State assistant coach Tom Abatemarco watched Spud play at his junior college in Texas. He suggested to the late N.C. State head coach, Jim Valvano, that Webb visit the campus on a recruiting trip. As the story goes, the two coaches went to the airport to meet him. When a little guy came walking towards the coaches, Valvano supposedly said to Abatemarco, "If that's Spud Webb you're fired." During the visit Valvano was so impressed with Spud that he offered him a scholarship. Spud went on to lead the team to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.

Once again, despite Spud's incredible college career, he was not selected in the NBA draft because of his size. Refusing to give up on his lifelong dream, a disappointed Webb played in the United States Basketball League. Spud finally achieved his goal in 1985 when he was drafted in the fourth round by the Detroit Pistons. Just when he thought that he had overcome his final obstacle, Spud was cut by the team. However, he was given an opportunity to tryout for the Atlanta Hawks and the rest was history. Teaming with Doc Rivers, Spud went on to average over 10 points, five assists a game, play in several playoff series and of course, win the slam-dunk championship at the 1986 All-Star game.

Now a recognized basketball speaker, Spud retired from basketball in 1997 and now spends his time delivering keynote addresses, overseeing his various business interests, and playing golf. Contact a celebrity agent to book Spud or other basketball speakers.

Interest in Having Spud at Your Next Event? Call 1-888-883-SPUD

Thomas A.Dorsey

2010-06-29T17:27:00.001-07:00

precise citations where appropriate. (June 2009)
Thomas Andrew Dorsey

Come on Mama, Do That Dance
Georgia Tom Dorsey
Yazoo 1041
Background information
Birth name Thomas Andrew Dorsey
Born July 1, 1899(1899-07-01)
Origin Villa Rica, Georgia
Died January 23, 1993 (aged 93) Chicago, Illinois, USA
Genres Gospel music
Blues
Instruments piano

Thomas Andrew Dorsey (July 1, 1899, Villa Rica, Georgia - January 23, 1993, Chicago). He is known as "the father of black gospel music" and was at one time so closely associated with the field that songs written in the new style were sometimes known as "dorseys."[1] Earlier in his life he was a leading blues pianist known as Georgia Tom.

As formulated by Dorsey, gospel music combines Christian praise with the rhythms of jazz and the blues. His conception also deviates from what had been, to that time, standard hymnal practice by referring explicitly to the self, and the self's relation to faith and God, rather than the individual subsumed into the group via belief.

Dorsey was the music director at Pilgrim Baptist Church in Chicago from 1932 until the late 1970s. His best known composition, "Take My Hand, Precious Lord", was performed by Mahalia Jackson and was a favorite of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and "Peace in the Valley", which was a hit for Red Foley in 1951 and has been performed by dozens of other artists, including Queen of Gospel Albertina Walker, Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash.

In 2002, the Library of Congress honored his album Precious Lord: New Recordings of the Great Songs of Thomas A. Dorsey (1973), by adding it to the United States National Recording Registry.

Contents [hide]
1 Life and career
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Life and career
Dorsey's father was a minister and his mother a piano teacher. He learned to play blues piano as a young man. After studying music formally in Chicago, he became an agent for Paramount Records. He put together a band for Ma Rainey called the "Wild Cats Jazz Band" in 1924.

He started out playing at rent parties with the names Barrelhouse Tom and Texas Tommy, but he was most famous as Georgia Tom. As Georgia Tom, he teamed up with Tampa Red (Hudson Whittaker) with whom he recorded the raunchy 1928 hit record "Tight Like That", a sensation, selling seven million copies. In all, he is credited with more than 400 blues and jazz songs.

Dorsey began recording gospel music alongside blues in the mid 1920s. This led to his performing at the National Baptist Convention in 1930, and becoming the bandleader of two churches in the early 1930s.[2]

His first wife, Nettie, who had been Rainey's wardrobe mistress, died in childbirth in 1932 along with his first son. In his grief, he wrote his most famous song, one of the most famous of all gospel songs, "Take My Hand, Precious Lord".[3]

Unhappy with the treatment received at the hands of established publishers, Dorsey opened the first black gospel music publishing company, Dorsey House of Music. He also founded his own gospel choir and was a founder and first president of the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses.

His influence was not limited to African American music, as white musicians also followed his lead. "Precious Lord" has been recorded by Albertina Walker, Elvis Presley, Mahalia Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Clara Ward, Dorothy Norwood, Jim Reeves, Roy Rogers, and Tennessee Ernie Ford, among hundreds of others. It was a favorite gospel song of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.; and was sung at the rally the night before his assassination, and, per his request, at his funeral by Mahalia Jackson. It was also a favorite of President Lyndon B. Johnson, who requested it to be sung at his funeral. Dorsey was also a great influence on other Chicago-based gospel artists such as Albertina Walker, and The Caravans.

Dorsey wrote "Peace in the Valley" for Mahalia Jackson in 1937, which also became a gospel standard. He was the first African American elected to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and also the first in the Gospel Music Association's Living Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the Gennett Records Walk of Fame in 2007. His papers are preserved at Fisk University, along with those of W.C. Handy, George Gershwin, and the Fisk Jubilee Singers.

Dorsey's works have proliferated beyond performance, into the hymnals of virtually all American churches and of English-speaking churches worldwide.

Thomas was a member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated.

He died in Chicago, Illinois and was interred there in the Oak Woods Cemetery.

In 2007, he was inducted as a charter member of the Gennett Records Walk of Fame in Richmond, Indiana.

[edit] See also
List of persons considered a founder in a Humanities field
[edit] References

Sandy Kofax

2010-06-22T11:27:00.000-07:00

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Sandy Koufax
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search
Sandy Koufax

Pitcher
Born: December 30, 1935 (1935-12-30) (age 74)
Brooklyn, New York
Batted: Right Threw: Left
MLB debut
June 24, 1955 for the Brooklyn Dodgers
Last MLB appearance
October 2, 1966 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Career statistics
Win–Loss record 165–87
Earned run average 2.76
Strikeouts 2,396
Teams
Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers (1955–1966)

Career highlights and awards
7× All-Star selection (1961, 1961², 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966)
4× World Series champion (1955, 1959, 1963, 1965)
3× Cy Young Award winner (1963, 1965, 1966)
1963 NL MVP
2× World Series MVP (1963, 1965)
4× NL TSN Pitcher of the Year (1963, 1964, 1965, 1966)
2× Babe Ruth Award (1963, 1965)
1966 Hutch Award
Pitched a perfect game on September 9, 1965
Los Angeles Dodgers #32 retired
Major League Baseball All-Century Team

Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction 1972
Vote 86.87% (first ballot)

Sanford "Sandy" Koufax (pronounced /ˈkoʊfæks/) (born Sanford Braun, on December 30, 1935) is an American left-handed former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played his entire career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers, from 1955 to 1966. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972, the youngest former player to receive that honor.

Koufax's career peaked with a run of six outstanding seasons from 1961 to 1966, before arthritis ended his career at age 30. He was named the National League's Most Valuable Player in 1963. He also won the 1963, 1965, and 1966 Cy Young Awards by unanimous votes, all during the period when only one pitcher was chosen per season, making him the first 3-time Cy Young winner in baseball history. In each of his Cy Young seasons, Koufax won the pitcher's triple crown by leading the NL in wins, strikeouts, and earned run average. Koufax's totals would also have led the American League in those seasons.[1][2]

Koufax was the first major leaguer to pitch four no-hitters (including a perfect game). Despite his comparatively short career, Koufax's 2,396 career strikeouts ranked 7th in history as of his retirement, trailing only Warren Spahn (2,583) among left-handers. Retiring at the peak of his career, he became, at age 36 and 20 days, the youngest player ever elected to the Hall of Fame.[3]

Koufax is also remembered as one of the outstanding Jewish athletes in American sports. His decision not to pitch Game 1 of the 1965 World Series because it fell on Yom Kippur garnered national attention as an example of conflict between social pressures and personal beliefs.[4]

Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Professional career
2.1 Early years (1955–60)
2.2 Domination (1961–64)
2.2.1 1961 season
2.2.2 1962 season
2.2.3 1963 season
2.2.4 1964 season
2.3 Playing in pain (1965–66)
2.3.1 1965 season
2.3.2 Perfection
2.3.3 Holdout
2.3.4 1966 season
2.4 Career overall
3 Pitching style
4 Post-playing career
5 Career statistics
6 See also
7 Notes
8 References
9 External links

[edit] Early life
Koufax was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a Jewish family, and raised in Borough Park.[5] His parents, Evelyn and Jack Braun, divorced when he was three years old; his mother remarried when he was nine, to Irving Koufax.[6] Shortly after his mother's remarriage, the family moved to the Long Island suburb of Rockville Centre. Before tenth grade, Koufax's family moved back to the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn.[7]

Koufax attended Brooklyn's Lafayette High School, where he was better known for basketball than for baseball. At the time, school sports were not available because New York's teachers were refusing to supervise extracurricular activities without monetary compensation. As an alternative, Koufax started playing basketball for a local Jewish Community Center team. Eventually, Lafayette had a basketball team; Koufax became team captain in his senior year, and ranked second in his division in scoring, with 165 points in 10 games.[5][8]

In 1951, at the age of 15, Koufax also joined a local youth baseball league known as the "Ice Cream League". He started out as a left-handed catcher, before moving to first base. While playing first base for Lafayette High School's baseball team, he was spotted by Milt Laurie, the father of two Lafayette teammates and a baseball coach. Laurie recognized that Koufax might be able to pitch, and recruited the 17-year old Koufax to pitch for the Coney Island Sports League's Parkviews.[9]

Koufax attended the University of Cincinnati and was a walk-on on the freshman basketball team, a complete unknown to coach Ed Jucker.[6] In spring 1954, he made the college baseball varsity team.[10] That season, Koufax went 3–1 with 51 strikeouts and 30 walks, in 31 innings.[11] Bill Zinser, a scout for the Brooklyn Dodgers, sent the Dodgers front office a glowing report that apparently was filed and forgotten.[12]

After trying out with the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds,[13] Koufax did the same for the Pittsburgh Pirates at Forbes Field.[14] During his Pirates tryout, Koufax's fastball broke the thumb of Sam Narron, the team's bullpen coach. Branch Rickey, then the general manager of the Pirates, told his scout Clyde Sukeforth that Koufax had the "greatest arm [he had] ever seen".[15] The Pirates, however, failed to offer Koufax a contract until after he was already committed to the Dodgers.[16]

Dodgers scout Al Campanis heard about Koufax from a local sporting goods store owner. After seeing Koufax pitch for Lafayette, Campanis invited him to an Ebbets Field tryout. With Dodgers manager Walter Alston and scouting director Fresco Thompson watching, Campanis assumed the hitter's stance while Koufax started throwing. Campanis later said, "There are two times in my life the hair on my arms has stood up: The first time I saw the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and the first time I saw Sandy Koufax throw a fastball."[17] The Dodgers signed Koufax for a $6,000 ($48,566 in current dollar terms) salary, with a $14,000 ($113,322 in current dollar terms) signing bonus. Koufax planned to use the signing bonus as tuition to finish his university education, if his baseball career failed.[18]

[edit] Professional career
[edit] Early years (1955–60)
File:Sandy Koufax (scan).jpg Because Koufax's signing bonus was greater than $4,000 ($32,378 in current dollar terms), he was known as a bonus baby. This forced the Dodgers to keep him on the major league roster for at least two years before he could be sent to the minors. To make room for him, the Dodgers optioned their future manager, Tommy Lasorda, to the Montreal Royals of the International League. Lasorda would later joke that it took Sandy Koufax to keep him off the Dodger pitching staff.[19]

Koufax made his major league debut on June 24 1955 against the Milwaukee Braves, with the Dodgers trailing 7–1 in the fifth inning. Johnny Logan, the first batter Koufax faced, hit a bloop single. Eddie Mathews bunted, but Koufax threw the ball into center field. Koufax walked Hank Aaron on four pitches to load the bases, then struck out Bobby Thomson on a full count.[20]

Koufax's first start was on July 6. He lasted only 4 ⅔ innings, giving up eight walks.[21] He did not start again for almost two months, but on August 27, Koufax threw a two-hit, 7–0 complete game shutout against the Cincinnati Reds for his first major league win.[22] Koufax made only 12 appearances in 1955, pitching 41.7 innings and walking almost as many men (28) as he struck out (30). His only other win in 1955 was also a shutout.[23]

During the fall, he enrolled in the Columbia University School of General Studies, which offered night classes in architecture. The Dodgers won the 1955 World Series for the first title in franchise history, but Koufax did not appear in the series. After the final out of Game Seven, Koufax drove to Columbia to attend class.[24]

1956 wasn't very different from 1955 for Koufax. Despite the blazing speed of his fastball, Koufax continued to struggle with control problems. He saw little work, pitching only 58.7 innings with a 4.91 ERA, walking 29 and striking out 30. He was rarely allowed to work out of a jam. As soon as Koufax threw a couple of balls in a row, Alston would signal for a replacement to start warming up in the bullpen. Jackie Robinson, in his final season, clashed with Alston on several different subjects, including Koufax. Robinson saw that Koufax was talented and had flashes of brilliance, and objected to Koufax being benched for weeks at a time.[25]

To prepare for the 1957 season, the Dodgers sent Koufax to Puerto Rico to play winter ball. On May 15, the restriction on sending Koufax down to the minors was lifted. Alston gave him a chance to justify his place on the major league roster by giving him the next day's start. Facing the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, Koufax struck out 13 while pitching his first complete game in almost two years. For the first time in his career, he was in the starting rotation, but only for two weeks. Despite winning three of his next five with a 2.90 ERA, Koufax didn't get another start for 45 days. In that start, he struck out 11 in seven innings, but got a no-decision. On September 29, Koufax became the last man ever to pitch for the Brooklyn Dodgers before their move to Los Angeles, by throwing an inning of relief in the final game of the season.[26]

Over the next three seasons, Koufax was in and out of the Dodger starting rotation due to injuries. In 1958, he began 7–3, but sprained his ankle in a collision at first base, finishing the season at 11–11 and leading the NL in wild pitches. In June 1959, Koufax set the record for a night game with 16 strikeouts. On August 31, 1959, he surpassed his career high with 18 strikeouts, setting the NL record and tying Bob Feller's major league record for strikeouts in one game.[27]

In 1959, the Dodgers won a close pennant race against the Braves and the Giants, then beat the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. Koufax pitched two perfect relief innings in the Series opener, though they came after the Dodgers were already behind 11–0. Alston gave him the start in the fifth game, at the Los Angeles Coliseum in front of 92,706 fans. Koufax allowed only one run in seven innings, but lost the 1–0 game when Nellie Fox scored on a double play. Returning to Chicago, the Dodgers won the sixth game and the Series.[28]

In early 1960, Koufax asked Dodgers GM Buzzie Bavasi to trade him because he wasn't getting enough playing time. By the end of 1960, after going 8–13, Koufax was thinking about quitting baseball to devote himself to an electronics business that he'd invested in. After the last game of the season, he threw his gloves and spikes into the trash. Nobe Kawano, the clubhouse supervisor, retrieved the equipment to return to Koufax the following year (or to somebody else if Koufax did not return to play).[29]

[edit] Domination (1961–64)
[edit] 1961 season
Koufax decided to try one more year of baseball and showed up for the 1961 season in better condition than he had in previous years. Years later he recalled, "That winter was when I really started working out. I started running more. I decided I was really going to find out how good I can be."[30] During spring training, Dodger scout Kenny Myers discovered a hitch in Koufax's windup: he'd rear back so far that his vision was obstructed and he couldn't see the target.[31]

A day later, Koufax was pitching for the "B team" in Orlando. Teammate Ed Palmquist missed the flight, so Koufax was told he would need to pitch at least seven innings. In the first inning, Koufax walked the bases loaded on 12 straight pitches. Catcher Norm Sherry reminded Koufax to take something off the ball to get better control. The advice worked, as Koufax struck out the side, going on to pitch seven no-hit innings.[32]

It was the beginning of Koufax's breakout season. Posting an 18–13 record, Koufax led the league with 269 strikeouts, breaking Christy Mathewson's 58-year-old NL mark of 267.[33] Koufax made his first two All-Star Game appearances (two games were played at that time), pitching two scoreless innings.[34]

[edit] 1962 season
In 1962, the Dodgers moved from Los Angeles Coliseum, which had a 250-foot left field line, to pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium. The new park had a large foul territory and a comparatively poor hitting background. Koufax was an immediate beneficiary of the change, lowering his home ERA from 4.29 to 1.75.[35] On June 30 against the expansion New York Mets, Koufax threw his first no-hitter. In the first inning of that game, Koufax struck out three batters on nine pitches to become the sixth National League pitcher and the 11th pitcher in Major League history to accomplish a nine-pitch/three-strikeout half-inning. With the no-hitter and a 1.23 ERA for June, he was named Player of the Month.[36][37]

Koufax had his strong season despite an injured pitching hand. While batting in April, Koufax had been jammed by a pitch from Earl Francis. A numbness developed in Koufax's index finger on his left hand, and the finger became cold and white. Koufax was pitching better than ever before, however, so he ignored the problem, hoping that the condition would clear up. By July, though, his entire hand was becoming numb and he was unable to complete some games. In a start in Cincinnati, his finger split open after one inning. A vascular specialist determined that Koufax had a crushed artery in his palm. Ten days of experimental medicine successfully reopened the artery. Koufax finally was able to pitch again in September, when the team was locked in a tight pennant race with the Giants. But after the long layoff, Koufax was ineffective in three appearances as the Giants caught the Dodgers at the end of the regular season, forcing a three-game playoff.[38]

The night before the National League playoffs began, Manager Walter Alston asked Koufax if he could start the first game the next day. With an overworked pitching staff, there was no one else, as Don Drysdale and Johnny Podres had pitched the prior two days. Koufax obliged. Koufax later said, "I had nothing at all." He was knocked out in the second inning, after giving up home runs to Hall of Famer Willie Mays and Jim Davenport. After winning the second game of the series, the Dodgers blew a 4–2 lead in the ninth inning of the deciding third game, losing the pennant.[39]

[edit] 1963 season
In 1963, Major League Baseball expanded the strike zone.[40] Compared to the previous season, National League walks fell 13 percent, strikeouts increased six percent, the league batting average fell from .261 to .245, and runs fell 15 percent.[41] Koufax, who had reduced his walks allowed per nine innings to 3.4 in 1961 and 2.8 in 1962, reduced his walk rate further to 1.7 in 1963, which ranked fifth in the league.[1] (The top pitchers of the era; Don Drsydale, Juan Marichal, Jim Bunning, Bob Gibson, Warren Spahn and above all Koufax, significantly reduced the 'walks given up' to 'batters faced' ratio for 1963 and subsequent years.[42])

On May 11, Koufax carried a perfect game into the eighth inning against the powerful Giants lineup, including future Hall of Famers Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, and Orlando Cepeda. He walked Ed Bailey on a 3-and-2 pitch, but preserved the no-hitter by closing out the ninth.[43] As the Dodgers won the pennant, Koufax won the pitchers' Triple Crown, leading the league in wins (25), strikeouts (306) and ERA (1.88). Koufax threw 11 shutouts, a total that only Bob Gibson has surpassed since then. Koufax won the NL MVP Award, the Hickok Belt, and was the first-ever unanimous selection for the Cy Young Award.[44][45]

Facing the Yankees in the 1963 World Series, Koufax beat Whitey Ford 5 to 2 in Game 1 and struck out 15 batters, breaking Carl Erskine's decade-old record of 14. (Bob Gibson would break Koufax's record by striking out 17 Detroit Tigers in the 1968 World Series opener.) After seeing Koufax's Game 1 performance, Yogi Berra said, "I can see how he won 25 games. What I don't understand is how he lost five,"[46] to which Maury Wills responded, "He didn't. We lost them for him."[47] In Game 4, Koufax completed the Dodgers' series sweep with a 2–1 victory over Ford, clinching the Series MVP Award for his performance.[48]

[edit] 1964 season
Koufax's 1964 season started with great expectations. On April 18, Koufax struck out three batters on nine pitches in the third inning of a 3–0 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, becoming the only National League pitcher to have two nine-strike/three-strikeout half-innings.[37] On April 22, however, he felt something "let go" in his arm. Koufax ended up getting three cortisone shots for his sore elbow, and missed three starts.

On June 4, playing at Connie Mack Stadium against the Phillies, Koufax walked Richie Allen on a very close full-count pitch in the fourth inning. Allen, who was thrown out trying to steal second, was the first and last Phillie to reach base that day. With his third no-hitter in three years, Koufax became only the second pitcher of the modern era (after Bob Feller) to pitch three no-hitters.[49]

Koufax jammed his pitching arm in August while diving back to second base to beat a pick-off throw. He managed to pitch and win two more games. However, the morning after his 19th win, a 13-K shutout, he could not straighten his arm. He was diagnosed by Dodgers' team physician Robert Kerlan with traumatic arthritis. With the Dodgers out of the pennant race, the book was closed on Koufax and his 19–5 record.[50]

[edit] Playing in pain (1965–66)
[edit] 1965 season

1965 brought more obstacles for Koufax. On March 31, the morning after pitching a complete spring training game, Koufax awoke to find that his entire left arm was black and blue from hemorrhaging. Koufax returned to Los Angeles to consult with Kerlan, who advised Koufax that he would be lucky to be able to pitch once a week. Kerlan also told Koufax that he would eventually lose full use of his arm. Koufax agreed not to throw at all between games—a resolution that lasted only one start. To get himself through the games he pitched in, Koufax resorted to Empirin with codeine for the pain, which he took every night and sometimes during the fifth inning. He also took Butazolidin for inflammation, applied capsaicin-based Capsolin ointment (called "atomic balm" by baseball players) before each game, and soaked his arm in a tub of ice afterwards.[51]

Despite the constant pain in his pitching elbow, Koufax pitched 335⅔ innings and led the Dodgers to another pennant. He finished the year by winning his second pitchers' Triple Crown, leading the league in wins (26), ERA (2.04) and strikeouts (382; the highest modern day total at the time. Nolan Ryan struck out 383 batters in 1973). Koufax captured his second unanimous Cy Young Award. Koufax held batters to 5.79 hits per nine innings, and allowed the fewest base runners per 9 innings in any season ever: 7.83, breaking his own record (set two years earlier) of 7.96. Koufax had 11-game winning streaks in both 1964 and 1965.[1][52]

Koufax garnered headlines by declining to pitch Game 1 of the World Series due to his observance of Yom Kippur. Don Drysdale pitched the opener, but was hit hard by the Minnesota Twins. In Game 2, Koufax pitched six innings, giving up two runs, but the Twins won the Game 5–1 and took an early 2–0 lead in the series. The Dodgers fought back in Games 3 and 4, with wins by Claude Osteen and Drysdale. With the Series tied at 2 to 2, Koufax pitched a complete game shutout in Game 5 for a 3–2 Dodgers lead as the Series returned to Minnesota's Metropolitan Stadium for Game 6. The Twins won Game 6 to force a seventh game. Starting Game 7 on just two days of rest, Koufax pitched through fatigue and arthritic pain, and despite giving up on his curveball early in the game after failing to get it over for strikes in the first two innings and pitching the rest of the game relying almost entirely on fastballs, he threw a three-hit shutout to clinch the Series. The performance earned him his second World Series MVP award. Koufax also won the Hickok Belt a second time, the first (and only) time anyone had won the belt more than once. He was awarded Sports Illustrated magazine's Sportsman of the Year award.[1][45][53]

[edit] Perfection
Main article: Sandy Koufax's perfect game
On September 9, 1965, Koufax became the sixth pitcher of the modern era to throw a perfect game, the first by a left-hander since 1880. The game was Koufax's fourth no-hitter, setting a Major League record (subsequently broken by Nolan Ryan). Koufax struck out 14 batters, the most recorded in a perfect game. The game also featured a quality performance by the opposing pitcher, Bob Hendley of the Cubs. Hendley pitched a one-hitter and allowed only two batters to reach base. Both pitchers had no-hitters intact until the seventh inning.

In one of baseball's great statistical and score-keeping anomalies, this has been the only nine-inning major league game where both teams combined for one hit. The game's only run, scored by the Dodgers, was unearned.[54][55] The Dodger run was scored without a recorded at bat—Lou Johnson walked, reached second on a sacrifice bunt, stole third, and scored when the throw to get him out at third went wild.

[edit] Holdout
Before the 1966 season began, Koufax and Drysdale met separately with Dodger GM Buzzie Bavasi to negotiate their contracts for the upcoming year. After Koufax's meeting, he met Drysdale for dinner and complained that Bavasi was using Drysdale against him in the negotiations, asking, "How come you want that much when Drysdale only wants this much?"[56] Drysdale responded that Bavasi did the same thing with him, using Koufax against him. Drysdale's first wife, Ginger Drysdale, suggested that they negotiate together to get what they wanted. They demanded $1 million ($6,703,704 in current dollar terms), divided equally over the next three years, or $167,000 ($1,119,519 in current dollar terms) each for the next three seasons. Both players were represented by an entertainment lawyer, J. William Hayes, which was unusual during an era when players were not represented by agents.[57][58] At the time, Willie Mays was Major League Baseball's highest paid player at $125,000 ($837,963 in current dollar terms) per year and multi-year contracts were very unusual.[59]

Koufax and Drysdale didn't report to spring training in February. Instead, they both signed to appear in the movie Warning Shot, starring David Janssen. Drysdale was to play a TV commentator and Koufax a detective. Meanwhile, the Dodgers waged a public relations battle against them. After four weeks, Koufax gave Drysdale the go-ahead to negotiate new deals for both of them. Koufax ended up getting $125,000 and Drysdale $110,000 ($737,407 in current dollar terms). They rejoined the team in the last week of spring training.[60]

[edit] 1966 season
In April 1966, Kerlan told Koufax it was time to retire, that his arm could not take another season. Koufax kept Kerlan's advice to himself and went out every fourth day to pitch. He ended up pitching 323 innings and had a 27–9 record with a 1.73 ERA. Since then, no left-hander has had more wins, nor a lower ERA, in a season (Phillies pitcher Steve Carlton did match the 27 win mark in 1972). In the final game of the regular season, the Dodgers had to beat the Phillies to win the pennant. In the second game of a doubleheader, Koufax faced Jim Bunning in the first ever match-up between perfect game winners. Koufax, on two days rest, pitched a complete game, 6–3 victory to clinch the pennant.[61] While he started 41 games (for the second year in a row), only two left-handers started as many games in any season over the ensuing years through 2009.

The Dodgers went on to face the Baltimore Orioles in the 1966 World Series. Game 2 marked Koufax's third start in eight days. Koufax pitched well enough—Baltimore first baseman Boog Powell told Koufax's biographer, Jane Leavy, "He might have been hurtin' but he was bringin'"—but three errors by Dodger center fielder Willie Davis in the fifth inning produced three unearned runs. Baltimore's Jim Palmer pitched a four-hitter and the Dodgers ended up losing the game 6–0. Alston lifted Koufax at the end of the sixth inning with the idea of getting him extra rest before pitching a potential fifth Series game. It never happened; the Dodgers were swept in four, not scoring a single run in the last three. After the World Series, Koufax announced his retirement due to his arthritic condition.[62]

[edit] Career overall
In his 12-season career, Koufax had a 165–87 record with a 2.76 ERA, 2,396 strikeouts, 137 complete games, and 40 shutouts. He was the first pitcher to average fewer than seven hits allowed per nine innings pitched in his career (6.79) and to strike out more than nine batters (9.28) per nine innings pitched in his career.[63] He also became the 2nd pitcher in baseball history to have two games with 18 or more strikeouts, and the first to have eight games with 15 or more strikeouts. In his last ten seasons, from 1957 to 1966, batters hit .203 against Koufax, with a .271 on base percentage and a .315 slugging average.[64]

Koufax's postseason record is impressive: a 4–3 won-lost record with a 0.95 earned run average, in four World Series. He is on the very short list of pitchers who retired with more career strikeouts than innings pitched. Koufax was selected for seven consecutive All-Star games (twice in 1961 (the last season with two All-Star Games), then 1962 to 1966).

Koufax was the first pitcher to win multiple Cy Young Awards, as well as the first pitcher to win a Cy Young Award by a unanimous vote. Each of Koufax's three Cy Young Awards were by unanimous vote.[1][65] Koufax and Juan Marichal are the only two pitchers in the post-war era (1946-date) to have more than one 25-win season, with each pitcher recording three.

Among NL pitchers with at least 2,000 innings pitched who have debuted since 1913, he has the highest career winning percentage (.655) and had the lowest career ERA (2.76) until surpassed by Tom Seaver, whose NL career mark is 2.73.[66]

[edit] Pitching style
Whereas many left-handed pitchers throw with a three-quarter or sidearm motion, Koufax threw with a pronounced over-the-top arm action. This may have increased his velocity, but reduced the lateral movement on his pitches, especially movement away from left-handed hitters. Most of his velocity came from his strong legs and back, combined with a high kicking wind-up and long forward stretch toward the plate. Throughout his career, Koufax relied mostly on two pitches: his four-seam fastball had a "rising" motion due to underspin, and not only appeared to move very late but also might move two or three distinct times; his overhand curveball, spun with the middle finger, dropped vertically 12 to 24 inches due to his arm action. He also occasionally threw a changeup and a forkball.[67]

"I knew every pitch he was going to throw and still I couldn't hit him."[68]

— Willie MaysAt the beginning of his career, Koufax worked with coaches to eliminate his tendency to "tip" pitches (i.e. reveal which pitch was coming due to variations in his wind-up). Late in his career, and especially as his arm problems continued, this variation—usually in the position he held his hands at the top of the wind-up—became even more pronounced. Good hitters could often predict what pitch was coming, but were still unable to hit it.

[edit] Post-playing career

Sandy Koufax's number 32 was retired by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1972

In 1967, he signed a ten-year contract with NBC for $1 million ($6,516,000 in current dollar terms) to be a broadcaster on the Saturday Game of the Week. Never feeling comfortable in front of the camera, he quit after six years, just prior to the start of the 1973 season.[69][70]

Koufax married Anne Widmark, daughter of movie star Richard Widmark, in 1969; the couple was divorced in the 1980s. He then remarried and divorced again in the 1990s.[70]

In his first year of eligibility in 1972, Koufax was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, just weeks after his 36th birthday. His election made him the Hall's youngest member ever, five months younger than Lou Gehrig upon his induction in 1939.[3] On June 4 of that same year, Koufax's uniform number 32 was retired alongside those of Dodger greats Roy Campanella (39) and Jackie Robinson (42).[71]

The Dodgers hired Koufax to be a minor league pitching coach in 1979. He resigned in 1990, saying he wasn't earning his keep, but most observers blamed it on his uneasy relationship with manager Tommy Lasorda.[72] In 2003, Koufax discontinued his relationship with the Dodgers when the New York Post (which, like the Dodgers, had become part of Rupert Murdoch's business empire) published a story reporting rumors about his sexual orientation, and implying that Koufax was gay. Koufax returned to the Dodger organization in 2004 when the Dodgers were sold to Frank McCourt.[54][73]

In 1999, The Sporting News placed Koufax at number 26 on its list of "The 100 Greatest Baseball Players."[74] That same year, he was named as one of the 30 players on the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. Although he rarely makes public appearances, he went to Turner Field in Atlanta for the introduction ceremony before Game 2 of the World Series.[75] Koufax threw out a ceremonial first pitch at opening day 2008 at Dodger Stadium, to help commemorate the Dodgers 50th Anniversary in Los Angeles.

Koufax was the final player chosen in the inaugural Israel Baseball League draft in April 2007. Koufax, 71, was picked by the Modi'in Miracle. "His selection is a tribute to the esteem with which he is held by everyone associated with this league," said Art Shamsky, who managed the Miracle. "It's been 41 years between starts for him. If he's rested and ready to take the mound again, we want him on our team." Koufax declined to join the Miracle.[76][77]

On May 14, 2007, Upper Deck Authenticated signed Koufax to an exclusive autograph and memorabilia agreement.[78]

[edit] Career statistics
Sandy Koufax Pitching statistics[1] W L ERA G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO
165 87 2.76 397 314 137 40 9 2324.33 1754 713 204 817 2396

[edit] See also
List of baseball players who went directly to the major leagues
Bonus rule
Triple Crown
List of Major League Baseball leaders in career wins
List of Major League Baseball ERA champions
List of Major League Baseball strikeout champions
List of Major League Baseball wins champions
List of pitchers who have struck out 18 or more batters in a nine-inning MLB game
Pitchers who have struck out three batters on nine pitches
Top 100 strikeout pitchers of all time
Major League Baseball titles leaders
Pitchers who have thrown a perfect game
List of Major League Baseball no-hitters
Los Angeles Dodgers all-time roster
List of select Jewish baseball players
[edit] Notes
1.^ a b c d e f "Sandy Koufax Statistics". www.baseball-reference.com. http://www.baseball-reference.com/k/koufasa01.shtml. Retrieved February 14, 2007.
2.^ "1963 Major League Leaders". http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/ML_1963_t.shtml. Retrieved February 17, 2007. "1965 Major League Leaders". http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/ML_1965_t.shtml. Retrieved February 17, 2007. "1966 Major League Leaders". http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/ML_1966_t.shtml. Retrieved February 17, 2007.
3.^ a b "Retired Numbers – Kirby Puckett". minnesota.twins.mlb.com. http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/min/history/puckett.jsp. Retrieved February 10, 2007.
4.^ Solomvits, Sandor. "Yom Kippur and Sandy Koufax". JewishSports.com. http://www.jewishsports.com/reflections/koufax_yom.htm. Retrieved November 15, 2006.
5.^ a b Brody, Seymour. "Koufax Biography". jewishvirtuallibrary.org. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Koufax.html. Retrieved November 15, 2006.
6.^ a b "Koufax Biography". www.hickoksports.com. http://www.hickoksports.com/biograph/koufaxsandy.shtml. Retrieved November 15, 2006.
7.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 19–22.
8.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 22–28; Leavy, pp. 37–40.
9.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 32–39.
10.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 43–44.
11.^ Koufax and Linn, p. 46.
12.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 44–45.
13.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 46–48.
14.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 56–57.
15.^ Leavy, p. 54
16.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 70–74.
17.^ Leavy, p. 55
18.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 65–66.
19.^ Koufax and Linn, pp. 42, 75–94.

Elston Howard

2010-06-22T11:16:00.000-07:00

Elston Howard

The first black man to play for the New York Yankees, Elston Howard was also the first black man to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award, which he did in 1963. The versatile Howard was an outstanding catcher/outfielder for the Yankees from the mid-1950s through the 1960s. He played on ten pennant-winning teams in a 13-year stretch, earning four World Championship rings. | Full bio ⇓
Career Batting Stats
G AB H R HR RBI SB AVG SLG OBP OPS OPS+
1605 5363 1471 619 167 762 9 .274 .427 .322 .749 108.1

Where does Elston Howard rank among baseball greats?
Elston Howard ranks #12 among the Top 50 all-time at C. Rankings ⇒

Elston Howard Teammates
Yogi BerraGeorge ScottBilly MartinClete BoyerPhil RizzutoCarl YastrzemskiMickey MantleRoger MarisWhitey FordDon LarsenJim BoutonBob TurleyMel StottlemyreSparky LyleRyne DurenCasey Stengel

Best Season: 1961
Though he won the MVP in 1963 (one of the strangest MVP votes ever), we'll give his '61 campaign the nod here. He played almost the same amount of games as he did in '63, and batted 35 points higher (.348) with a slugging percentage (.549) almost 100 points better. In '61 he joined Mantle, Maris and the other slugging Yankees in setting the single-season record for homers. Howard hit 21 home runs, drove in 77 (batting low in the order), and fielded .993 behind the plate.

Factoids
On July 23, 1955, Elston Howard followed teammate Bob Cerv's pinch-hit homer with a pinch-hit homer of his own. It was the first time in baseball history that back-to-back pinch homers were hit.

Full Bio
Born in St. Louis on February 23, 1930, Howard’s parents were educated and successful, spoiling their only child. He attended Vashan High School and starred in football, basketball, and baseball. Upon graduation he rejected 25 scholarship offers from various colleges. In 1948, at age nineteen, Howard played three seasons in the Negro leagues with the Kansas City Monarchs as an outfielder/catcher. According to Blackbaseball.com, he posted batting averages of .283, .270 and .319in those seasons.

In 1950 the Yankees signed him to a minor league contract. Playing in Muskegon, Michigan, in Class A ball he was assigned as a catcher. The Yankee organization was ripe with catching prospects and few held hope of braking into the majors as long as Yogi Berra was around. But Howard was optimistic, and despite warnings that he was simply a “token black”, he stuck with it.

After a stint in the Army during the Korean conflict, Howard returned to the Yanks for spring training in 1953. Soon Yankee legend Bill Dickey was tutoring him on the art of catching. But in the minor leagues to open the season he was in the outfield for the Yankee farm club in Kansas City. When a catcher was injured, Howard was pressed into duty behind the plate and performed well.

In the 1954 spring camp Dickey spent even more time with Howard, grooming him to support Berra at the major league level. Yankee officials liked Howard’s bat but were concerned that he may be unable to handle the pressures of catching. At the time there was a feeling among many that blacks lacked the intellect to call a game. This ignorance persisted in spite of Roy Campanella’s success with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Casey Stengel did not share this concern. He recognized Howard’s strong arm behind the plate. He felt Elston’s bat was not strong enough to make it as an outfielder. Regardless of Stengel’s praise, Howard was farmed to Toronto for the ’54 season. Playing both the outfield and catcher, Howard tore up the league, batting .330 with 22 homers and 109 RBI. His efforts earned him the MVP award for the International League. It appeared that 1955 would be the season for Elston Howard to make history with the Yankees.

After posting an MVP season in the International League in 1954, Howard expected to stick with the Yankees in 1955. However, the catcher position was held firmly by Yogi Berra, who was in his prime. Luckily for Howard he was versatile and could play first and the outfield as well. This was a welcome attribute that Casey Stengel gladly accepted.

The next three seasons (1955-1957), Howard filled in and played between 97 and 110 games. He was a solid contributor on three New York pennant winners. In 1958 he played more frequently and kept his average well above .300 during the season. In the World Series against the Braves Howard proved critical to team success.

In the fifth game, with the Yankees trailing 3 games to one, Howard made a spectacular play in left field, robbing the Braves of a hit and doubling a runner of first. He later added two hits in the Game Six victory and in the finale he drove in the series winning run. He was named the World Series MVP, the first black player to be so honored.

The next two seasons Howard continued to fill in for Casey Stengel’s Yankees. “You can say that Howard is our most valuable utility player,” said the skipper. In both 1959 and 1960 Howard played in less than 130 games, but he managed to get more than 300 at-bats each season. By 1961 he was poised to replace Berra, who was playing less and less behind the mask.

The next two seasons were pivotal for the now mature major leaguer. The 1961 Yankees are considered one of the greatest teams in baseball history. They won 109 games and hit a record number of home runs. Roger Maris eclipsed Babe Ruth’s single season hoe run record, Mickey Mantle challenged the record most of the season as well, and Whitey Ford, Yogi Berra, Moose Skowron, Bobby Richardson, and Elston Howard starred for the pennant winning ball club.

Howard had played just 2/3 of his teams’ games the last four seasons but had still been selected to the All-Star game each year. The depth of the Yankees was apparent, as Howard, Hector Lopez, and others played part-time despite their obvious talents. In 1961 Howard was inserted as the regular catcher by new manager Ralph Houk. It wasn’t that former manager Casey Stengel hadn’t trusted Howard enough to make him his starting receiver, it was that he preferred using Howard as a utility man. Houk preferred a set lineup and he moved aging star Berra to left field and Howard became his catcher. The first black player in team history, Howard took immediate advantage of the opportunity.

Playing in 129 games, Howard batted a career high .348 with 21 homers and 77 RBI. His slugging percentage of .549 fit nicely in the already potent attack of Maris, Mantle, and crew. In 1962 he played even more behind the plate, and again hit 21 homers and bested himself with 91 RBI.

His play behind the plate improved as much as his batting in those seasons, and in 1963 and 1964 he finally won Gold Gloves for his field work. It was the 1963 season that proved to be Howard’s finest hour. With both Mantle and Maris out for various stretches of the season with innjuries, Elston took over as team leader. He batted .287 with a career high 28 home runs. He caught 132 games and drove in 85 runs. He was often thrust into the role of cleanup hitter and he rarely disappointed in the clutch. Major league writers rewarded him with the MVP award, making him the first African-American to win the honor in the American League.

In 1964 he caught 146 games, won his second Gold Glove, and led AL catchers with a .998 fielding mark. He batted .313 with 84 RBI as the Yankees won their fifth straight pennant, this time under former catcher and Howard road block Berra.

The next few seasons Howard’s production fell off dramatically and he finished his playing career in 1968 with the Red Sox. He had been, along with Detroit’s Bill Freehan, one of the best catchers in the American League during the 1960’s. Immediately following his retirement the Yankees hired him as a coach, a position he held for more than a decade.

Where He Played
Left field (1955-1959), catcher (1956-1968)

Born
Elston Gene Howard was born on February 23, 1929, in St. Louis, MO.

Died
December 14, 1980, New York, NY

Batted: Right
Threw: Right

Major League Debut
4 14,

Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1955
Brooks Robinson
Roberto Clemente
Ken Boyer
Rocky Colavito
Clete Boyer
Elston Howard
Sandy Koufax
Jim Bunning
Bill Virdon

Uniform Numbers
#32 (1955-1967), #18 (1967-1968)

Similar Players
Terry Steinbach, Mike Stanley

Related Players
Yogi Berra

Hall of Fame Voting
Year Election Votes Pct
1974 BBWAA 19 5.2%
1975 BBWAA 23 6.4%
1976 BBWAA 55 14.2%
1977

Dooley Wilson

2010-06-22T11:02:00.000-07:00

Dooley Wilson

Born Arthur Wilson
April 3, 1886(1886-04-03)?
Tyler, Texas, U.S.
Died May 30, 1953 (aged 67)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation Actor/Singer
Years active 1908 – 1951

Arthur "Dooley" Wilson (April 3, 1886? – May 30, 1953) was an American actor and singer. He was born in Tyler, Texas, and is most famous as piano-player "Sam" who sings "As Time Goes By" at the request of Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) in the 1942 film Casablanca.

Contents [hide]
1 Career
2 Casablanca
3 Filmography
4 References
5 Sources
6 See also
7 External links

[edit] Career
Wilson's precise year of birth is unknown: it may have been anywhere between 1884 and 1887. It is thought that he sang and played the drums in black clubs in the Tyler area before he moved to Chicago. He worked in black theatre in Chicago and New York for most of the period from 1908 to the 1930s, although in the 1920s he played as a drummer in a band which toured Europe. From the 1930s to the 1950s he worked in motion pictures and Broadway musicals, and played Bill Jackson on the television situation comedy Beulah during its final 1952–1953 season.

He received the nickname "Dooley" while working in the Pekin Theatre in Chicago, circa 1908, because of his then-signature Irish song "Mr. Dooley," which he performed in whiteface.

His breakthrough Broadway appearance came in the role of Little Joe, a stereotypic lazy rascal in the musical Cabin in the Sky (1940–1941). This led to his signing for the Paramount studio in Hollywood, which lent him to Warner Bros. for his role as Sam in Casablanca. He played Pompey, an escaped slave, in the musical Bloomer Girl (1946–1948). His performance of the song "The Eagle and Me" in this show was selected by Dwight Blocker Bowers for inclusion in a Smithsonian recordings compilation, American Musical Theatre.

Dooley is buried in Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles. The cemetery is notable for the number of former Los Angeles mayors and other politicians who are buried there.

[edit] Casablanca
Wilson appeared in over twenty motion pictures, but won immortality for his role as Sam in the 1942 film Casablanca. For his role, he was paid $350 a week for seven weeks.[1] Sydney Greenstreet, in comparison, was paid $3750 a week.[2]

Sam is a singer and pianist employed by nightclub owner Rick (Humphrey Bogart). The Herman Hupfeld song "As Time Goes By" appears as a continuing musical and emotional motif throughout the film. Rick and Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) regard it as "their song" and associate it with the days of their love affair in Paris. Because of their breakup and Ilsa's marriage to another, Rick has forbidden the song to be played in his club. When Ilsa appears in his nightclub she requests it and Sam acquiesces. Dooley Wilson gives a genial and warm rendition of the song. The performance is remembered for itself, as well as for its cinematic associations. The song makes Rick aware of Ilsa's presence and her continuing feelings for him. According to Aljean Harmetz, Variety singled him out for the effectiveness of the song, and the Hollywood Reporter said he created "something joyous."

In a later scene, Rick sits in a darkened nightclub, alone except for Sam, drinking heavily and torturing himself by insisting that Sam repeatedly play the song, saying "You played it for her, you can play it for me... If she can stand it, I can! Play it!"

In the film, Wilson as Sam performs several other songs for the cafe audience: "It Had To Be You", "Shine", "Knock On Wood", and "Parlez-moi d'amour". Dooley almost did not get his signature role, in fact, the role was almost played by a woman. A popular singer in the forties, Ella Fitzgerald, was considered for the part of Rick's nightclub entertainer.

Wilson was a singer and drummer, but not a pianist. Sam's piano playing in the film was actually performed by Elliot Carpenter, who was placed where Wilson could see and imitate his hand movements. The only black people on the Casablanca set, Wilson and Carpenter became and remained friends.

[edit] Filmography
On Our Selection (1920)
Keep Punching (1939)

Jack Johnson

2010-06-19T07:14:00.000-07:00

Jack Johnson

Arthur John (Jack) Johnson (1878 -1946) was the first black, and first Texan, to win the heavyweight boxing championship of the world.

Born in Galveston on March 31, 1878, he was the second of six children of Henry and Tiny Johnson. Henry was a former slave and his family was poor. After leaving school in the fifth grade, Johnson worked odd jobs around South Texas. He started boxing as a sparring partner and fought in the "battles royal," matches in which young blacks entertained white spectators who threw money to the winner.

Johnson turned professional in 1897 following a period with private clubs in Galveston. His family's home was destroyed by the great hurricane of 1900. A year later he was arrested and jailed because boxing was a criminal profession in Texas. He soon left Galveston for good.

Johnson first became the heavyweight champion of Negro boxing. Jim Jeffries, the white champ at the time, refused to fight Johnson because he was black. Then, in 1908, Johnson knocked out Tommy Burns in Australia to become world champion, although he was not officially given the title until 1910 when he finally fought and beat Jeffries in Reno. Jeffries had come out of retirement to become the first of many so-called "great white hopes."

Race rioting was sparked after the Johnson-Jeffries fight. The Texas Legislature banned films of his victories over whites for fear of more riots. In 1913, Johnson fled because of trumped up charges of violating the Mann Act's stipulations against transporting white women across state lines for prostitution.

During his exile from the U.S., Johnson lost his championship to a white man, Jess Willard, in Cuba in 1915. He returned to the U.S. on July 20, 1920 and was arrested. Sentenced to Leavenworth in Kansas, Johnson was appointed athletic director of the prison. Upon his release, he returned to boxing, but only participated in exhibition fights after 1928.

Although married three times to white women, Johnson never had children. He died in a car crash June 10, 1946, near Raleigh, North Carolina.

Bibliography: Wendy Brabner, Ed., Texas Monthly Texas Characters Datebook 1985 (Austin, Texas: Texas Monthly Press, 1984). Ron Tyler, ed., The New Handbook of Texas, Vol. 3 (Austin, Texas: Texas State Historical Association, 1996

Sugar Ray Robinson

2010-06-19T07:05:00.000-07:00

Sugar Ray Robinson
Statistics
Real name Walker Smith Jr
Nickname(s) Sugar
Rated at Lightweight
Welterweight
Middleweight
Light heavyweight
Nationality American
Birth date May 3, 1921(1921-05-03)
Birth place Ailey, Georgia
Death date April 12, 1989 (aged 67)
Death place Culver City, California Interment Inglewood Park Cemetery, Inglewood California.
Stance Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights 200[1]
Wins 173[1]
Wins by KO 108[1]
Losses 19[1]
Draws 6[1]
No contests 2[1]

Sugar Ray Robinson (born Walker Smith Jr., May 3, 1921 – April 12, 1989) was a professional boxer. Frequently cited as the greatest boxer of all time, Robinson's performances at the welterweight and middleweight divisions prompted sportswriters to create "pound for pound" rankings, where they compared fighters regardless of weight. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.

Robinson was 85-0 as an amateur with 69 of those victories coming by way of knockout, 40 in the first round. He turned professional in 1940 at the age of 19 and by 1951 had a professional record of 128-1-2 with 84 knockouts. Robinson held the world welterweight title from 1946 to 1951, and won the world middleweight title in the later year. He retired in 1952, only to come back two and a half years later and regain the middleweight title in 1955. He then became the first boxer in history to win a divisional world championship five times, a feat he accomplished by defeating Carmen Basilio in 1958 to regain the middleweight championship. Robinson was named "fighter of the year" twice: first for his performances in 1942, then nine years and over 90 fights later, for his efforts in 1951. He defeated other Hall of Fame fighters such as Jake LaMotta, Carmen Basilio, Gene Fullmer, Carl 'Bobo' Olson, Henry Armstrong, Rocky Graziano and Kid Gavilan . Robinson engaged in 200 pro bouts, and his professional career lasted nearly 26 years.

Robinson was named the greatest fighter of the 20th century by the Associated Press, and the greatest boxer in history by ESPN.com in 2007. The Ring magazine rated him the best pound for pound boxer of all-time in 1997, and its "Fighter of the Decade" for the 1950s. Muhammad Ali, who repeatedly called himself "The Greatest" throughout his career, ranked Robinson as the greatest boxer of all time. Other Hall of Fame boxers such as Joe Louis and Sugar Ray Leonard said the same.

Renowned for his flamboyant lifestyle outside the ring, Robinson is credited with being the originator of the modern sports "entourage". After his boxing career ended, Robinson attempted a career as an entertainer, but struggled, and lived modestly until his death in 1989. In 2006, he was featured on a commemorative stamp by the United States Postal Service.

Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Boxing career
2.1 Amateur career
2.2 Early professional career
2.3 Welterweight Champion
2.4 Middleweight Champion

Sam Jones

2010-06-12T07:18:00.000-07:00

Sam Jones (basketball)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Sam Jones (basketball)

Position(s) Shooting guard
Jersey #(s) 24
Listed height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight 198 lb (90 kg)
Born June 24, 1933 (1933-06-24) (age 76)
Wilmington, North Carolina, USA
Career information
Year(s) 1957–1969
NBA Draft 1957 / Round: 1 / Pick: 8
College North Carolina Central
Professional team(s)
Boston Celtics (1957-69)

Career stats (NBA)
Points 15,411
Rebounds 4,305
Assists 2,209
Career highlights and awards
10× NBA Champion (1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969)
3× All-NBA Second Team Selection (1965, 1966, 1967)
5× NBA All-Star (1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968)
50 Greatest Players in NBA History

Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Samuel Jones (born June 24, 1933, in Wilmington, North Carolina) is a retired American professional basketball player at shooting guard and a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was known for his quickness and game-saving shots, especially during the NBA Playoffs, that inspired his famous nickname "Mr. Clutch".

Jones graduated from North Carolina Central University after a spectacular career there. He scored 1,770 points playing for Hall of Fame coach John McLendon. He was a 4-year letter winner and was a 3-time All-Conference team.

Contents [hide]
1 NBA career
2 Honors
3 References
4 External links

[edit] NBA career
Jones spent all of his twelve seasons in the NBA with the Boston Celtics who drafted him in the first round in 1957. Jones was known as a clutch scorer, and scored over 15,000 points in his career. He participated in five All-Star Games, and is usually recognized as one of the best shooting guards of his generation.

Jones was named to the All-NBA Second Team three straight years (1965–67) and he played on ten championship teams (1959-66 and 1968-69) — a total exceeded only by teammate Bill Russell in NBA history. He was 6-foot-4 (1.93 m) and weighed 200 lb (97 kg).

Jones was originally claimed by the Minneapolis Lakers, but returned to college upon completion of military service, and therefore voided NBA rules.

Jones’ perfect form when shooting a jump shot, along with his great clutch shooting led opponents to nickname him "The Shooter". He was particularly adept shooting the bank shot, where the shooter bounces the ball off the backboard en route to the basket. Many coaches including UCLA's great John Wooden believe that when a shooter is at a 20 - 50 degree angle to the backboard and inside of 15 feet, a bank shot is always the preferred shot. At 6-foot-4, Jones was the prototype of the tall guard who could run the floor, bang the boards and had a rangy offensive game that gave opponents fits. One of the "Jones Boys" in Boston, Sam teamed with K. C. Jones in the Celtics' backcourt to create havoc in NBA arenas around the country.

He led Boston in scoring in the 1962-63 NBA season (19.7 points per game), 1964-65 NBA season (25.9) and 1965-66 NBA season (23.5). He produced four consecutive seasons averaging 20 points or better (1965–68). He owns Boston's fourth best single-game scoring output (51 points vs. Detroit Pistons on October 29, 1965).[1] He scored 2,909 points in 154 playoff games (18.9 ppg), 15th best in history.

[edit] Honors

Satch Saunders

2010-06-11T08:22:00.001-07:00

HOME RED AUERBACH RECAPS STATS TITLES LEGENDS LORE
Where Are They Now? - Tom 'Satch' Sanders

He is a quiet, sincere, loyal and perceptive gentleman. His #16 is proudly displayed in the upper right-hand corner of one the Boston Celtics retired number banners, right next to the #1 that is retired for the franchise's original owner Walter Brown. His number retirement ceremony was thirty-one years ago this month, January 1973.

Tom 'Satch' Sanders had a steady and successful NBA playing career. He was the Green and White's top pick (the 8th pick overall) in the 1960 NBA Draft, from New York University. He played in 916 career games (6th-most in Celtics history) in his 13 seasons - all with the Celtics. (He also served as Head Coach of the team in parts of the 1977-78 and 1978-79 seasons). The Celtics won eight championship titles during his career. He may have averaged only 9.6 points per game for his career, but with a ton of heart, a minimum of fanfare and a maximum of efficiency - Tom 'Satch' Sanders got the job done.

A 6-6 center at NYU (where he was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame), 'Satch' lived the NBA life as a forward. He could score and often would be on the receiving end of a fast-break lay-up or crisp pass from Bob Cousy or K.C. Jones that he would put in for an easy two points. But it was on the defensive end where Mr. Sanders made the headlines.

Who you going to call stop Willis Reed, Jerry Lucas, Dave DeBusschere or an Elgin Baylor? It was long before 'ghost busters'. It was 'Satch'.

Quite often 'Satch' was shorter or lighter (he weighed only 210 pounds) than most of the foes he had to deal with night-in and night-out. Did he complain? Never. Did always come through for his team? Always. As further evident of the fact that he played in over 450 consecutive games! Durable, smart and the ultimate team player... that was Tom 'Satch' Sanders.

Today, 'Satch' is the NBA's Vice-President and Director of Player Programs. Based in New York City, his birthplace, 'Satch' designs programs to help both veteran and rookie players take advantage of their unique status as professional athletes and to assist them in coping with the special pressures they face. Player Programs is responsible for facilitating the following: post-career counseling; educational and employment opportunities; the NBA/PA (Players Association) Anti-Drug and Alcohol Programs; advice on dealing with celebrity status and media attention and a nonprofit foundation that benefits former players.

Celtics.com's Jeff Twiss had a chance to chat with Tom 'Satch' Sanders when he attended a recent Celtics game at the FleetCenter.

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We know you are the head of the NBA Player Programs division. Can you share with us some of your specific duties?

Sanders: "I have been working for the National Basketball Association in the office of Player Programs for some time. Basically, we're still trying to help players make that adjustment coming into the game and, certainly, while they are here but also on the way out - their departure time. So, we are working with players on 'adjustments'."

How did you become involved with this part of the NBA Office?

Sanders: "Oh, I'd say about 16 years ago, maybe 17, now as time is sort of running together, I went down and had an opportunity to sit down and talk with Commissioner Stern for two or three different opportunities. First, I consulted with him on their rookie program. Then, after a few years with that program he thought there was some value there and we got together and I started to head-up their Player Programs department."

Was this something you always wanted to do or something you thought should be done?

Sanders: "Well, it's more or less, something that should be done. We talked a lot about how players were having difficulty making the adjustments and how, if we helped them right in the first place, there was a strong possibility they would be able to get through their careers and even do better. And, even having a good shot at really doing well when they finish playing ball. That was the part of our program's main goal."

Are there any fond or special Celtics memories, 'Satch'?

Sanders: "Well, I tell you, fond memories come about every single time I take a look at that parquet floor, OK? No matter where it is, the Garden or here in the FleetCenter, it's meaningful to me and it brings back a rush of memories. Now the problem is trying to put those memories in the right place, OK? I can't seem to get some of those championship games together. I know there were quite a few but I can't seem to put them together."

Is there any particular thing you learned about being a Celtic?

Sanders: "Well, to be frank with you, it gave me a lot of insight to a lot of other players and those players represent people in life...period. There are some folks, and certainly not everybody, who always dig and always want to be successful, expect to be successful and, somehow, manage to be successful. And, we had a few of those on our team and it was a real pleasure playing with them."

How was adjusting to life, for you, after your playing days were done?

Sanders: "Well, that's always extremely difficult and certainly I had the same problems that most players have. I would like to think that I was a little more prepared only because, in those days, we had to work during the summer and in the off-season anyway. So, the 9-to-5 thing was already a part of my life. Thus, when it became necessary, I could adjust relatively easy. But you still miss everything about professional basketball, from the people, the fans, to your teammates to all the other things... and certainly the competitiveness of the game."

We know you work for the NBA but would you share with us your thoughts on the game today and how it has changed since you were playing?

Sanders: "The only thing that really has changed is the athleticism of the players. Obviously the dollars have changed. But the game is, pretty much, a lot of it the same, as it was when I was playing. The fact that there is so much individual talent here means you see a little bit more of the 1-on-1 game, but it's a fun game to watch and I still enjoy it immensely."

Sol White

2010-06-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

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King Solomon "Sol" White

Born: June 12, 1868, in Bellaire, Ohio
Died: August 26, 1955, in Central Islip, New York

A true renaissance man, Sol White lived all aspects of early black baseball. He played in organized baseball for integrated teams and all-black teams; played, captained, and managed for the best barnstorming teams; wrote the first definitive history of black baseball; and penned numerous columns for leading black weekly newspapers.

A hard-hitting infielder, White signed his first contract in 1887 with the Pittsburgh Keystones of the short-lived National Colored League. After the Colored League folded, the 19-year-old White moved to the Wheeling (WV) franchise of the Ohio State League where he batted .381 in 45 games (sixth-best among players with 40 games)*. Wheeling briefly re-signed him in 1888, but his white teammates forced his release before he appeared in a game.

White then moved on to the highest ranks of black baseball. From 1889-1891, he appeared with all-Black teams in official minor leagues, batting at least .324 each year, before joining top black barnstorming squads like the New York Big Gorhams (1891), the Cuban Giants (1892-1894), and the Page Fence Giants (1895). From 1896-1900, White split time between classes at Wilberforce University and the Cuban X Giants. He joined the Chicago Columbia Giants for a year then returned to captain the X Giants.

In 1902, he teamed with white sportswriter H. Walter Schlichter to found the Philadelphia Giants. For the next eight years White co-owned, managed, and played for his team, one of the era's best. The Giants claimed the mythic black national championship three times under White.

Drawing on his experiences, White authored and published a history of black baseball in 1907. Sol White's History of Colored Baseball was the first volume of its kind. A remarkably accurate narrative, it preserved the story of pioneering black players for future generations.

After leaving the Giants, White managed the Brooklyn Royal Giants (1910) and the New York Lincoln Giants (1911-1912), before a long period of semi-retirement, punctuated by stints with the Columbus Buckeyes (1920), the Cleveland Browns (1924), and the Newark Stars (1926).

He spent most of his remaining years as a journalist, writing columns for, and granting interviews to, important African American newspapers like the Cleveland Advocate, the New York Amsterdam News, the New York Age, and the Pittsburgh Courier.

White died in a state hospital on Long Island in 1955.

(* In 1887, for one year only, leagues in organized baseball counted walks as hits, leading to inflated averages.)

Authored by Greg Bond

Abe Lincoln

2010-06-04T07:38:00.000-07:00

For other uses, see Abraham Lincoln (disambiguation).
Abraham Lincoln

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

16th President of the United States
In office
March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865
Vice President Hannibal Hamlin (1861–1865)
Andrew Johnson (1865)
Preceded by James Buchanan
Succeeded by Andrew Johnson

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Member of the
US House of Representatives from Illinois' 7th District
In office
March 4, 1847 – March 3, 1849
Preceded by John Henry
Succeeded by Thomas L. Harris

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Born February 12, 1809(1809-02-12)
Hardin County, Kentucky
Died April 15, 1865 (aged 56)
Washington, D.C.
Resting place Oak Ridge Cemetery
Springfield, Illinois
39°49′24″N 89°39′21″W / 39.82333°N 89.65583°W / 39.82333; -89.65583
Nationality American
Political party Whig (1832-1854)
Republican (1854–1865)
National Union (1864)
Spouse(s) Mary Todd Lincoln
Children Robert Todd Lincoln
Edward Lincoln
Willie Lincoln
Tad Lincoln
Occupation Lawyer
Religion See: Abraham Lincoln and religion
Signature
Military service
Service/branch Illinois Militia
Years of service 1832
Battles/wars Black Hawk War
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery. Before his election in 1860 as the first Republican president, Lincoln had been a country lawyer, an Illinois state legislator, a member of the United States House of Representatives, and twice an unsuccessful candidate for election to the U.S. Senate. As an outspoken opponent of the expansion of slavery in the United States,[1][2] Lincoln won the Republican Party nomination in 1860 and was elected president later that year. His tenure in office was occupied primarily with the defeat of the secessionist Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. He introduced measures that resulted in the abolition of slavery, issuing his Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and promoting the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution. Six days after the large-scale surrender of Confederate forces under General Robert E. Lee, Lincoln became the first American president to be assassinated.

Lincoln had closely supervised the victorious war effort, especially

Rondo

2010-05-29T07:37:00.001-07:00

Rajon Pierre Rondo (born February 22, 1986) is an American professional basketball player who plays point guard for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Rondo attended Eastern High School and Oak Hill Academy for his high-school basketball career, before receiving a scholarship from the University of Kentucky. He played for two years at Kentucky before declaring for the 2006 NBA Draft, represented by agent Bill Duffy

Rondo

2010-05-29T07:35:00.001-07:00

Sidat -Singh

2010-05-15T08:06:00.001-07:00

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Wilmeth Sidat-Singh
Memorial Photos Flowers Edit
Birth: Mar. 13, 1918
Washington
District of Columbia
District Of Columbia, USA
Death: May 9, 1943
Michigan, USA

A celebrated African-American athlete at Syracuse University in the 1930s and an inspiration to his fellow Tuskegee Airmen during World War II, Lt. Sidat-Singh was born Wilmeth Webb in Washington, D.C., the son of Pauline and Elias Webb, a pharmacist who died when Wilmeth was a child. He took the surname Sidat-Singh upon being adopted by his mother's second husband, an Indian-born physician with a practice in Harlem, New York. An excellent student and athlete, he won a basketball scholarship to Syracuse University, where a coach who'd spotted him playing intramural football insisted that he join the varsity team. He soon became as formidable a presence on the gridiron as he was on the court, leading the Orangemen to a string of victories and drawing comparisons to Sid Luckman and Sammy Baugh. His career was never-the-less stymied by the racial attitudes of his day. When it was discovered that Sidat-Singh was Black and not Indian as presumed, college teams in the South refused to take the field against Syracuse if he were in the line-up. After his graduation he became a basketball star with the Harlem Renaissance, the best professional team of the era, and was briefly a policeman in Washington, D.C. In 1943 he joined the newly-formed Tuskegee Airmen, the Army Air Corps' all-Black fighter pilot unit. He was killed during an advanced training mission while piloting a P-40 over Lake Huron. Beset with a failed engine, he'd bailed out of the plane but drowned after becoming entangled in his parachute lines in the water. He was 25 years old at the time of his death. (bio by: Nikita Barlow)

Search Amazon for Wilmeth Sidat-Singh

Burial:
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington
Arlington County
Virginia, USA
Plot: Section 8, Grave #5381

Maintained by: Find A Grave
Originally Created by: Nikita Barlow
Record added: Feb 05, 2004
Find A Grave Memorial# 8357410

Lena Horne

2010-05-15T07:52:00.000-07:00

Henry Johnson

2010-05-15T07:48:00.000-07:00

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to:navigation, search

Henry Johnson biographical cartoon by Charles Alston, 1943For other people named Henry Johnson, see Henry Johnson (disambiguation).
Henry Lincoln Johnson (1897 – July 5, 1929) was an American soldier, and recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross, Purple Heart, and the French Croix de Guerre.

Contents [hide]
1 Biography
2 References
3 Notes
4 External links

[edit] Biography
Henry Johnson was born in Alexandria, Virginia moved to Albany, New York when he was in his early teens. He worked as a redcap porter at the Albany Union Station on Broadway. Johnson enlisted in the Army June 5, 1917, joining the all-black New York National Guard unit, the 369th Infantry Regiment, based in Harlem. Assigned to the French command in World War I, Johnson arrived in France on New Year’s Day, 1918. While on guard duty on May 14, 1918, Private Johnson came under attack by a German raider party. Johnson displayed uncommon heroism when, using his rifle and a bolo knife, he repelled the Germans, thereby rescuing a comrade from capture and saving the lives of his fellow soldiers.[1]

Johnson in 1918, wearing his Croix de Guerre.Sgt. Henry Johnson was the first American soldier in World War I to receive the Croix de Guerre with star and Gold Palm from the French government.

Johnson died in New Lenox, Illinois at the Veterans Hospital, on July 5, 1929, penniless, estranged from his wife and family and without official recognition from the U.S. government. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Interest in obtaining fitting recognition for Johnson grew during the 1970s and 1980s. In November 1991 a monument was erected in Albany's Washington Park in his honor, and a section of Northern Boulevard was renamed Henry Johnson Boulevard.

In June 1996, Johnson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart by President Bill Clinton. In February 2003, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army’s second highest award, was presented to Herman A. Johnson, one of the Tuskegee Airmen, on behalf of his father. John Howe, a Viet Nam veteran who had campaigned tirelessly for recognition for Johnson, and US Army Major General Nathaniel James, President of the 369th Veterans Association, were present at the ceremony in Albany.[2][3]

In December 2004 the Postal facility at 747 Broadway was renamed the “United States Postal Service Henry Johnson Annex.” Work continues to upgrade his Distinguished Service Cross to the Medal of Honor.

On September 4, 2007 the City of Albany dedicated the Henry Johnson Charter School. Johnson's granddaughter was in attendance.

[edit] References
^ findagrave.com
^ Henry Johnson, Sergeant, United States Army at www.arlingtoncemetery.net
^ defenselink.mil
[edit] Notes
[edit] External links
Henry Lincoln Johnson at Find a Grave Retrieved on 2008-07-26
John Howe's presentation on Sergeant Henry Johnson
In search of the Medal of Honor, Sergeant Henry Lincoln JohnsonN
NY Army National Guard Hero Honored In Celebration of Black History Month
Henry Lincoln Johnson Sergeant, United States Army
[hide]v • d • eBuffalo Soldiers

Predecessors United States Colored Troops · Bureau of Colored Troops

Original Units 9th Cavalry Regiment · 10th Cavalry Regiment · 24th Infantry Regiment · 25th Infantry Regiment

Medal of Honor Recipients

Katie Washington

2010-05-07T07:58:00.001-07:00

Home Contact Calendar University of Notre DameNotre Dame NewsFriday, May 7, 2010
11:19 a.m. EDT - Light Rain, 54° F[ Live Look ]Home ND Newswire ND in the News Subscribe For the Media About ND News ND Newswire
Katie Washington named 2010 valedictorian
William G. Gilroy • Date: April 07, 2010
Posted In: Campus and Community
Katie Washington, a biological sciences major from Gary, Ind., has been named valedictorian of the 2010 University of Notre Dame graduating class and will present the valedictory address during Commencement exercises May 16 (Sunday) in Notre Dame stadium.

Washington, who earned a 4.0 grade point average, has a minor in Catholic Social Teaching. She has conducted research on lung cancer at the Cold Spring Harbor labs and performed genetic studies in the University’s Eck Institute for Global Health on the mosquito that carries dengue and yellow fever. She is the co-author of a research paper with David Severson, professor of biological sciences.

Washington directs the Voices of Faith Gospel Choir at Notre Dame, is a mentor/tutor for the Sister-to-Sister program at South Bend’s Washington High School and serves as the student coordinator of the Center for Social Concerns’ “Lives in the Balance: Youth Violence and Society Seminar.”

Upon graduation, Washington plans to pursue a joint M.D./Ph.D program at Johns Hopkins University.

The Commencement invocation will be offered by Emily Fyfe, a psychology and sociology major from Decatur, Ind., who will graduate with a 4.0 grade point average.
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Scholastic named Newsmagazine of the Year

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2010-05-07T07:47:00.000-07:00

Posted: May 7, 2010
Attorney General Eric Holder testifies on New York bomb suspect
Miranda rights not a hindrance, he says
BY PETE YOST and KIMBERLY DOZIER
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Comments (11) Recommend Print E-mail Letter to the editor Share Facebook Twitter FarkIt Digg Del.icio.us Reddit Newsvine
Buzz up!WASHINGTON -- Attorney General Eric Holder rejected the notion Thursday that reading Times Square bomb suspect Faisal Shahzad his Miranda rights hindered investigators, telling Congress that Shahzad's cooperation is ongoing and has provided useful information.

Lance Orton

2010-05-04T08:09:00.000-07:00

Times Square hero breaks silence
Street vendor says he wonders why no one else noticed smoke
Video

Times Square bomb hero speaks
May 3: Lance Orton, a street vendor in New York City, alerted police to the smoking SUV that turned out to be a failed car bomb. In an exclusive interview with TODAY, he reveals what made him concerned.
Today show

By Mike Celizic
TODAYshow.com contributor
updated 2:12 p.m. ET, Mon., May 3, 2010

Sometimes, people used to tell Lance Orton not to be such a busybody, but the Vietnam veteran and Times Square T-shirt salesman can’t help it. When he sees something wrong, he has to report it.

Nobody’s complaining about Orton now, not after he alerted a mounted policeman when he noticed smoke coming from a parked SUV in New York City Saturday evening. Inside the vehicle were the makings of a crude firebomb — propane tanks, gasoline, fireworks and alarm-clock detonators. The vendor is being hailed as a hero who may have saved uncounted lives through his alertness.

“People take it lightly,” Orton told TODAY’s Meredith Vieira and Matt Lauer on Monday. “I’ve had a few situations where I’ve told people about things; they say, ‘That’s nothing.’ But you can’t take that attitude.”

Story continues below ↓
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Orton was wounded in Vietnam and gets around with a cane. He said he was sitting next to his wares when he saw a Nissan Pathfinder parked with its emergency flashers on and its motor running. A small amount of smoke was coming out of it.

Video

NYC mayor: ‘Exploring a lot of leads’
May 3: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg discusses with TODAY’s Matt Lauer video that shows a man switching his shirt around the time of the Times Square bomb scare.
Today show

The hero vendor said he didn’t see who got out of the vehicle because of a performance on the other side of the street. “I was distracted by the crowd,” he said.

Alerting authorities
But then he saw the vehicle. “I wondered why nobody noticed it,” he said.

One of Orton’s helpers suggested calling 911. Orton said he pointed at mounted police officer Wayne Rhatigan, who was on duty in Times Square.

“There’s a patrolman right there on the horse. I asked one of my guys, ‘Go over there and grab that officer,’ ” Orton recalled. “He came over on horseback. He saw what I did. It was steadily getting worse.”

When popping noises and flashing sparks came from the car, Rhatigan quickly led police in, moving pedestrians to safety and clearing traffic so that the fire department and bomb squad could neutralize the bomb before it exploded.

“Whoever did this luckily did an amateur job,” Orton observed.

Brushing off interviews
Another vendor named Duane Jackson, 58, also noticed the smoking vehicle and alerted police. Jackson ended up doing numerous interviews and having dinner with Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Officer Rhatigan at a Times Square restaurant.

President Barack Obama also phoned Jackson to commend him for his vigilance and for acting quickly.

Video

DHS not ruling out terrorism in bomb scare
May 3: Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano says it’s premature to rule out any leads and that officials expect to know more about the Times Square bomb scare in the coming hours and days.
Today show

Orton brushed off pleas for interviews and passed on dinner with the mayor. He did agree to talk to TODAY, telling Lauer just before going on the air, “I could have been here playing a harp this morning.” Asked later how he felt, he said, “Glad to be here.”

Person of interest
Police have released a surveillance video showing a man who may be in his mid-40s taking a shirt off a short distance from the SUV, which was parked at West 45th Street and Broadway. He has a red shirt on underneath. The man glances in the direction of the SUV and walks off. Police have named the unidentified man as a person of interest.

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, in an earlier appearance on TODAY, said the man is not an official suspect. Although New York police have said the bomb was not the work of the Taliban or other foreign terrorists, Napolitano said nothing has been ruled out.

“Right now, every lead has to be pursued. I would caution against premature decisions one way or another,” Napolitano said. “The investigation now needs to take its course.”

“We’ve got to be very careful,” Bloomberg said. “There’s hundreds of tapes and there’s millions of people who come through Times Square.”

Of the man in the surveillance video, the mayor spoke cautiously. “Maybe he had something to do with it and maybe not.”

More on Times Square car bomb
NYC cops hunt man caught on film in bombing
Bomb’s ordinary ingredients a deadly threat
Pakistani Taliban chief promises U.S. attacks

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Times Square hero: ‘I wondered why nobody noticed’
Vendor Lance Orton talks exclusively to TODAY about alerting a policeman when he saw smoke coming from a parked SUV in New York City Saturday evening. Inside the vehicle were the makings of a crude firebomb, and his quick thinking may have saved lives.

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Duane Jackson

2010-05-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

.Heroic Times Square T-shirt vendor Lance Orton just 'an average guy'
BY Barry Paddock
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Monday, May 3rd 2010, 10:37 PM

Schwartz for NewsDuane Jackson and proud daughter Tiffany in Times Square Monday just days after Vietnam vet and handbag seller helped alert cops to car bomb. Jackson also got a call from President Obama. Take our PollTimes Square scare
Do you believe New York City is the No. 1 terrorist target in the U.S.?

Yes, because it is the No. 1 symbol of America.
No, it's no more of a target than D.C. or L.A.
It's hard to say.

Related NewsArticles
Murder down the freewayEnd Zone: Philip Schwalb's vision realized museumTimes Square vendors alerted cops to Times Square car bomb
Saving the day is all in thefamily for Lance Orton, the T-shirt vendor credited with first telling cops about the bomb-packed SUV parked in the heart of Times Square.

His sister is a disaster response expert: Dr. Gina Orton 54, of Virginia, works as a psychiatrist with the Justice Department, counseling law enforcement officers traumatized by the unthinkable.

"My brother could have been killed," Gina Orton said, "and socould have thousands of people. ... It's a horrifying thought."

She's not surprised her brother acted the way he did. After all, he did such a good job looking out for her when they were kids, why shouldn't he now be looking out for all New York?

"He defended me from a lot of dangers and problems," she said. "He was a shield to me, a protector."

Growing up in Wakefield, the Bronx, he walked her home from school every day to protect her from bullies.

"He's always looking out for other people," she said.

Her brother

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/05/04/2010-05-04_heroic_vendors_just_an_average_guy.html#ixzz0myQYyMIc

Katie Washington

2010-05-03T16:44:00.000-07:00

Home / News / Local News / Lake County News
Gary grad becomes Notre Dame's first black valedictorian
Katie Washington now has her sights set on Johns Hopkins University for her M.D./Ph.D.

StoryDiscussionBy Carmen McCollum - carmen.mccollum@nwi.com, (219) 662-5337 | Posted: Friday, April 9, 2010 12:05 am | (27) Comments

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Matt Cashore | Notre Dame Magazine | Katie Washington, of Gary, rehearses with the Voices of Faith Gospel Choir at the University of Notre Dame. Washington, a biological science major, will make history next month as the first black valedictorian at the university. .
..SOUTH BEND | Katie Washington, a biological science major from Gary, will make history next month as the first black valedictorian at the University of Notre Dame.

Washington will present the valedictory address during commencement exercises May 16 in Notre Dame stadium.

Rochelle Valsaint, chairwoman of the black alumni of Notre Dame, said Thursday that as far as she has been able to determine, Washington is the first black student to be named valedictorian.

"With the rigor of her studies, she has succeeded in being both dedicated and ambitious as well as socially adept," Valsaint said.

While university officials said they don't keep records of the valedictorians' race, university spokeswoman Julie Flory said, "I personally don't recall us having a black valedictorian before."

School officials, family and friends say Washington is well-rounded and has polished her leadership skills through research and volunteer activities. She practically grew up in her father's doctor's office in Gary.

She remembers being a little girl and getting dropped off from school with her bag filled with books, papers and pencils and sitting down to finish her homework. As she got older, she would go in with her father, William Washington, and visit some of the patients.

Washington also had a chance to see her mother, Jean Tomlin, using her healing skills as a nurse at the Women, Infants and Children program in Gary.

Katie Washington's brother Mark is completing his residency at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Her sister Terry is a nurse. Another brother, Navy veteran Vincent White, works for BP.

It's no wonder Washington, 21, is following in her family's footsteps.

Washington, who earned a 4.0 grade point average, also has a minor in Catholic social teaching. She has conducted research on lung cancer at the Cold Springs Harbor labs and performed genetic studies in the university's Eck Institute for Global Health on the mosquito that carries dengue and yellow fever. She is the co-author of a research paper with David Severson, professor of biological sciences.

Washington has been accepted at five different universities, including Harvard. She plans to pursue a joint M.D./Ph.D. at Johns Hopkins University.

"I am humbled. I am in a mode of gratitude and thanksgiving right now," she said by phone Thursday from Baltimore, where she was in meetings with Johns Hopkins officials.

"I have had so much support, people who really wanted to see that I reached my full potential. They all had my best interest at heart," Washington said.

Washington is not 100 percent sure of what kind of doctor she wants to be but said she plans to train as a physician scientist with the intention of treating patients with disease.

William Washington said he is impressed with his daughter and her plans.

"She's not in this for the money. She is committed to serve," he said.

Tomlin said her daughter never brought home anything less than an A throughout her school career.

"Katie works so hard," Tomlin said. "I told her when she went to Notre Dame, 'You are representing your family, your church and the city of Gary. Make us proud.'"

West Side High School Principal Judy Dunlap said she is thrilled with Washington's success.

"We are elated to have someone who was the valedictorian of her high school class go on to become the valedictorian of Notre Dame," Dunlap said. "It is a great honor not only for West Side but also for the city of Gary for this young lady to come out of Gary and continue on to Johns Hopkins University."

Washington was the West Side High School valedictorian in 2006.

Former English teacher Terri Ransom said Washington always has been interested in a variety of subjects, though science was her favorite.

"She is a very serious worker, very methodical," Ransom said. "She was always in the high-ability programs. She has a great sense of humor. She was on the swim team. She also liked speech and theater activities. She's a very good team player."

Gary school leaders said they are not just proud of Washington but also of her classmate Dominique Taylor, who will graduate from the University of Notre Dame.

Of her friend, Washington said she and Taylor have known each other since they were in second grade at the Banneker Achievement Center, and "she is a phenomenal young woman herself."

Posted in Lake on Friday, April 9, 2010 12:05 am Updated: 12:15 am. | Tags: Indiana, Gary, Nwslttr, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Notre Dame

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Stanley Hill

2010-05-03T15:38:00.000-07:00

new DC 37 officers, however, will receive the same inflated salaries as those dismissed in shame. Like Stanley Hill, Roberts will draw $250,000 a year. Mark Rosenthal, president of Motor Vehicle Operators Local 983 and the reformer who first blew the whistle on corruption, will earn $180,000 as DC 37 Treasurer on top of his $38,000 salary as local president

Katie Washington

2010-05-01T07:42:00.000-07:00

Notre Dame Gets its First Black Valedictorian | read this item Notre Dame Gets its First Black Valedictorian
*For the first time in the 168-year history of Notre Dame University, an African American has been crowned valedictorian.
“I am humbled,” said 21-year-old Gary, Indiana native Katie Washington to the Northwest Indiana Times. “I am in a mode of gratitude and thanksgiving right now.”
Washington has been accepted to five schools, including Harvard, but the biology [...]

Moorfield Story

2010-04-26T15:47:00.000-07:00

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Benjamin Davis attended the Air War College to advance his career. Unlike Davis who had to move to Alabama for his education, today's online degree programs give you great flexibility for advancing your education. If military studies interest you then consider these American Military Reviews to learn more about their programs. Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., was born December 18, 1912, in Washington, D. C. His father, Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., was one of two black combat officers in the US Army. Davis Senior's career was badly stunted by segregation. He opposed the practice as not only harmful to back soldiers, but also wasteful to the country. Young Ben Davis grew up inside his father's profession. From the beginning, he despised segregation and was determined to destroy it.

In a way, he did—performing so well and leading so effectively that the arguments used to prop up segregation in the Air Force were fatally undermined. He became the first African-American Air Force officer to achieve general's rank, retiring as a lieutenant general in 1970.

In 1991, he published his autobiography, and much about the man could be discerned in its simple title Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., American: An Autobiography.

The younger Davis wanted to fly. To fulfill that ambition, he set his sights on the US Military Academy. He earned an appointment in 1932 from Rep. Oscar S. De Priest (R-IL.), the only black Congressman at that time. Davis believed his classmates would accept him based on the content of his character and not reject him because of his race.

He was wrong about that. For four years he was shunned, meaning other cadets would only speak to him for official reasons. He had no roommate and took his meals in silence. Those who caused this had hoped to drive Davis from the Academy, but their actions only made him more determined to succeed. He graduated thirty-fifth out of 276 in the Class of 1936.

Davis was sure that he would be given the opportunity to fly because he was academically and physically qualified, but it was not to be—not then, anyway. He was turned down for flight training because there were no black units in the air service, and herefore he could not be accepted, despite his qualifications. Segregation was the barrier.

Continued Shunning
Davis's first assignment was to Ft. Benning, Ga., where he commanded the black service company. After a year, he was appointed to the Infantry School. In the two years Davis served at Benning, the nine Academy classmates also assigned there only talked to him in the line of duty. When Davis graduated from the Infantry School, he was qualified to be in an infantry unit but instead was sent to be a Reserve officers Training Corps instructor at Tuskegee Institute, Alabama, replacing a sergeant.
Davis, in his P-51B, led many World War II missions, including a memorable 1,600-mile bomber escort to Berlin on March 24, 1945. In 1953 he became the first African-American Air Force officer to achieve general's rank. (Photo - Benjamin Davis)
Davis was serving at Tuskegee in 1940 during the second reelection campaign of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt, determined to hold on to every group that had supported him in his two previous election victories, was especially worried about the black vote. To solidify his African-American support, he promoted the elder Benjamin Davis to brigadier general and ordered the Army Air Corps to create a black flying organization.

The Air Corps wanted a black Academy graduate to command the first unit. The younger Davis was the only living black West Point graduate and was ordered to begin training at Tuskegee AAF, Alabama. He clearly saw an opportunity to undermine segregation.

On March 7, 1942, Davis pinned on the silver wings of Army Air Forces pilots along with four other black officers. In time, they were joined by almost 1,000 Tuskegee Airmen.

In the spring of 1943, Davis and the 99th Fighter Squadron (first established as the 99th Pursuit Squadron) departed for North Africa to join the fight against the Axis. The Tuskegee Airmen carried with them the usual burdens borne by men about to enter combat but also the certain knowledge that upon their inexperienced shoulders rested the future of black Americans in aviation.

The 99th was attached for operations to the 33d Fighter Group in Tunisia. on June 2, 1943, the 99th, led by Davis, flew its first mission, attacking troops on Pantelleria island, an enemy position between North Africa and Sicily. About 90 days later, after the squadron had flown many combat missions under Davis's leadership, the 33d Group commander accused the Tuskegee Airmen of not having the same desire to fight as white pilots. He recommended removing the Tuskegee Airmen from combat. The general who reviewed the report endorsed it and commented that "the Negro type has not the proper reflexes to make a first-class fighter pilot."

Father and Son: West Point Cadet Davis, shown here with his father, Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., graduated near the top of the Academy Class of 1936, after four years of shunning by classmates. The career of the elder Davis had been stunted by segregation, an evil the son was determined to destroy. (Photo - Benjamin Davis)
Marshall's Wisdom
By the time this proposal surfaced in Washington, other black flying organizations were being created, among them the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Bombardment Group (Medium). However, Gen. George C. Marshall, the Chief of Staff of the Army, decided to study the issue, assigning review of the 99th to the War Department's permanent Advisory Committee on Negro Troop Policies. The committee, led by John J. McCloy, called on Davis to testify.

Davis said that on June 9, 1943, during one of its first missions, the 99th formation disintegrated when it was struck by a German fighter force twice its size. The Germans surprised the Americans by attacking from above and out of the sun.

Nobody, Davis argued, could cite another example of a Tuskegee Airmen formation crumbling, and in this single case, the men did not flee the battle but fought it out man-to-man against superior German aircraft. Davis maintained, moreover, that his men were as eager for combat as white pilots, flying more often because his squadron was undermanned and replacements were short. Sometimes his men flew six combat missions per day, more than white pilots.

Davis's testimony carried the day. The Advisory Committee recommended—and Marshall agreed—that the 99th should not be pulled from combat, the 332d Fighter Group should move overseas when trained, and the 477th Bombardment Group should be formed. It was a wise decision—in the next 18 months, the Tuskegee Airmen wrote an impressive record.

In January 1944, the 332d, equipped with P-39 Airacobras, began arriving in southern Italy. At the same time, the 99th, now commanded by Maj. George S. "Spanky" Roberts, was flying missions in support of the Anzio landings. On the morning of January 27, 15 Tuskegee Airmen Curtiss P-40s met a larger number of German Fw-190 fighters, shooting down six and damaging four others—a remarkable performance considering the mismatch in aircraft. That afternoon, the Tuskegee Airmen shot down three more Germans. on January 28, the black American pilots destroyed four German aircraft, and between February 5 and February 10, another four airplanes were downed by the Tuskegee Airmen. In that two-week stretch, the Tuskegee Airmen achieved a seven-to-one ratio of victories to losses .

In the spring of 1953, USAF assigned Davis as commander of the 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing, Suwon AB, South Korea. He thrived in this wartime assignment, supervising a wing of thousands of airmen, almost all of them white. (Photo - Benjamin Davis)

A few months after arriving in the theater, Davis was assigned to the bomber-escort mission. He saw this change as a clear opportunity to demonstrate the capabilities of black aviators and to further undermine segregation .

In June, the 99th Fighter Squadron joined the 332d, now equipped with P-47s, and a month later the 332d was given the P-51. Davis led the first escort mission, protecting B-24s bombing targets around Munich. That day, 39 P-47s held off more than 100 German fighters. At one point, Davis personally led a flight of eight P-47s attacking 18 Bf-109s, scattering the Germans and shooting down several. During that mission the Tuskegee Airmen shot down five fighters and damaged another.

Spectacular
Perhaps the most spectacular mission flown by the 332d was its mission on March 24, 1945, when Davis led the 332d on a 1,600-mile round trip escort mission to Berlin. on that day, the Tuskegee Airmen met numerous Fw-190s and at least 30 of the new German Me 262 jet aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen shot down three of the jets and damaged another six fighters. one of the Tuskegee Airmen was lost on this mission, but none of the bombers were lost, despite the fact that the Germans threw their latest and fastest fighters at the Americans .

Prior to March 24, only two Me 262s had been shot down by any Allied airmen, and on that day the third, fourth, and fifth were destroyed by the Tuskegee Airmen.

How good were they? Davis and his men had destroyed far more aircraft than they lost—shooting down 111 enemy aircraft and destroying 150 aircraft on the ground, while losing 66 aircraft to all causes in the US and combat zones. The Tuskegee Airmen had also shattered or disabled more than 600 boxcars and other rolling stock. They had sunk one destroyer (a unique achievement) and more than 40 other boats and barges .

Most importantly, the Tuskegee Airmen had not lost a bomber to an enemy fighter during 200 escort missions, totaling about 10,000 sorties into some of the Third Reich's most heavily defended areas. It was a tribute to their skill and to Davis's leadership. He made the 332d a disciplined fighter group that knew they performed their escort missions as well as any in the entire Air Corps.

In 1970, Davis retired as a lieutenant general, having worn the uniform for some 33 years. He continued to work, serving in various roles, including assistant secretary of transportation for safety and consumer affairs. Here in 1974 he talks with President Gerald Ford. (Photo - Benjamin Davis)

Davis returned to the US in April 1945, gaining command of the 477th Composite Group at Godman Field, Ky. He moved the 477th to Lockbourne AAB, Ohio, in 1946. He overcame local bigotry through his professionalism, and by the time the Air Force integrated in May 1949, his base had become a treasured part of the community.

In addition to commanding the flying unit at Lockbourne, Davis also served as base commander. Probably the most important aspect of his command was his relationship with whites on the base. Davis supported an Air National Guard fighter wing, a troop carrier squadron, and several other all-white Air Corps organizations, and the record shows only harmonious relations between the Tuskegee Airmen and their tenants.

Equally important, almost all of the civil servants then working at Lockbourne were white and all of their supervisors were black. Nowhere else in America could one find this situation. For centuries people said whites would never work for blacks, but at Lockbourne several hundred whites worked professionally and well for Davis and the Tuskegee Airmen.

Segregation was steadily undermined by Davis's performance, combined with the achievements of his 332d Fighter Group. When the Air Force separated from the Army in September 1947, Lt. Gen. Idwal H. Edwards, deputy chief of staff, personnel, directed a study of USAF racial segregation. He was aware of the unique success of the 332d (after 1947, the 332d Fighter Wing at Lockbourne AAB) during the war and its professional service after it.

The Big Step
Edwards recommended racial integration and convinced the Chief of Staff that such a reform would mean a better Air Force. His principal argument was that Davis and the Tuskegee Airmen had proved in war and peace that blacks could perform all jobs as well as whites. That fact alone was enough to undermine segregation, and the Air Force in 1949, became the first of the US armed services to integrate racially.

In the summer of 1949, Davis attended the Air War College, a key assignment because promotion beyond colonel depended upon attending war college. Before Davis did so, no black officer in any service had ever attended war college—segregation had barred such attendance.

Davis excelled, despite the fact that the Air War College was located on a base in Montgomery, Alabama, an area hostile to any African Americans who aspired to rise economically or professionally. The best restaurants, hotels, and housing in the city were closed to Davis and his wife, Aggie. He and Mrs. Davis could anger the bigots among Montgomery's whites just by driving a late-model automobile. Davis detested this treatment but tolerated it to graduate from the Air War College. Like many of the best in his class of 1950, Davis moved from the Air War College to the Pentagon, where he served at Headquarters USAF.

Soon after arriving in Washington, Davis was made chief of the Air Defense Branch of Air Force operations, a prestigious position in which he supervised white officers and enlisted men. So successful was Davis in his Pentagon position that in 1953, while the Korean War was still raging, the Air Force assigned him to take command of the 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing, Suwon AB, South Korea.

Davis thrived in this assignment, supervising a wing of thousands of airmen, almost all white. The Air Force learned that white airmen and officers would work loyally for a black commander, and the wing was as effective as any other Air Force unit in Asia. Having again demonstrated his skills as a commander, Davis was transferred to Japan, where he was appointed director of operations and training in Far East Air Forces. Three months later, he was promoted to brigadier general, the first black officer in the Air Force to achieve that grade.

Davis was soon reassigned to what proved to be his most significant postwar position—vice commander of 13th Air Force and commander of Air Task Force 13 (Provisional) at Taipei, Taiwan. He was to build a defensive air force from scratch, to deter Communist forces on mainland China from launching an air or sea attack on the Republic of China on Taiwan. In two years Davis built a formidable defensive air force.

Davis next moved to 12th Air Force in Germany and later became the deputy chief of staff for operations for US Air Forces in Europe. He returned to the US in 1961 as a major general and as USAF director of manpower and organization. He served in the Pentagon for four years, earning a third star, and moved in April 1965 to Korea to become chief of staff of the United Nations Command and US Forces Korea.

Davis succeeded in Korea and became commander of 13th Air Force in August 1967, taking command of more than 55,000 people all over Asia, including many thousands who were flying and fighting in the Vietnam War. Davis was responsible for the air defense of the Philippines as well. He held this post for a year.

Strike Command Days
Davis then moved back to the US, where he was assigned as deputy commander in chief of US Strike Command. No other assignment for Davis had such worldwide implications as this assignment, and he traveled widely to see for himself the conditions under which his men and women might have to fight.

After two years as the deputy commander in chief, in 1970, he retired from the Air Force. He had served more than 33 years on active duty and had been all around the world. He had excelled in every position, and he left the Air Force and the military service a much better institution than he had found it.

Davis was no longer in the Air Force, but his professional life was far from over. He became the director of public safety for Cleveland, Ohio, overseeing the city's fire and police departments. Later, Davis became director of civil aviation security and an assistant secretary at the US Department of Transportation.

When Davis joined the Army Air Forces, he was the only black officer and when the service integrated in 1949, there were only 375 black officers in the service (about 0.6 percent of the total number of officers). Today, (1996) there are about 4,000 black officers in the Air Force, almost six percent of the total. Davis can claim the largest portion of the credit for opening the doors to black men and women. None of his achievements mean as much to him as his role in bringing about the integration of the US Air Force.

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Col. Alan L. Gropman, USAF (Ret.), a department chairman at National Defense University, has published widely on the-topic of the Tuskegee Airmen and other subjects. His article for Air Force Magazine, "The Tuskegee Airmen," appeared in the March 1996 issue.
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Benjamin O. Davis

2010-04-26T15:39:00.000-07:00

2010-04-24T07:36:00.000-07:00

Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is a retired American boxer. He was the undisputed heavyweight champion and remains the youngest man ever to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles. He won the WBC title at just 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old, after defeating Trevor Berbick by a TKO in the second round. Throughout his career, Tyson became well-known for his ferocious and intimidating boxing style as well as his controversial behavior both inside and outside the ring.

He was the first ever heavyweight champion to hold the WBA, WBC and IBF titles simultaneously. Tyson is still considered, in his prime, to be amongst the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time.

Nicknamed "Kid Dynamite",[4] "Iron Mike",[2] Tyson won his first 19 professional bouts by knockout, 12 in the first round. He unified the belts in the splintered heavyweight division in the late 1980s to become undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. Tyson lost his title when he lost to 42-to-1 underdog Buster Douglas on February 11, 1990, in Tokyo, Japan, by KO in round 10.

In 1992, Tyson was convicted of sexually assaulting Desiree Washington, for which he served three years in prison. After being released from prison in 1995, he engaged in a series of comeback fights. He regained a portion of the heavyweight title, before losing it to Evander Holyfield in a 1996 fight by an 11th round TKO. Their 1997 rematch ended in shocking fashion as Tyson was disqualified for biting off part of Holyfield's ear. He fought for a championship again at 35, losing by knockout to Lennox Lewis in 2002. Tyson retired from competitive boxing in 2006 after two consecutive knockout losses to Danny Williams and Kevin McBride. Tyson declared bankruptcy in 2003, despite receiving over US$30 million for several of his fights and $300 million during his career.

He is ranked #16 on Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.[5]

Contents [hide]
1 Early years
2 Career
2.1 Amateur career
2.2 Rise to stardom
2.3 Undisputed champion
2.4 Controversy and upset
2.5 After Douglas
3 Rape conviction and prison
4 Comeback
5 The Tyson-Holyfield fights
5.1 Tyson vs. Holyfield I
5.2 Tyson vs. Holyfield II and aftermath
6 1999 to 2005
6.1 After Holyfield
6.2 Lewis vs. Tyson
6.3 Late career, bankruptcy and retirement
7 Exhibition tour
8 Legacy
9 After professional boxing
10 Personal life
11 In popular culture
12 Tyson documentary
13 Professional boxing record
14 Boxing championships and accomplishments
15 See also
16 References
17 External links

[edit] Early years
Tyson was born in Brooklyn, New York. He has a brother, Rodney, who is five years older than him. His sister, Denise, died of a heart attack aged 25 in 1991.[6] Tyson's father, Jimmy Kirkpatrick, abandoned his family when Tyson was 2, leaving his mother, Lorna Smith Tyson to care for them on her own.[1] The family lived in Bedford-Stuyvesant until their financial burdens necessitated a move to Brownsville when Tyson was 10 years old.[7] Smith died six years later, leaving 16-year-old Tyson in the care of boxing manager and trainer Cus D'Amato, who would become his legal guardian. Tyson has been quoted saying, "I never saw my mother happy with me and proud of me for doing something: She only knew me as being a wild kid running the streets, coming home with new clothes that she knew I didn't pay for. I never got a chance to talk to her or know about her. Professionally, it has no effect, but it's crushing emotionally and personally."[8] Throughout his childhood, Tyson lived in and around high-crime neighborhoods. He was repeatedly caught committing petty crimes and fighting those who ridiculed his high-pitched voice and lisp. By the age of 13, he had been arrested 38 times.[9] He ended up at the Tryon School for Boys in Johnstown, New York. It was at the school that Tyson's emerging boxing ability was discovered by Bobby Stewart, a juvenile detention center counselor and former boxer.[1] Stewart considered Tyson to be an outstanding fighter and trained him for a few months before introducing him to Cus D'Amato.[1]

Tyson was later removed from the reform school by Cus D'Amato.[10] Kevin Rooney also trained Tyson, and he occasionally assisted Teddy Atlas, who was dismissed by D'Amato when Tyson was 15. Rooney eventually took over all training duties for the young fighter.

Tyson's brother is a physician assistant in the trauma center of the Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center.[11] He has always been very supportive of his brother's career and was often seen at Tyson's boxing matches in Las Vegas, Nevada. When asked about their relationship, Mike has been quoted saying, "My brother and I see each other occasionally and we love each other," and "My brother was always something and I was nothing."[12]

[edit] Career
[edit] Amateur career
Tyson competed at the 1982 Junior Olympic Games, where he won a silver medal, after the loss in the finals against Petr Palecek, an amateur Czech boxer. He holds the Junior Olympic quickest knockout record with 8 seconds. In addition he won every bout at the Junior Olympic Games by knockout.

He fought Henry Tillman twice as an amateur losing both bouts by close decision. Tillman went on to win heavyweight Gold at the Los Angeles Olympics.

[edit] Rise to stardom
Tyson made his professional debut as an 18 year old on March 6, 1985, in Albany, New York. He defeated Hector Mercedes via a first round knockout.[1] He had 15 bouts in his first year as a professional. Fighting frequently, Tyson won 26 of his first 28 fights by KO/TKO - 16 in the first round.[13] The quality of his opponents gradually increased to journeyman fighters and borderline contenders,[13] like James Tillis, David Jaco, Jesse Ferguson, Mitch Green and Marvis Frazier. His win streak attracted media attention, leading to his being billed as the next great heavyweight champion. D'Amato died in November 1985, relatively early into Tyson's professional career; some speculate that his death was the genesis of many of the troubles Tyson was to experience later as his life and career progressed.[14]

Tyson's first nationally televised bout took place on February 16, 1986, at Houston Field House in Troy, New York against journeyman heavyweight Jesse Ferguson. Tyson knocked down Ferguson with an uppercut in the fifth round that broke Ferguson's nose.[15] During the sixth round, Ferguson began to hold and clinch Tyson in an apparent attempt to avoid further punishment. After admonishing Ferguson several times to obey his commands to box, the referee finally stopped the fight near the middle of the sixth round. Initially ruled a win for Tyson by disqualification (DQ) of his opponent, the ruling was subsequently "adjusted" as a win by technical knockout (TKO) after Tyson's corner protested that a DQ win would end Tyson's string of knockout victories, and that a knockout would have been the inevitable result. The rationale offered for the revised outcome was that the fight was actually stopped because Ferguson could not (rather than would not) continue boxing.

On November 22, 1986, Tyson was given his first title fight against Trevor Berbick for the World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight championship. Tyson won the title by second round TKO, and at the age of 20 years and 4 months became the youngest heavyweight champion in history.[16]

Because of Tyson's strength, many fighters were said to be too intimidated to hit him[17] and this was backed up by his outstanding hand speed, accuracy, coordination, power, and timing. Tyson was also noted for his defensive abilities.[18] Holding his hands high in the Peek-a-Boo style taught by his mentor Cus D'Amato, he slipped and weaved out of the way of the opponent's punches while closing the distance to deliver his own punches.[18] One of Tyson's trademark combinations was to throw a right hook to his opponent's body, then follow it up with a right uppercut to his opponent's chin; very few boxers would remain standing if caught by this combination. Boxers knocked down with this combination include Jesse Ferguson and Jose Ribalta.

[edit] Undisputed champion
Expectations for Tyson were extremely high, and he embarked on an ambitious campaign to fight all the top heavyweights in the world. Tyson defended his title against James Smith on March 7, 1987, in Las Vegas, Nevada. He won by unanimous decision and added Smith's World Boxing Association (WBA) title to his existing belt.[19] 'Tyson mania' in the media was becoming rampant.[20] He beat Pinklon Thomas in May with a knockout in the sixth round.[21] On August 1 he took the International Boxing Federation (IBF) title from Tony Tucker in a twelve round unanimous decision.[22] He became the first heavyweight to own all three major belts — WBA, WBC, and IBF — at the same time. Another fight in 1987 was in October that ended with a victory for Tyson by knockout in the seventh round, against 1984 Olympics Super Heavyweight Gold Medallist Tyrell Biggs.[23] Also in 1987, Nintendo released the video game, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, for its Nintendo Entertainment System.

Tyson had three fights in 1988. He faced Larry Holmes on January 22, 1988, and defeated the legendary former champion by a fourth round KO.[24] This was the only knockout loss Holmes suffered in 75 professional bouts. In March, Tyson then fought contender Tony Tubbs in Tokyo, Japan, fitting in an easy two-round victory amid promotional and marketing work.[25]

On June 27, 1988, Tyson faced Michael Spinks. Spinks, who had taken the heavyweight championship from Larry Holmes via a 15-round decision in 1985, had not lost his title in the ring but was not recognized as champion by the major boxing organizations. Holmes had previously given up all but the IBF title, and that was eventually stripped from Spinks after he elected to fight Gerry Cooney (winning by a 5th-round TKO) rather than IBF Number 1 Contender Tony Tucker, as the Cooney fight provided him a larger purse. However, Spinks did become the lineal champion by beating Holmes and many (including Ring magazine) considered him to have a legitimate claim to being the true heavyweight champion. The bout was, at the time, the richest fight in history and expectations were very high. Boxing pundits were predicting a titanic battle of styles, with Tyson's aggressive infighting conflicting with Spinks' skillful outfighting and footwork. The fight ended after 91 seconds when Tyson knocked Spinks out in the first round, many consider this to be the pinnacle of Tyson's fame and boxing ability.[26] Spinks, previously unbeaten, would never fight professionally again.

[edit] Controversy and upset
During this period, Tyson's problems outside boxing were also starting to emerge. His marriage to Robin Givens was heading for divorce,[27] and his future contract was being fought over by Don King and Bill Cayton.[28] In late 1988, Tyson fired longtime trainer Kevin Rooney, the man many credit for honing Tyson's craft after the death of D'Amato.[18] Without Rooney, Tyson's skills quickly deteriorated and he became more prone to looking for the one-punch knockout, rather than using the combinations that brought him to stardom.[29] He also began to head-hunt, neglecting to attack the opponent's body first.[30] In addition, he lost his defensive skills and began to barrel straight in toward the opponent, neglecting to jab and slip his way in.[31] In 1989, Tyson had only two fights amid personal turmoil. He faced the popular British boxer Frank Bruno in February in a fight where Bruno managed to stun Tyson at the end of the 1st round,[32] although Tyson went on to knock out Bruno in the fifth round. Tyson then knocked out Carl "The Truth" Williams in one round in July.[33] In 1989, Tyson was granted an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Central State University in Ohio.[34]

Mike Tyson in the ring, Las Vegas, Nevada (2006)By 1990, Tyson seemed to have lost direction, and his personal life and training habits were in disarray. In a fight on February 11, 1990, he lost the undisputed championship to Buster Douglas in Tokyo.[35] Tyson was a huge betting favourite, but Douglas (priced at 42/1) was at an emotional peak after losing his mother to a stroke 23 days prior to the fight, and fought the fight of his life.[35] Tyson failed to find a way past Douglas's quick jab that had a 12-inch (30 cm) reach advantage over his own. Tyson did send Douglas to the floor in the eighth round, catching him with an uppercut, but Douglas recovered sufficiently to hand Tyson a heavy beating in the subsequent two rounds (after the fight, the Tyson camp would complain that the count was slow and that Douglas had taken longer than ten seconds to get to his feet).[36] Just 35 seconds into the 10th round, Douglas unleashed a brutal combination of hooks that sent Tyson to the canvas for the first time in his career. He was counted out by referee Octavio Meyran.[35] Though Tyson has been reputed to have been out of shape for this fight, in fact he weighed in at 220 and 1/2 pounds, only 2 pounds more than he had weighed when he beat Michael Spinks 20 months earlier. Mentally, however, clearly he was not prepared for the inspired Douglas.[37]

The knockout victory by Douglas over Tyson, the previously undefeated "baddest man on the planet" and arguably the most feared boxer in professional boxing at that time, has been described as one of the most shocking upsets in modern sports history.[38]

[edit] After Douglas
After the loss, Tyson recovered by knocking out Henry Tillman[39] and Alex Stewart[40] in the first round in his next two fights. Tyson's victory over the 1984 Olympics Boxing Heavyweight gold medalist (and 1983 Boxing Heavyweight silver medalist of the Pan American Games) Tillman enabled Tyson to avenge his early career amateur losses at Tillman's hands. These bouts set up an elimination match for another shot at the undisputed world heavyweight championship, which Evander Holyfield had taken from Douglas in his first defense of the title.

Tyson, who was the #1 contender, faced #2 contender Donovan "Razor" Ruddock on March 18, 1991, in Las Vegas. Ruddock at the time was seen as the most dangerous heavyweight around and was thought of as one of the hardest punching heavyweights. Tyson and Ruddock went back and forth for most of the fight, until referee Richard Steele controversially stopped the fight during the seventh round in favor of Tyson. This decision infuriated the fans in attendance, sparking a post-fight melee in the audience and the referee had to be escorted from the ring.[41]

Tyson and Ruddock met again on June 28 that year, with Tyson knocking down Ruddock twice and winning a 12 round unanimous decision.[42] A fight between Tyson and Holyfield for the undisputed championship was arranged for the autumn of 1991.

[edit] Rape conviction and prison
The match between Tyson and reigning champion Holyfield did not occur, with Tyson pulling out of the scheduled November 8, 1991 title fight at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, with a rib cartilage injury sustained during training.

Tyson was arrested in July 1991 for the rape of 18-year-old Desiree Washington, Miss Black Rhode Island, in an Indianapolis hotel room. Tyson's rape trial took place in the Indianapolis courthouse from January 26 to February 10, 1992. As part of its case, the prosecution documented Tyson's history of problems with attractive young women. Tyson's defense contended that Tyson was the victim and that Washington was a cold and calculated vixen out to hurt Tyson for publicity reasons.

Desiree Washington testified that she received a phone call from Tyson at 1:36 am on July 19, 1991 inviting her to a party. Having joined Tyson in his limousine, Washington testified that Tyson made sexual advances towards her. She testified that upon arriving at his hotel room, Tyson pinned her down on his bed and raped her despite her pleas to stop. She afterwards ran out of the room and asked Tyson's chauffeur to drive her back to her hotel.

Partial corroboration of Washington's story came via testimony from Tyson's chauffeur, Virginia Foster, who confirmed Desiree Washington's state of shock. Further testimony came from Dr. Thomas Richardson, the emergency room physician who examined Washington more than 24 hours after the incident and confirmed that Washington's physical condition was consistent with rape.

Taking the witness stand, under Fuller's direct examination, Tyson claimed that everything had taken place with Washington's full cooperation and

Michael Jordan

2010-04-24T07:34:00.000-07:00

For other people named Michael Jordan, see Michael Jordan (disambiguation).
Michael Jordan
Chicago Bulls. Michael Jordan 1997
No. 23, 45, 9
Shooting guard
Personal information
Date of birth: February 17, 1963 (1963-02-17) (age 47)
Place of birth: Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
High school: Emsley A. Laney High School (Wilmington, North Carolina)
Listed height: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight: 215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
College: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
NBA Draft: 1984 / Round: 1 / Pick: 3
Selected by the Chicago Bulls
Pro career: 1984–2003
League: NBA
Career history
Chicago Bulls (1984–1993, 1995–1998)
Washington Wizards (2001–2003)

Career highlights and awards
6× NBA Champion (1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998)
5× NBA MVP (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998)
14× NBA All-Star (1985–1993, 1996–1998, 2002–2003)
6× NBA Finals MVP (1991–1993, 1996–1998)
NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1988)
10× All-NBA First Team Selection (1987–1993, 1996–1998)
All-NBA Second Team Selection (1985)
9× NBA All-Defensive First Team Selection (1988–1993, 1996–1998)
1985 NBA Rookie of the Year
1985 NBA All-Rookie Team
3× NBA All-Star Game MVP (1988, 1996, 1998)
2× NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner (1987, 1988)
2× Gold Medal Winner in the Olympics (1984, 1992)
NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
NCAA Men's Basketball Champion (1982)
2× Consensus NCAA All-American First Team (1983, 1984)
1982 ACC Freshman of the Year
ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year (1984)
USBWA College Player of the Year (1984)
Naismith College Player of the Year (1984)
John R. Wooden Award (1984)
Adolph Rupp Trophy (1984)
1991 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year
2000 ESPY Athlete of the Century
1990s ESPY Male Athlete Decade Award
1990s ESPY Pro Basketballer Decade Award

Career NBA statistics
Points 32,292
Assists 5,633
Steals 2,514
Info Page
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963) is a retired American professional basketball player, active businessman, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. His biography on the National Basketball Association (NBA) website states, "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time."[1] Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s.

After a standout career at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he led the Tar Heels to a National Championship in 1982, Jordan joined the NBA's Chicago Bulls in 1984. He quickly emerged as a league star, entertaining crowds with his prolific scoring. His leaping ability, illustrated by performing slam dunks from the free throw line in slam dunk contests, earned him the nicknames "Air Jordan" and "His Airness". He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball.[2] In 1991, he won his first NBA championship with the Bulls, and followed that achievement with titles in 1992 and 1993, securing a "three-peat". Although Jordan abruptly retired from basketball at the beginning of the 1993–94 NBA season to pursue a career in baseball, he rejoined the Bulls in 1995 and led them to three additional championships (1996, 1997, and 1998) as well as an NBA-record 72 regular-season wins in the 1995-96 NBA season. Jordan retired for a second time in 1999, but returned for two more NBA seasons in 2001 as a member of the Washington Wizards.

Jordan's individual accolades and accomplishments include five MVP awards, ten All-NBA First Team designations, nine All-Defensive First Team honors, fourteen NBA All-Star Game appearances, three All-Star Game MVP awards, ten scoring titles, three steals titles, six NBA Finals MVP awards, and the 1988 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. He holds the NBA records for highest career regular-season scoring average (30.12 points per game) and highest career playoff scoring average (33.4 points per game). In 1999, he was named the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century by ESPN, and was second to Babe Ruth on the Associated Press's list of athletes of the century. He was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame on April 6, 2009 and was inducted on September 11, 2009.[3]

Jordan is also noted for his product endorsements. He fueled the success of Nike's Air Jordan sneakers, which were introduced in 1985 and remain popular today.[4] Jordan also starred in the 1996 feature film Space Jam as himself. He is the majority owner and head of basketball operations for the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats, Jordan recently won a bidding war to buy controlling interest in the team from founding owner Robert L. Johnson.

Michael Jackson

2010-04-24T07:26:00.000-07:00

For other people named Michael Jackson, see Michael Jackson (disambiguation).
Michael Jackson

At the White House in 1984
Background information
Birth name Michael Joseph Jackson
Born August 29, 1958(1958-08-29)
Gary, Indiana, U.S.
Died June 25, 2009 (aged 50)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres Pop, rock, new jack swing, adult contemporary, gospel, R&B, soul, funk
Occupations Singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, dancer, choreographer, actor, peace activist, businessman, philanthropist
Instruments Vocals, piano, beatbox, guitar, bongos, drums
Years active 1964–2009
Labels Motown, Epic, Legacy
Associated acts The Jackson 5
Website www.michaeljackson.com
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer-songwriter, dancer, actor, choreographer, published poet, businessman, philanthropist and record producer. Referred to as the King of Pop, he is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records while also being regarded as one of the most influential..[1][2][3] His contribution to music, dance and fashion,[4][5] and a much-publicized personal life made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades.

Jackson made his debut alongside his brothers in 1964 as lead singer and youngest member of The Jackson 5. His solo career started in 1971. He produced ten studio albums. The 1982 album Thriller was and remains the best-selling album of all time, having sold more than 110 million copies worldwide. Four of his other albums, Off the Wall, Bad, Dangerous and HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I (best-selling double-album by a solo artist of all time) rank among the world's best-sellers making him the artist with the most best-selling albums. His 1997 release, Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix is the best-selling remix album of all time.

Jackson is credited with having elevated the music video from mere promotional tool into an art form. He created groundbreaking videos such as Billie Jean, Beat It and Thriller which often referred to and voted as the greatest music video of all time ,[6][7]it is the only music video inducted into the national film registry in the library of congress where inductions are preserved forever.[8] He was the first African American artist to amass a strong crossover following on MTV, it is stated that Jackson music videos made MTV and Cable TV the successes they are today.[9][10]He popularized a number of complicated dance techniques, such as the robot and the moonwalk. His distinctive musical style, vocal style, and choreography continue to transcend generational, racial and cultural boundaries.

Jackson has been inducted twelve times into various music halls of fame, more than any other act. He is one of the very few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. Other achievements include thirteen Guinness World Records[11][12][13][14] (more than any other artist, and including the Most Successful Entertainer of All Time); 15 Grammy Awards (including the Living Legend Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award); 26 American Music Awards (more than any other artist, and including recognition as Artist of the Century); 17 number-one singles in the US (including four as a member of The Jackson 5). He also has estimated global sales of over 780 million records,[15][16] making him one of the best-selling recording artists ever.[17] Jackson's personal life and relationships generated controversy for years. His appearance began to change in the mid 1970s, and his changing appearance was noticed from the late 1970s onwards, as changes to his nose and skin color caused much media speculation. In 1993 he was accused of child sexual abuse, though no formal charges were brought. In 2005 he was tried and acquitted of similar allegations.

Jackson died on June 25, 2009 from a drug overdose, amidst preparations for his This Is It concert series. Before his death, Jackson had reportedly been administered drugs such as propofol and lorazepam. The Los Angeles County Coroner concluded that his death was a homicide. Prosecutors formally charged his personal physician with involuntary manslaughter. Jackson's death triggered a global outpouring of grief, and was estimated that as many as a billion people around the world may have watched his public memorial service on live television.[18][19] On March 16, 2010, Sony Music Entertainment signed a record-breaking $250 million deal with Jackson's estate to retain distribution rights to his recordings until 2017 and release seven posthumous albums over the next decade.[20]

Contents [hide]
1 Life and career
1.1 Early life and The Jackson 5 (1958–1975)
1.2 Move to Epic and Off the Wall (1975–1981)
1.3 Thriller and Motown 25 (1982–83)
1.4 Pepsi, "We Are the World" and business career (1984–85)
1.5 Appearance, tabloids, Bad, autobiography and films (1986–87)
1.6 Autobiography, changing appearance and Neverland (1988–1990)
1.7 Dangerous, Heal the World Foundation, Poetry and Super Bowl XXVII (1991–93)
1.8 First child sexual abuse allegations and first marriage (1993-94)
1.9 HIStory, second marriage and fatherhood (1995–99)
1.10 Label dispute, Invincible and third child (2000–03)
1.11 Second child sexual abuse allegations (2003–05)
1.12 Final years and death (2006–09)
1.13 Posthumous works
2 Death and memorial
3 Artistry
3.1 Influences
3.2 Musical themes and genres
3.3 Vocal style
3.4 Music videos and choreography
3.5

Bill Russell

2010-04-21T16:26:00.000-07:00

This article is about the basketball player. For other uses, see William Russell.
Bill Russell

Russell in January 2005
Position(s) Center
Jersey #(s) 6
Listed height 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight 220 lb (100 kg)
Born February 12, 1934 (1934-02-12) (age 76)
Monroe, Louisiana
Career information
Year(s) 1956–1969
NBA Draft 1956 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2
College San Francisco
Professional team(s)
Boston Celtics (1956–1969)

Career stats (NBA)
Points 14,522
Rebounds 21,620
Assists 4,100
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Career highlights and awards
11× NBA Champion (1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969)
5× NBA MVP (1958, 1961–1963, 1965)
12× NBA All-Star (1958–1969)
3× All-NBA First Team Selection (1959, 1963, 1965)
8× All-NBA Second Team Selection (1958, 1960–1962, 1964, 1966–1968)
1× NBA All-Defensive First Team Selection (1969)
1× NBA All-Star Game MVP (1963)
NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
NBA 35th Anniversary Team
NBA 25th Anniversary Team

Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Coaching
Boston Celtics (1966–1969)
Seattle SuperSonics (1973–1977)
Sacramento Kings (1987–1988)

Olympic medal record
Men's basketball
Gold 1956 Melbourne Team competition
William Felton "Bill" Russell (born February 12, 1934) is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A five-time winner of the NBA Most Valuable Player Award and a twelve-time All-Star, Russell was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won eleven NBA Championships during Russell's thirteen-year career. Along with Henri Richard of the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadiens, Russell holds the record for the most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league. Before his professional career, Russell led the University of San Francisco to two consecutive NCAA championships (1955, 1956). He also won a gold medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics as captain of the U.S. national basketball team.[1]

Russell is widely considered one of the best players in NBA history. Listed as between 6'9" (2.06 m) and 6'10" (2.08 m), Russell's shot-blocking and man-to-man defense were major reasons for the Celtics' success. He also inspired his teammates to elevate their own defensive play. Russell was equally notable for his rebounding abilities. He led the NBA in rebounds four times and tallied 21,620 total rebounds in his career. He is one of just two NBA players (the other being prominent rival Wilt Chamberlain) to have grabbed more than fifty rebounds in a game. Though never the focal point of the Celtics' offense, Russell also scored 14,522 career points and provided effective passing.

Playing in the wake of pioneers like Earl Lloyd, Chuck Cooper, and Ray Felix, Russell was the first African American player to achieve superstar status in the NBA. He also served a three-season (1966–69) stint as player-coach for the Celtics, becoming the first African American NBA coach.[1] Frequent battles with racism left Russell with a long-standing contempt of fans and journalists. When he retired, Russell left Boston with a bitter attitude, although in recent years his relationship with the city has improved.

Russell is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was selected into NBA 25th Anniversary Team in 1971, into NBA 35th Anniversary Team in 1980 and named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996, one of only four players that selected into all three teams. In 2007, he was enshrined in the FIBA Hall of Fame. In 2009, the NBA announced that the NBA Finals MVP trophy would be named the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award in honor of Russell.[2]

Contents [hide]
1 Early years
2 College career
3 1956 NBA Draft
4 1956 Olympics
5 Professional career
5.1 1956–59
5.2 1959–66
5.3 1966–69
5.4 Post-player career
6 Coaching record
7 Accomplishments and legacy
8 Personal life
8.1 Personality
8.2 Russell-Chamberlain rivalry
8.3 Racist abuse, controversy and reconciliation
9 Books
10 Further reading
11 References
12 External links

[edit] Early years
Bill Russell was born to Charles and Katie Russell in West Monroe, Louisiana. West Monroe was strictly segregated, and the Russells often struggled with racism.[3] Once, Russell's father was refused service at a gasoline station until the staff had taken care of all the white customers. When his father attempted to leave and find a different station, the attendant stuck a shotgun in his face, threatening to kill him unless he stayed and waited his turn.[3] At another time, Russell's mother was walking outside in a fancy dress when a policeman accosted her. He told her to go home and remove the dress, which he described as "white woman’s clothing".[3] Because large numbers of blacks were moving to Oakland, California during WWII to look for work there, Russell's father moved the family out of Louisiana when Russell was eight years old and settled them in Oakland.[3] While there the family fell into poverty, and Russell spent his childhood living in a series of project homes.[3]

Charlie Russell is described as a "stern, hard man" who was initially a janitor in a paper factory (a typical low paid, intellectually unchallenging "Negro Job", as sports journalist John Taylor commented),[4] but later became a trucker when World War II broke out.[4] Being closer to his mother Katie than to his father,[4] Russell received a major emotional blow when she suddenly died when he was 12. His father gave up his trucking job and became a steel worker to be closer to his semi-orphaned children.[4] Russell has stated that his father became his childhood hero, later followed up by Minneapolis Lakers superstar George “Mr. Basketball” Mikan, whom he met when he was in high school.[5]

In his early years, Russell struggled to develop his skills as a basketball player. Although Russell was a good runner and jumper and had extremely large hands,[4] he simply did not understand the game and was cut from the team in junior high school. As a sophomore at McClymonds High School, Russell was almost cut again.[6] However, coach George Powles saw Russell's raw athletic potential and encouraged him to work on his fundamentals.[4] Russell, who was used to racist abuse, was delighted by the warm words of his white coach. He worked hard and used the benefits of a growth spurt to become a decent basketballer, but it was not until his junior and senior years that he began to excel.[6] Russell soon became noted for his unusual style of defense. He later recalled, "To play good defense... it was told back then that you had to stay flatfooted at all times to react quickly. When I started to jump to make defensive plays and to block shots, I was initially corrected, but I stuck with it, and it paid off."[7]

One of Russell's high school teammates was future Baseball Hall-of-Famer Frank Robinson.

[edit] College career
Russell was ignored by college scouts and did not receive a single letter of interest until Hal DeJulio from the local University of San Francisco (USF) watched him in a high school game. DeJulio was not impressed by Russell's meager scoring and "atrocious fundamentals",[8] but sensed that the young center had an extraordinary instinct for the game, especially in clutch situations.[8] When DeJulio offered Russell a scholarship, the latter eagerly accepted.[6] Sports journalist John Taylor described it as a watershed in Russell's life, because Russell realized that basketball was his one chance to escape poverty and racism; as a consequence, Russell swore to make the best of it.[4]

At USF, Russell became the new starting center for coach Phil Woolpert. Woolpert emphasized defense and deliberate half-court play, concepts that favored defensive standout Russell.[9] Woolpert was unaffected by issues of skin color. In 1954, he became the first coach of a major college basketball squad to start three African American players: Russell, K.C. Jones and Hal Perry.[10] In his USF years, Russell used his relative lack of bulk to develop a unique style of defense: instead of purely guarding the opposing center, he used his quickness and speed to play help defense against opposing forwards and aggressively challenge their shots.[9] Combining the stature and shot-blocking skills of a center with the foot speed of a guard, Russell became the centerpiece of a USF team that soon became a force in college basketball. After USF kept Holy Cross star Tom Heinsohn scoreless in an entire half, Sports Illustrated wrote, "If [Russell] ever learns to hit the basket, they're going to have to rewrite the rules."[9]

However, the games were often difficult for the USF squad. Russell and his African American teammates became targets of racist jeers, particularly on the road.[11] In one notable incident, hotels in Oklahoma City refused to admit Russell and his black teammates while they were in town for the 1954 All-College Tournament. In protest, the whole team decided to camp out in a closed college dorm, which was later called an important bonding experience for the group.[10] Decades later, Russell explained that his experiences hardened him against abuse of all kinds. "I never permitted myself to be a victim," he said.[12][13]

On the hardwood, his experiences were far more pleasant. Russell led USF to NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956, including a string of 55 consecutive victories. He became known for his strong defense and shot-blocking skills, once denying 13 shots in a game. UCLA coach John Wooden called Russell "the greatest defensive man I've ever seen".[10] During his college career, Russell averaged 20.7 points per game and 20.3 rebounds per game.[1] Besides basketball, Russell represented USF in track and field events. He competed in the 440 yard (402 m) race, which he could complete in 49.6 seconds.[14] He also participated in the high jump; Track & Field News ranked him as the seventh-best high jumper in the world in 1956. That year, Russell won high jump titles at the Central California AAU meet, the Pacific AAU meet, and the West Coast Relays. One of his highest jumps occurred at the West Coast Relays, where he achieved a mark of 6 feet 9¼ inches (2.06 m).[15]

After his years at USF, the Harlem Globetrotters invited Russell to join their exhibition basketball squad. Russell, who was sensitive to any racial prejudice, was enraged by the fact that owner Abe Saperstein would only discuss the matter with Woolpert. While Saperstein spoke to Woolpert in a meeting, Globetrotters assistant coach Harry Hanna tried to entertain Russell with jokes. The USF center was livid after this snub and declined the offer: he reasoned that if Saperstein was too smart to speak with him, then he was too smart to play for Saperstein. Instead, Russell made himself eligible for the 1956 NBA Draft.[16]

[edit] 1956 NBA Draft
In the 1956 NBA Draft, Boston Celtics coach Red Auerbach had set his sights on Russell, thinking his defensive toughness and rebounding prowess were the missing pieces the Celtics needed.[1] In perspective, Auerbach’s thoughts were unorthodox. In that period, centers and forwards were defined by their offensive output, and their ability to play defense was secondary.[17] However, Boston's chances of getting Russell seemed slim. Because the Celtics had finished second in the previous season and the worst teams had the highest draft picks, the Celtics had slipped too low in the draft order to pick Russell. In addition, Auerbach had already used his territorial pick to acquire talented forward Tom Heinsohn. But Auerbach knew that the Rochester Royals, who owned the first draft pick, already had a skilled rebounder in Maurice Stokes, were looking for an outside shooting guard and were unwilling to pay Russell the $25,000 signing bonus he requested.[18] The St. Louis Hawks, who owned the second pick, originally drafted Russell, but were vying for Celtics center Ed Macauley, a six-time All-Star who had roots in St. Louis. Auerbach agreed to trade Macauley, who had previously asked to be traded to St. Louis in order to be with his sick son, if the Hawks gave up Russell. However the owner of St Louis called Auerbach later and demanded more in the trade. Not only did he want Macauley, who was the Celtics premier player at the time, he wanted Cliff Hagan, who had been serving in the military for three years and had not yet played for the Celtics. After much debate, Auerbach agreed to give up Hagan, and the Hawks made the trade.[19] During that same draft, Boston also claimed guard K.C. Jones, Russell's former USF teammate. Thus, in one night, the Celtics managed to draft three future Hall of Famers: Russell, K.C. Jones and Heinsohn.[1] The Russell draft-day trade was later called one of the most important trades in the history of North American sports.[18]

[edit] 1956 Olympics
Before his NBA rookie year, Russell was the captain of the U.S. national basketball team that competed at the 1956 Olympic tournament. Avery Brundage, head of the International Olympic Committee, argued that Russell had already signed a professional contract and thus was no longer an amateur, but Russell prevailed.[18] He had the option to skip the tournament and play a full season for the Celtics, but he was determined to play in the Olympics. He later commented that he would have participated in the high jump if he had been snubbed by the basketball team.[5] Under coach Gerald Tucker, Russell helped the national team win the gold medal in Melbourne, defeating the Soviet Union 89–55 in the final game. The United States dominated the tournament, winning by an average of 53.5 points per game. Russell led the team in scoring, averaging 14.1 points per game for the competition. His Celtics teammate K.C. Jones joined him on the Olympic squad and contributed 10.9 points per game.[20]

[edit] Professional career
[edit] 1956–59
Russell could not join the Celtics for the 1956–57 season until December, due to his Olympic commitment. After rejoining the Celtics, Russell played 48 games, averaging 14.7 points per game and a league-high 19.6 rebounds per game.[21] During this season, the Celtics featured six future Hall-of-Famers: center Russell, forwards Heinsohn and Jim Loscutoff, guards Bill Sharman and Bob Cousy, and forward Frank Ramsey, who came off the bench. (K.C. Jones did not play for the Celtics until 1958 because of military service.)[22]

Russell's first Celtics game came on December 22, 1956 against the St. Louis Hawks, led by star forward Bob Pettit, who held several all-time scoring records.[23] Auerbach assigned Russell to shut down St. Louis's main scorer, and the rookie impressed the Boston crowd with his man-to-man defense and shot-blocking.[23] In previous years, the Celtics had been a high-scoring team, but lacked the defensive presence needed to close out tight games. However, with the added defensive presence of Russell, the Celtics had laid the foundation for a dynasty. The team utilized a strong defensive approach to the game, forcing opposing teams to commit many turnovers, which led to many easy fast break points.[23] Russell was an elite help defender who allowed the Celtics to play the so-called "Hey, Bill" defense: whenever a Celtic requested additional defensive help, he would shout "Hey, Bill!" Russell was so quick that he could run over for a quick double team and make it back in time if the opponents tried to find the open man.[23] He also became famous for his shot-blocking skills: pundits called his blocks "Wilsonburgers", referring to the Wilson NBA basketballs he "shoved back into the faces of opposing shooters".[23] This skill also allowed the other Celtics to play their men aggressively: if they were beaten, they knew that Russell was guarding the basket.[23] This approach allowed the Celtics to finish with a 44–28 regular season record, the team's second-best record since beginning play in the 1946–47 season, and guaranteed a post-season appearance.[24]

However, Russell also received negative attention. Constantly provoked by New York Knicks center Ray Felix during a game, he complained to coach Auerbach. The latter told him to take matters into his own hands, so after the next provocation, Russell punched Felix unconscious, paid a 25-dollar fine and was no longer a target of cheap fouls.[23] With his teammates, Russell had a cordial relationship, with the notable exception of fellow rookie and old rival Heinsohn. Heinsohn felt that Russell resented him because the former was named the 1957 NBA Rookie of the Year: many people thought that Russell was more important, but Russell also had only played half the season. Russell also ignored Heinsohn's plea to give his cousin an autograph, and openly said to Heinsohn that he deserved half of his 300-dollar Rookie of the Year check. The relationship between the two rookies remained reserved.[25] On the other hand, despite their different ethnic backgrounds and lack of common off-court interests, his relationship with Celtics point guard and fan favorite Bob Cousy was amicable.[26]

In Game 1 of the Eastern Division Finals, the Celtics met the Syracuse Nationals, who were led by Dolph Schayes. In Russell's first NBA playoff game, he finished with 16 points and 31 rebounds, along with a reported 7 blocks. (At the time, blocks were not yet an officially registered statistic.) After the Celtics' 108–89 victory, Schayes quipped, “How much does that guy make a year? It would be to our advantage if we paid him off for five years to get away from us in the rest of this series.”[17] The Celtics swept the Nationals in three games to earn the franchise's first appearance in the NBA Finals.[27]

In the NBA Finals, the Celtics met the St. Louis Hawks, who were again led by Bob Pettit, as well as former Celtic Ed Macauley. The teams split the first six games, and the tension was so high that, in Game 3, Celtics coach Auerbach punched his colleague Ben Kerner and received a $300 fine.[25] In the highly competitive Game 7, Russell tried his best to slow down Pettit, but it was Heinsohn who scored 37 points and kept the Celtics alive.[25] However, Russell contributed by completing the famous “Coleman Play”. Here, Russell ran down Hawks guard Jack Coleman, who had received an outlet pass at midcourt, and blocked his shot despite the fact that Russell had been standing at his own baseline when the ball was thrown to Coleman. The block preserved Boston's slim 103–102 lead with 40-odd seconds left to play in regulation, saving the game for the Celtics.[17] In the second overtime, both teams were in serious foul trouble: Heinsohn had fouled out, and the Hawks were so depleted that they had only 7 players left.[25] With the Celtics leading 125–123 with one second left, the Hawks had the ball at their own baseline. Reserve guard Alex Hannum threw a long alley oop pass to Pettit, and Pettit's tip-in rolled indecisively on the rim for several seconds before rolling out again. The Celtics won, earning their first NBA Championship.[25]

In the 1957–58 season, Russell averaged 16.6 points per game and a league-record average of 22.7 rebounds per game.[21] An interesting phenomenon began that year: Russell was voted the NBA Most Valuable Player, but only named to the All-NBA Second Team. This would occur repeatedly throughout his career. The NBA reasoned that other centers were better all-round players than Russell, but no player was more valuable to his team. The Celtics won 49 games and easily made the first berth in the 1958 NBA Playoffs, and made the 1958 NBA Finals against their familiar rivals, the St. Louis Hawks.[28] The teams split the first two games, but then Russell went down with a foot injury in Game 3 and could no longer participate in the playoffs. The Celtics surprisingly won Game 4, but the Hawks prevailed in Games 5 and 6, with Pettit scoring 50 points in the deciding Game 6.[28]

In the following 1958–59 season, Russell continued his strong play, averaging 16.7 points per game and 23.0 rebounds per game in the regular season.[21] The Celtics broke a league record by winning 52 games, and Russell's strong performance once again helped lead the Celtics through the post-season, as they returned to the NBA Finals. In the 1959 NBA Finals, the Celtics recaptured the NBA title, sweeping the Minneapolis Lakers 4–0.[29] Lakers head coach John Kundla praised Russell, stating, “We don’t fear the Celtics without Bill Russell. Take him out and we can beat them... He’s the guy who whipped us psychologically.”[17]

[edit] 1959–66
In the 1959–60 season, the NBA witnessed the debut of legendary 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) Philadelphia Warriors center Wilt Chamberlain, who averaged an unprecedented 37.6 points per game in his rookie year.[30] On November 7, 1959, Russell's Celtics hosted Chamberlain's Warriors, and pundits called the matchup between the best offensive and best defensive center "The Big Collision" and "Battle of the Titans".[31] Both men awed onlookers with "nakedly awesome athleticism",[31] and while Chamberlain outscored Russell 30 to 22, the Celtics won 115–106, and the match was called a "new beginning of basketball".[31] The matchup between Russell and Chamberlain, the greatest defensive and offensive centers in the NBA, respectively, became one of basketball's greatest rivalries.[1] In that season, Russell's Celtics won a record 59 regular season games (including a then-record tying 17 game win streak) and met Chamberlain's Warriors in the Eastern Division Finals. Chamberlain outscored Russell by 81 points in the series, but the Celtics walked off with a 4–2 series win.[32] In the 1960 Finals, the Celtics outlasted the Hawks 4–3 and won their third championship in four years.[24] Russell grabbed an NBA Finals-record 40 rebounds in Game 2, and added 22 points and 35 rebounds in the deciding Game 7, a 122–103 victory for Boston.[1][17]

In the 1960–61 season, Russell averaged 16.9 points and 23.9 rebounds per game,[21] leading his team to a regular season mark of 57–22. The Celtics earned another post-season appearance, where they defeated the Syracuse Nationals 4–1 in the Eastern Division Finals. The Celtics made good use of the fact that the Los Angeles Lakers had exhausted St. Louis in a long seven-game Western Conference Finals, and the Celtics convincingly won in five games.[33][34]

The following season, Russell scored a career-high 18.9 points per game, accompanied by 23.6 rebounds per game.[21] While his rival Chamberlain had a record-breaking season of 50.4 points per game and a 100-point game,[30] the Celtics became the first team to win 60 games in a season, and Russell was voted as the NBA's Most Valuable Player. In the post-season, the Celtics met the Philadelphia Warriors of Chamberlain, and Russell did his best to slow down the 50-points-per-game scoring Warriors center. In Game 7, the game was tied with two seconds left when Sam Jones sank a clutch shot that won the Celtics the series. In the 1962 NBA Finals, the Celtics met the Los Angeles Lakers of star forward Elgin Baylor and star guard Jerry West. The teams split the first six games, and Game 7 was tied one second before the end of regular time when Lakers guard Rod Hundley faked a shot and instead passed out to Frank Selvy, who missed an open eight-foot last-second shot that would have won L.A. the title.[35] Though the game was tied, Russell had the daunting task of defending against Baylor with little frontline help, as the three best Celtics forwards, Loscutoff, Heinsohn and Tom Sanders, had fouled out. In overtime, Baylor fouled out the fourth forward, Frank Ramsey, so Russell was completely robbed of his usual four-men wing rotation. But Russell and little-used fifth forward Gene Guarilia successfully pressured Baylor into missed shots.[35][36] Russell finished with a clutch performance, scoring 30 points and tying his own NBA Finals record with 40 rebounds in a 110–107 overtime win.[17]

The Celtics lost playmaker Bob Cousy to retirement after the 1962–63 season, but they drafted John Havlicek. Once again, the Celtics were powered by Russell, who averaged 16.8 points and 23.6 rebounds per game, won his fourth regular-season MVP title, and earned MVP honors at the 1963 NBA All-Star Game following his 19 point, 24 rebound performance for the East.[21] The Celtics reached the 1963 NBA Finals, where they again defeated the Los Angeles Lakers, this time in six games.[37]

In the following 1963–64 season, the Celtics posted a league-best 58–22 record in the regular season. Russell scored 15.0 ppg and grabbed a career-high 24.7 rebounds per game, leading the NBA in rebounds for the first time since Chamberlain entered the league.[21] Boston defeated the Cincinnati Royals 4–1 to earn another NBA Finals appearance, and then won against Chamberlain's newly-relocated San Francisco Warriors 4–1.[38] It was their sixth consecutive and seventh title in Russell's eighth year, a streak unreached in any U.S. professional sports league. Russell later called the Celtics' defense the best of all time.[1]

Russell again excelled during the 1964–65 season. The Celtics won a league-record 62 games, and Russell averaged 14.1 points and 24.1 rebounds per game, winning his second consecutive rebounding title and his fifth MVP award.[21] In the 1965 NBA Playoffs, the Celtics played the Eastern Division Finals against the Philadelphia 76ers, who had recently traded for Wilt Chamberlain. Russell held Chamberlain to a pair of field goals in the first three quarters of Game 3. In Game 5, Russell contributed 28 rebounds, 10 blocks, seven assists and six steals.[17] However, that playoff series ended in a dramatic Game 7. Five seconds before the end, the Sixers were trailing 110–109, but Russell turned over the ball. However, when the Sixers’ Hall-of-Fame guard Hal Greer inbounded, John Havlicek stole the ball, causing Celtics commentator Johnny Most to scream: “Havlicek stole the ball! It's all over! Johnny Havlicek stole the ball!”[1] After the Division Finals, the Celtics had an easier time in the NBA Finals, winning 4–1 against the Los Angeles Lakers of Jerry West and Elgin Baylor.[39]

Russell defending Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia 76ersIn the following 1965–66 season, the Celtics won their eighth consecutive title. Russell’s team again beat Chamberlain’s Philadelphia 76ers 4 games to 1 in the Division Finals, proceeding to win the NBA Finals in a tight seven-game showdown against the Los Angeles Lakers.[40] During the season, Russell contributed 12.9 points and 22.8 rebounds per game. This was the first time in seven years that he failed to average at least 23 rebounds a game.[21]

[edit] 1966–69
Before the 1966–67 season, Celtics coach Red Auerbach retired. Initially, he had wanted his old player Frank Ramsey as coach, but Ramsey was too occupied running his three lucrative nursing homes.[41] His second choice Bob Cousy declined, stating he did not want to coach his former teammates,[41] and the third choice Tom Heinsohn also said no, because he did not think he could handle the often surly Russell.[41] However, Heinsohn proposed Russell himself as a player-coach, and when Auerbach asked his center, he said yes.[41] Russell thus became the first African American head coach in NBA history,[1] and commented to journalists: "I wasn't offered the job because I am a Negro, I was offered it because Red figured I could do it."[41] The Celtics’ championship streak ended that season at eight, however, as Wilt Chamberlain's Philadelphia 76ers won a record-breaking 68 regular season games and overcame the Celtics 4–1 in the Eastern Finals.[42] The Sixers simply outpaced the Celtics, shredding the famous Boston defense by scoring 140 points in the clinching Game 5 win.[43] Russell acknowledged his first real loss in his career (he had been injured in 1958 when the Celtics lost the NBA Finals) by visiting Chamberlain in the locker room, shaking his hand and saying, "Great".[43] However, the game still ended on a high note for Russell. After the loss, he led his grandfather through the Celtics locker rooms, and the two saw white Celtics player John Havlicek taking a shower next to his black teammate Sam Jones and discussing the game. Suddenly, Russell Sr. broke down crying. Asked by his grandson what was wrong, his grandfather replied how proud he was of him, being coach of an organization in which blacks and whites coexisted in harmony.[43]

In Russell's penultimate season, the 1967–68 season, his numbers slowly declined, but at age 34, he still tallied 12.5 points per game and 18.6 rebounds per game[21] (the latter good for the third highest average in the league).[44] In the Eastern Division Finals, the 76ers had the better record than the Celtics and were slightly favored. But then, national tragedy struck as Martin Luther King was assassinated on April 4, 1968. With eight of the ten starting players on Sixers and Celtics being African American, both teams were in deep shock, and there were calls to cancel the series.[45] In a game called as "unreal" and "devoid of emotion", the Sixers lost 127–118 on April 5. In Game 2, Philadelphia evened the series with a 115–106 win, and in Games 3 and 4, the Sixers won, with Chamberlain suspiciously often defended by Celtics backup center Wayne Embry, causing the press to speculate Russell was worn down.[45] Prior to Game 5, the Celtics seemed dead: no NBA team had ever come back from a 3–1 deficit.[45] However, the Celtics rallied back, winning Game 5 122–104 and Game 6 114–106, powered by a spirited Havlicek and helped by a terrible Sixers shooting slump.[45] In Game 7, 15,202 stunned Philadelphia fans witnessed a historic 100–96 defeat, making it the first time in NBA history a team lost a series after leading 3–1. Russell limited Chamberlain to only two shot attempts in the second half.[17] Despite this, the Celtics were leading only 97–95 with 34 seconds left when Russell closed out the game with several consecutive clutch plays. He made a free throw, blocked a shot by Sixers player Chet Walker, grabbed a rebound off a miss by Sixers player Hal Greer, and finally passed the ball to teammate Sam Jones, who scored to clinch the win. Boston then beat the Los Angeles Lakers 4–2 in the NBA Finals, giving Russell his tenth title in 12 years.[1] For his efforts Russell was named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year. After losing for the fifth straight time against Russell and his Celtics, Hall-of-Fame Lakers guard Jerry West stated, “If I had a choice of any basketball player in the league, my No.1 choice has to be Bill Russell. Bill Russell never ceases to amaze me.”[17]

However, in the 1968–69 season, Russell seemed to reach a breaking point. Shocked by the murder of Robert F. Kennedy, disillusioned by the Vietnam War, and weary from his increasingly stale (and later divorced) marriage to his wife Rose, he was convinced that the U.S. was a corrupt nation and that he was wasting his time playing something as superficial as basketball.[46] He was 15 pounds overweight, skipped mandatory NBA coach meetings and was generally lacking energy: after a New York Knicks game, he complained of intense pain and was diagnosed with acute exhaustion.[46] Russell pulled himself together and put up 9.9 points and 19.3 rebounds per game,[21] but the aging Celtics stumbled through the regular season. Their 48–34 record was the team's worst since 1955–56, and they entered the playoffs as only the fourth-seeded team in the East.[47] In the playoffs, however, Russell and his Celtics achieved upsets over the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks to earn a meeting with the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. L.A. now featured new recruit Wilt Chamberlain next to perennial stars Baylor and West, and were heavily favored. In the first two games, Russell ordered not to double-team West, who used the freedom to score 53 and 41 points in the Game 1 and 2 Laker wins.[48] Russell then ordered to double-team West, and Boston won Game 3. In Game 4, the Celtics were trailing by one point with seven seconds left and the Lakers having the ball, but then Baylor stepped out of bounds, and in the last play, Sam Jones used a triple screen by Bailey Howell, Larry Siegfried and Havlicek and hit a buzzer beater which equalized the series.[48] The teams split the next two games, so it all came down to Game 7 in L.A., where Lakers owner Jack Kent Cooke angered and motivated the Celtics by putting "proceedings of Lakers victory ceremony" on the game leaflets. Russell used a copy as extra motivation and told his team to play a running game, because in that case, not the better, but the more determined team was going to win.[48]

The Celtics were ahead by nine points with five minutes remaining; in addition, West was heavily limping after a Game 5 thigh injury and Chamberlain had left the game with an injured leg.[48] West then hit one basket after the other and cut the lead to one, and Chamberlain asked to return to the game. However, Lakers coach Bill van Breda Kolff kept Chamberlain on the bench until the end of the game, saying later that he wanted to stay with the lineup responsible for the comeback.[30][49] The Celtics held on for a 108–106 victory, and Russell claimed his eleventh championship in 13 years. At age 35, Russell contributed 21 rebounds in his last NBA game.[17] After the game, Russell went over to the distraught West (who had scored 42 points and was named the only NBA Finals MVP in history from the losing team), clasped his hand and tried to soothe him.[48] Days later, 30,000 enthusiastic Celtics fans cheered their returning heroes, but Russell was not there: the man who said he owed the public nothing ended his career and cut all ties to the Celtics.[48] It came as so surprising that even Red Auerbach was blindsided, and as a consequence, he made the "mistake" of drafting guard Jo Jo White instead of a center.[50] Although White became a standout Celtics player, the Celtics lacked an All-Star center, went just 34–48 in the next season and failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 1950.[24] In Boston, both fans and journalists felt betrayed, because Russell left the Celtics without a coach and a center and sold his retirement story for $10,000 to Sports Illustrated. Russell was accused of selling out the future of the franchise for a month of his salary.[50]

[edit] Post-player career
Russell's No. 6 jersey was retired by the Celtics in 1972,[51] and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1975. Russell, who had a difficult relationship with the media, was not present at either event.[52] After retiring as a player, Russell had stints as head coach of the Seattle SuperSonics (1973 to 1977) and Sacramento Kings (1987 to 1988). His time as a coach was lackluster; although he led the struggling SuperSonics into the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, Russell’s defensive, team-oriented Celtics mindset did not mesh well with the team, and he left in 1977 with a 162–166 record.[53] Ironically, coach Lenny Wilkens later used a similar concept to help the SuperSonics win the title in 1979. Russell’s stint with the Kings was considerably worse, his last assignment ending when the Kings went 17–41 to begin the 1987–88 season.

In addition, Russell ran into financial trouble. He had invested $250,000 into a rubber plantation in Liberia, where he had wanted to spend his retirement, but it went bankrupt.[54] The same fate awaited his Boston restaurant called "Slade's", after which he had to default on a $90,000 government loan to purchase the outlet. The IRS discovered that Russell owed $34,430 in tax money and put a lien on his house.[55] He became a vegetarian, took up golf and worked as a color commentator, but he was uncomfortable as a broadcaster. He later said, "The most successful television is done in eight-second thoughts, and the things I know about basketball, motivation and people go deeper than that."[1][55] Russell also wrote books, usually written as a joint project with a professional writer. These included 1979's Second Wind and 2001's Russell's Rules. After spending several years[when?] living as a recluse on Mercer Island near Seattle,[55] Russell rose to prominence again in January 2006, when he convinced Miami Heat superstar center Shaquille O'Neal to bury the hatchet with fellow NBA superstar and former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Kobe Bryant, with whom O'Neal had a bitter public feud.[56] Later that year, on November 17, 2006, the two-time NCAA winner Russell was recognized for his impact on college basketball as a member of the founding class of the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was one of five, along with John Wooden, Oscar Robertson, Dean Smith and Dr. James Naismith, selected to represent the inaugural class.[57] On May 20, 2007, Russell was awarded an honorary doctorate by Suffolk University, where he served as its commencement speaker, and Russell received an honorary degree from Harvard University on June 7, 2007. Russell was also honored during 2009 NBA All-Star Weekend in Phoenix. On February 14, 2009, during, NBA Commissioner David Stern announced that the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award award would be re-named the "Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award" in honor of 11-time NBA champion.[58] The following day, during halftime of the actual All-Star game, Celtics captains Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen presented Russell a surprise birthday cake for his 75th birthday.[59] Russell attended the final game of the Finals that year to present his newly christened namesake award to its winner, Kobe Bryant.[60][61]

[edit] Coaching record
Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost
Post season PG Games coached PW Games won PL Games lost
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL Result
Boston 1966–67 81 60 21 .671 2nd in Eastern 9 4 5 Lost in Division Finals
Boston 1967–68 82 54 28 .659 2nd in Eastern 19 12 7 Won NBA Championship
Boston 1968–69 82 48 34 .585 4th in Eastern 18 12 6 Won NBA Championship
Seattle 1973–74 82 36 46 .439 3rd in Pacific — — — Missed Playoffs
Seattle 1974–75 82 43 39 .524 2nd in Pacific 9 4 5 Lost in Conf. Semifinals
Seattle

Wilt Chamberlain

2010-04-21T16:09:00.001-07:00

Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain (August 21, 1936 – October 12, 1999), nicknamed Wilt the Stilt, The Big Dipper, and Chairman of the Boards, was an American professional NBA basketball player for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers; and also played for the Harlem Globetrotters. The 7 foot 1 inch Chamberlain, who weighed 250 lbs as a rookie[1] before bulking up to 275 lb and eventually over 300 lb with the Lakers,[2] played the center position and is considered by his contemporaries as one of the greatest and most dominant players in the history of the NBA.[2][3]

Chamberlain holds numerous official NBA all-time records, setting records in many scoring, rebounding and durability categories. Among other notable accomplishments, he is the only player in NBA history to average more than 40 and 50 points in a season or score 100 points in a single NBA game. He also won seven scoring, nine field goal percentage, and eleven rebounding titles, and once even led the league in assists.[3] Although suffering a long string of professional losses,[4] Chamberlain had a successful career, winning two NBA titles, earning four regular-season Most Valuable Player awards, the Rookie of the Year award, one NBA Finals MVP award, and being selected to 13 All-Star Games and ten All-NBA First and Second teams.[2][5] Chamberlain was subsequently enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978, elected into the NBA's 35th Anniversary Team of 1980, and chosen as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History of 1996.[5]

After his basketball career, Chamberlain played volleyball in the short-lived International Volleyball Association, was president of this organization and enshrined in the IVA Hall of Fame for his contributions.[6] Chamberlain was also a successful businessman, authored several books and appeared in the movie Conan the Destroyer. He was a lifelong bachelor, but became notorious for his claim to have had sex with 20,000 women, a statement which has entered popular culture

Dorothy Height

2010-04-21T15:51:00.000-07:00

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Examiner Bio America losses a great civil rights champion in Dorothy Height
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Dr. Dorothy Irene Height
Adrian Hood public domainOnly one day after her 98th birthday, Dorothy Irene Height was admitted to Howard University Hospital in Washington DC, suffering from unknown causes and she passed away on April 20.

Who was Dorothy Height?

She was a tireless activist and civil rights servant from the time she was a young girl until her last days.

Dorothy fought for her education starting in 1929, when she was denied entrance to Barnard College, due to the unwritten policy of the day that only allowed two black women at a time and the quota was full. Instead, Dorothy earned two degrees from New York University, with her masters in educational psychology.

Later in life, Dorothy became the president of the National Council of Negro Women, where she presided for forty years. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004.

Height attended the National Black Family Reunion every year at the National Mall in Washington DC.

In addition, she was the chairperson for the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.

Height marched along with Martin Luther King Jr. and was present at the Lincoln Memorial, when King gave his famous "I have a dream" speech at the March

James Baldwin

2010-04-19T16:34:00.001-07:00

James Arthur Baldwin

James Baldwin, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1955
Born August 2, 1924(1924-08-02)
Harlem, New York, U.S.
Died November 30, 1987 (aged 63)
Saint-Paul de Vence, France
Occupation Writer, Novelist, Essayist, Poet, Playwright,
Nationality American
Genres fiction; non-fiction

Influences[show]Richard Wright

Influenced[show]Suzan-Lori Parks, Toni Morrison, Bell Hooks,

James Arthur Baldwin (August 2, 1924 – November 30, 1987) was an American novelist, writer, playwright, poet, essayist and civil rights activist.

Most of Baldwin's work deals with racial and sexual issues in the mid-20th century in the United States. His novels are notable for the personal way in which they explore questions of identity as well as the way in which they mine complex social and psychological pressures related to being black and homosexual well before the social, cultural or political equality of these groups was improved.[1]

Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Literary career
3 Inspiration and relationships
4 Death
5 Legacy
6 Works
7 Notes
8 Published as
9 External links

[edit] Early life
When Baldwin was an infant, his mother, Emma Berdis Joynes, moved to Harlem, New York, where she married a preacher, David Baldwin, who adopted James. The family was poor; and James and his adoptive father had a tumultuous relationship. James Baldwin attended the prestigious DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx, where he worked on the school magazine together with Richard Avedon.[2] At the age of 14, he joined the Pentecostal Church and became a Pentecostal preacher.

When he was 17 years old, Baldwin turned away from his religion and moved to Greenwich Village, a New York City neighborhood, famous for its artists and writers. Here, he studied at The New School, finding an intellectual community within the university. Supporting himself with odd jobs, he began to write short stories, essays, and book reviews, many of which were later collected in the volume Notes of a Native Son (1955).

During this time Baldwin began to recognize his own homosexuality. In 1948, disillusioned by American prejudice against blacks and homosexuals, Baldwin left the United States and departed to Paris, France.

In Paris, Baldwin was soon involved in the cultural radicalism of the Left Bank. His work started to be published in literary anthologies, notably Zero [3], which was edited by his friend Themistocles Hoetis and which had already published essays by Richard Wright.

He would live as an expatriate in France for most of his later life.[4][5]

[edit] Literary career
In 1953, Baldwin's first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain, an autobiographical bildungsroman, was published. Baldwin's first collection of essays, Notes of a Native Son appeared two years later. Baldwin continued to experiment with literary forms throughout his career, publishing poetry and plays as well as the fiction and essays for which he was known.

Baldwin's second novel, Giovanni's Room, stirred controversy when it was first published in 1956 due to its explicit homoerotic content.[6] Baldwin was again resisting labels with the publication of this work:[7] despite the reading public's expectations that he would publish works dealing with the African American experience, Giovanni's Room is exclusively about white characters.[7] Baldwin's next two novels, Another Country and Tell Me How Long the Train's Been Gone, are sprawling, experimental works[8] dealing with black and white characters and with heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual characters.[9] These novels struggle to contain the turbulence of the 1960s: they are saturated with a sense of violent unrest and outrage.

Baldwin's lengthy essay Down at the Cross (frequently called The Fire Next Time after the title of the book in which it was published)[10] similarly showed the seething discontent of the 1960s in novel form. The essay was originally published in two oversized issues of The New Yorker and landed Baldwin on the cover of Time magazine in 1963 while Baldwin was touring the South speaking about the restive Civil Rights movement. The essay talked about the uneasy relationship between Christianity and the burgeoning Black Muslim movement. Baldwin's next book-length essay, No Name in the Street, also discussed his own experience in the context of the later 1960s, specifically the assassinations of three of his personal friends: Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Baldwin's writings of the 1970s and 1980s have been largely overlooked by critics. The assassinations of black leaders in the 1960s, Eldridge Cleaver's vicious homophobic attack on Baldwin in Soul on Ice, and Baldwin's return to southern France contributed to the sense that he was not in touch with his readership. Always true to his own convictions rather than to the tastes of others, Baldwin continued to write what he wanted to write. His two novels written in the 1970s, If Beale Street Could Talk and Just Above My Head, placed a strong emphasis on the importance of black families, and he concluded his career by publishing a volume of poetry, Jimmy's Blues, as well as another book-length essay, The Evidence of Things Not Seen, which was an extended meditation inspired by the Atlanta Child Murders of the early 1980s.

[edit] Inspiration and relationships

Richard Wright (1908-1960) photografed in 1939 by Carl Van VechtenOne source of support came from an admired older writer Richard Wright, whom he called "the greatest black writer in the world." Wright and Baldwin became friends for a short time and Wright helped him to secure the Eugene F. Saxon Memorial Award. Baldwin titled a collection of essays Notes of a Native Son, in clear reference to Wright's novel Native Son. However, Baldwin's 1949 essay "Everybody's Protest Novel" ended the two authors' friendship[11] because Baldwin asserted that Wright's novel Native Son, like Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, lacked credible characters and psychological complexity. However, during an interview with Julius Lester,[12] Baldwin explained that his adoration for Wright remained: "I knew Richard and I loved him. I was not attacking him; I was trying to clarify something for myself."

1949 was also the year he met and fell in love with Lucien Happersberger. The boy was a seventeen-year-old runaway, and the two became very close, until Happersberger's marriage three years later, an event that left Baldwin devastated.[13]

Another major influence on Baldwin's life was the African-American painter Beauford Delaney. In The Price of the Ticket (1985), Baldwin describes Delaney as "the first living proof, for me, that a black man could be an artist. In a warmer time, a less blasphemous place, he would have been recognized as my teacher and I as his pupil. He became, for me, an example of courage and integrity, humility and passion. An absolute integrity: I saw him shaken many times and I lived to see him broken but I never saw him bow."

Baldwin was a close friend of the singer, pianist and civil rights activist Nina Simone. Together with Langston Hughes and Lorraine Hansberry, Baldwin is responsible for making Simone aware of the civil rights movement that was forming at that time to fight racial inequality. He also provided her with literary references that influenced her later work.

Baldwin also had an influence on the work of the french painter Philippe Derome who he met in Paris at the beginning of 1960s.

Maya Angelou called Baldwin her "friend and brother", and credited him for "setting the stage" for the writing of her 1969 autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.[14]

[edit] Death
On November 30, 1987 Baldwin died from stomach cancer in Saint-Paul-de-Vence. He was buried at the Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, near New York City.

[edit] Legacy
Baldwin's influence on other writers has been profound: Toni Morrison edited the Library of America two volume editions of Baldwin's fiction and essays, and a recent collection of critical essays links these two writers.

In 1987, Kevin Brown, a photo-journalist from Baltimore, founded the National James Baldwin Literary Society. The group organizes free public events celebrating Baldwin's life and legacy.

In 1992, Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts, established the James Baldwin Scholars program, an urban outreach initiative, in honor of Baldwin, who taught at Hampshire in the early 1980s. The JBS Program provides talented students of color from underserved communities an opportunity to develop and improve the skills necessary for college success through coursework and tutorial support for one transitional year, after which Baldwin scholars may apply for full matriculation to Hampshire or any other four-year college program.

In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed James Baldwin on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.[15]

In 2005 the USPS created a first-class postage stamp dedicated to him which featured him on the front, and on the back of the peeling paper had a short biography. One of Baldwin's richest short stories, "Sonny's Blues", appears in many anthologies of short fiction used in introductory college literature classes.

[edit] Works

Baldwin (right of center) with Hollywood actors Charlton Heston and Marlon Brando at the 1963 Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C. Sidney Poitier (rear) and Harry Belafonte (right of Brando) can also be seen in the crowd.Go Tell It on the Mountain (semi-autobiographical novel; 1953)
The Amen Corner (play; 1954)
Notes of a Native Son (essays; 1955)
Giovanni's Room (novel; 1956)
Nobody Knows My Name: More Notes of a Native Son (essays; 1961)
Another Country (novel; 1962)
A Talk to Teachers (essay; 1963)
The Fire Next Time (essays; 1963)
Blues for Mister Charlie (play; 1964)
Going to Meet the Man (stories; 1965) published in the UK by Michael Joseph, dustjacket designed by David Battle.
Tell Me How Long the Train's Been Gone (novel; 1968)
No Name in the Street (essays; 1972)
If Beale Street Could Talk (novel; 1974)
The Devil Finds Work (essays; 1976)
Just Above My Head (novel; 1979)
Jimmy's Blues (poems; 1983)
The Evidence of Things Not Seen (essays; 1985)
The Price of the Ticket (essays; 1985)
Harlem Quartet (novel; 1987)
Together with others:

Nothing Personal (with Richard Avedon (photogr.)) (1964)
A Rap on Race (with Margaret Mead) (1971)
One day when I as lost (orig.: A. Haley; 1972)
A Dialogue (with Nikki Giovanni) (1973)
Little Man Little Man: A Story of Childhood (with Yoran Cazac, 1976)
[edit] Notes
1.^ Jean-François Gounardoo, Joseph J. Rodgers (1992). The Racial Problem in the Works of Richard Wright and James Baldwin. Greenwood Press. p 158 p 148-200
2.^ Staff. "Richard Avedon", The Daily Telegraph, October 2, 2004. Accessed September 14, 2009. "He also edited the school magazine at DeWitt Clinton High, on which the black American writer James' Baldwin was literary editor."

Langston Hughes

2010-04-19T16:22:00.001-07:00

For other uses, see Langston Hughes (disambiguation).
Langston Hughes

Hughes in 1925
Born February 1, 1902(1902-02-01)
Joplin, Missouri
United States
Died May 22, 1967 (aged 65)
New York City, New York,
United States
Occupation poet, columnist, dramatist, essayist, lyricist, novelist, social activist, writer
Nationality American
Ethnicity African American, White American and Native American
Period 1926-1964

James Mercer Langston Hughes, (February 1, 1902 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, novelist, playwright, short story writer, and columnist. He was one of the earliest innovators of the new literary art form jazz poetry. Hughes is best-known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance. He famously wrote about the Harlem Renaissance saying that "Harlem was in vogue."

Contents [hide]
1 Biography
1.1 Ancestry and childhood
1.2 Relationship with father and Columbia
1.3 Adulthood
1.4 Death
2 Career
2.1 1920s
2.2 1930s
2.3 1940s
2.4 1950s and 1960s
3 Recognition and honors
4 Political views
5 Stage and film depictions
6 Literary archives
7 Bibliography
7.1 Poetry
7.2 Fiction
7.3 Non-fiction
7.4 Major plays
7.5 Works for children
7.6 Other
8 Notes
9 See also
10 References
11 External links

[edit] Biography
[edit] Ancestry and childhood
Langston Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri, the second child of school teacher Carrie (Caroline) Mercer Langston and her husband James Nathaniel Hughes (1871–1934). Both parents were mixed-race, and Langston Hughes was of African American, European American and Native American descent. He grew up in a series of Midwestern small towns.[1] Both his paternal great-grandmothers were African American, and both his paternal great-grandfathers were white: one of Scottish and one of Jewish descent.[2]

Hughes was named after both his father and his great-uncle, John Mercer Langston who, in 1888, became the first black to be elected to the United States Congress from Virginia. Hughes' maternal grandmother Mary Patterson was of African American, French, English and Native American descent. One of the first women to attend Oberlin College, she first married Lewis Sheridan Leary, also of mixed race. He joined the men in John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry in 1859 and died from his wounds.

In 1869 Mary Patterson Leary married again, into the elite, politically active Langston family. Her second husband was Charles Henry Langston, of African American, Native American, and Euro-American ancestry.[3][4] He and his younger brother John Mercer Langston worked for the abolitionist cause and helped lead the Ohio Anti-Slavery Society in 1858.

Charles Langston later moved to Kansas where he was active as an educator and activist for voting and rights for African Americans.[3] Charles and Mary's daughter Caroline Mercer Langston was the mother of Langston Hughes.[5]

Hughes' father left his family and later divorced Carrie. He went to Cuba, and then Mexico, seeking to escape the enduring racism in the United States.[6] After the separation of his parents, while his mother travelled seeking employment, young Langston was raised mainly by his maternal grandmother Mary Patterson Langston in Lawrence, Kansas. Through the black American oral tradition and drawing from the activist experiences of her generation, Mary Langston instilled in the young Langston Hughes a lasting sense of racial pride.[7][8][9] He spent most of childhood in Lawrence, Kansas. After the death of his grandmother, he went to live with family friends, James and Mary Reed, for two years. Because of the unstable early life, his childhood was not an entirely happy one, but it was one that heavily influenced the poet he would become. Later, Hughes lived again with his mother Carrie in Lincoln, Illinois, who had remarried when he was still an adolescent, and eventually in Cleveland, Ohio, where he attended high school. The Hughes' home in Cleveland was sold in foreclosure in 1918; the 2.5-story, wood-frame house on the city's east side was sold at a sheriff's auction in February for $16,667.

While in grammar school in Lincoln, Illinois, Hughes was elected class poet. Hughes stated in retrospect he thought it was because of the stereotype that African Americans have rhythm.[10] "I was a victim of a stereotype. There were only two of us Negro kids in the whole class and our English teacher was always stressing the importance of rhythm in poetry. Well, everyone knows — except us — that all Negroes have rhythm, so they elected me as class poet."[11] During high school in Cleveland, Ohio, he wrote for the school newspaper, edited the yearbook, and began to write his first short stories, poetry, and dramatic plays. His first piece of jazz poetry, "'When Sue Wears Red", was written while he was still in high school. It was during this time that he discovered his love of books. From this early period in his life, Hughes would cite as influences on his poetry the American poets Paul Laurence Dunbar and Carl Sandburg.

[edit] Relationship with father and Columbia

Langston Hughes, 1923Hughes had a very poor relationship with his father.[citation needed] He lived with his father in Mexico for a brief period in 1919.[citation needed] Upon graduating from high school in June 1920, Hughes returned to live with his father, hoping to convince him to provide money to attend Columbia University. Hughes later said that, prior to arriving in Mexico again:

“ I had been thinking about my father and his strange dislike of his own people. I didn't understand it, because I was a Negro, and I liked Negroes very much.[12][13][14] ”

Initially, his father had hoped for Hughes to attend a university abroad, and to study for a career in engineering. On these grounds, he was willing to provide financial assistance to his son. James Hughes did not support his son's desire to be a writer. Eventually, Langston and his father came to a compromise. Langston would study engineering, so long as he could attend Columbia. His tuition provided, Hughes left his father after more than a year of living with him. While at Columbia in 1921, Hughes managed to maintain a B+ grade average. He left in 1922 because of racial prejudice within the institution, and his interests revolved more around the neighborhood of Harlem than his studies, though he continued writing poetry.[15]

[edit] Adulthood

Langston Hughes while attending Lincoln UniversityHughes worked various odd jobs, before serving a brief tenure as a crewman aboard the S.S. Malone in 1923, spending six months traveling to West Africa and Europe.[16] In Europe, Hughes left the S.S. Malone for a temporary stay in Paris.

During his time in England in the early 1920s, Hughes became part of the black expatriate community. In November 1924, Hughes returned to the U. S. to live with his mother in Washington, D.C. Hughes again found work doing various odd jobs before gaining white-collar employment in 1925 as a personal assistant to the historian Carter G. Woodson at the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. Not satisfied with the demands of the work and its time constraints that limited his writing, Hughes quit to work as a busboy in a hotel. It was while working as a busboy that Hughes would encounter the poet Vachel Lindsay. Impressed with the poems Hughes showed him, Lindsay publicized his discovery of a new black poet. By this time, Hughes' earlier work had already been published in magazines and was about to be collected into his first book of poetry.

The following year, Hughes enrolled in Lincoln University, a historically black university in Chester County, Pennsylvania. There he became a member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, a black fraternal organization founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C.[17][18] Thurgood Marshall, who later became an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, was an alumnus and classmate of Langston Hughes during his undergraduate studies at Lincoln University.

Hughes earned a B.A. degree from Lincoln University in 1929. He then moved to New York. Except for travels to areas that included parts of the Caribbean, Hughes lived in Harlem as his primary home for the remainder of his life.

Former residence of Langston Hughes in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C.Some academics and biographers today believe that Hughes was a homosexual and included homosexual codes in many of his poems, similar in manner to Walt Whitman, whose work Hughes cited as another influence on his poetry. Hughes' story "Blessed Assurance" deals with a father's anger over his son's effeminacy and queerness.[19][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] To retain the respect and support of black churches and organizations and avoid exacerbating his precarious financial situation, Hughes remained closeted.[26]

Arnold Rampersad, the primary biographer of Hughes, determined that Hughes exhibited a preference for other African-American men in his work and life.[27] However, Rampersad denies Hughes' homosexuality in his biography as well.[28] Rampersad comes to the conclusion that Hughes was probably asexual and passive in his sexual relationships. He did, however show a respect and love for his fellow white man (and woman). Still, others argue for Hughes' homosexuality: his love of black men is evidenced in a number of reported unpublished poems to an alleged black male lover.[29]

[edit] Death
On May 22, 1967, Langston Hughes died from complications after abdominal surgery, related to prostate cancer, at the age of 65. His ashes are interred beneath a floor medallion in the middle of the foyer leading to the auditorium named for him within the Arthur Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem.[30] The design on the floor covering his cremated remains is an African cosmogram titled Rivers. The title is taken from the poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers by Hughes. Within the center of the cosmogram and precisely above the ashes of Hughes are the words My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

The Langston Hughes Memorial Library on the campus of Lincoln University, as well as at the James Weldon Johnson Collection within the Yale University Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.

[edit] Career
[edit] 1920s

Langston Hughes, The Weary Blues, 1926First published in The Crisis in 1921, the verse that would become Hughes' signature poem, "The Negro Speaks of Rivers", appeared in his first book of poetry The Weary Blues in 1926:[31]

I've known rivers:
I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the
flow of human blood in human veins.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.
I danced in the Nile when I was old
I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.
I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.
I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln
went down to New Orleans, and I've seen its muddy
bosom turn all golden in the sunset.
I've known rivers:
Ancient, dusky rivers.
My soul has grown deep like the rivers.
Hughes' life and work were enormously influential during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s alongside those of his contemporaries, Zora Neale Hurston, Wallace Thurman, Claude McKay, Countee Cullen, Richard Bruce Nugent, and Aaron Douglas, who, collectively (with the exception of McKay), created the short-lived magazine Fire!! Devoted to Younger Negro Artists.

Jessie Redmon Fauset, Hughes, and Zora Neale Hurston, 1927, Tuskegee InstituteHughes and his contemporaries were often in conflict with the goals and aspirations of the black middle class, and of those considered to be the midwives of the Harlem Renaissance, W. E. B. Du Bois, Jessie Redmon Fauset, and Alain LeRoy Locke, whom they accused of being overly fulsome in accommodating and assimilating Eurocentric values and culture for social equality. A primary expression of this conflict was the former's depiction of the "low-life", that is, the real lives of blacks in the lower social-economic strata and the superficial divisions and prejudices based on skin color within the black community.[32] Hughes wrote what would be considered the manifesto for him and his contemporaries published in The Nation in 1926, The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain:

The younger Negro artists who create now intend to express
our individual dark-skinned selves without fear or shame.
If white people are pleased we are glad. If they are not,
it doesn't matter. We know we are beautiful. And ugly, too.
The tom-tom cries, and the tom-tom laughs. If colored people
are pleased we are glad. If they are not, their displeasure
doesn't matter either. We build our temples for tomorrow,
strong as we know how, and we stand on top of the mountain
free within ourselves.
Hughes was unashamedly black at a time when blackness was démodé, and he didn’t go much beyond the themes of black is beautiful as he explored the black human condition in a variety of depths.[33] His main concern was the uplift of his people, of whom he judged himself the adequate appreciator, and whose strengths, resiliency, courage, and humor he wanted to record as part of the general American experience.[34][35] Thus, his poetry and fiction centered generally on insightful views of the working class lives of blacks in America, lives he portrayed as full of struggle, joy, laughter, and music. Permeating his work is pride in the African American identity and its diverse culture. "My seeking has been to explain and illuminate the Negro condition in America and obliquely that of all human kind,"[36] Hughes is quoted as saying. Therefore, in his work he confronted racial stereotypes, protested social conditions, and expanded African America’s image of itself; a “people’s poet” who sought to reeducate both audience and artist by lifting the theory of the black aesthetic into reality.[37] An expression of this is the poem My People:[38]

Langston Hughes, Charles S. Johnson, E. Franklin Frazier, Rudolph Fisher, & Hubert Delany. African American writers influenced the Négritude movement in France. Hughes, W. E. B. Du Bois, and Claude Mckay were the most influential.The night is beautiful,
So the faces of my people.
The stars are beautiful,
So the eyes of my people
Beautiful, also, is the sun.
Beautiful, also, are the souls of my people.
Moreover, Hughes stressed the importance of a racial consciousness and cultural nationalism devoid of self-hate that united people of African descent and Africa across the globe and encouraged pride in their own diverse black folk culture and black aesthetic. Langston Hughes was one of the few black writers of any consequence to champion racial consciousness as a source of inspiration for black artists.[39] His African-American race consciousness and cultural nationalism would influence many foreign black writers, such as Jacques Roumain, Nicolás Guillén, Léopold Sédar Senghor, and Aimé Césaire. With Senghor and Césaire and other French-speaking writers of Africa and of African descent from the Caribbean like René Maran from Martinique and Léon Damas from French Guiana in South America, the works of Hughes helped to inspire the concept that became the Négritude movement in France where a radical black self-examination was emphasized in the face of European colonialism.[40][41] Langston Hughes was not only a role model for his calls for black racial pride instead of assimilation, but the most important technical influence in his emphasis on folk and jazz rhythms as the basis of his poetry of racial pride.[42]

The Ways of White Folks by Langston Hughes, 1934[edit] 1930s
In 1930, his first novel, Not Without Laughter, won the Harmon Gold Medal for literature.[43] The protagonist of the story is a boy named Sandy whose family must deal with a variety of struggles imposed upon them due to their race and class in society in addition to relating to one another. Hughes's first collection of short stories came in 1934 with The Ways of White Folks.[44][45] These stories provided a series of vignettes revealing the humorous and tragic interactions between whites and blacks. Overall, these stories are marked by a general pessimism about race relations, as well as a sardonic realism.[46] He received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1935.

[edit] 1940s
The same year Hughes established his theater troupe in Los Angeles, his ambition to write for the movies materialized when he co-wrote the screenplay for Way Down South.[47] Further hopes by Hughes to write for the lucrative movie trade were thwarted because of racial discrimination within the industry.[48] Through the black publication Chicago Defender, Hughes in 1943 gave creative birth to Jesse B. Semple, often referred to and spelled Simple, the everyday black man in Harlem who offered musings on topical issues of the day. He received offers to teach at a number of colleges, but seldom did. In 1947, Hughes taught at Atlanta University. Hughes, in 1949, spent three months at University of Chicago Laboratory Schools as a visiting lecturer. He wrote novels, short stories, plays, poetry, operas, essays, works for children, and, with the encouragement of his best friend and writer, Arna Bontemps, and patron and friend, Carl Van Vechten, two autobiographies, The Big Sea and I Wonder as I Wander, as well as translating several works of literature into English.

[edit] 1950s and 1960s
During the mid-1950s and -1960s, Hughes' popularity among the younger generation of black writers varied as his reputation increased worldwide. With the gradual advancement toward racial integration, many black writers considered his writings of black pride and its corresponding subject matter out of date. They considered him a racial chauvinist.[49] He in turn found a number of writers like James Baldwin lacking in this same pride, overintellectualizing in their work, and occasionally vulgar.[50][51][52]

Hughes wanted young black writers to be objective about their race, but not to scorn it or flee it.[53] He understood the main points of the Black Power movement of the 1960s, but believed that some of the younger black writers who supported it were too angry in their work. Hughes's work Panther and the Lash was posthumously published in 1967 and was intended to show solidarity and understanding with these writers, but with more skill and devoid of the most virile anger and terse racial chauvinism some showed toward whites.[54][55] Hughes still continued to have admirers among the larger younger generation of black writers, whom he often helped by offering advice and introducing them to other influential persons in the literature and publishing communities. This latter group, including Alice Walker, whom Hughes discovered, looked upon Hughes as a hero and an example to be emulated in degrees and tones within their own work. One of these young black writers observed of Hughes, "Langston set a tone, a standard of brotherhood and friendship and cooperation, for all of us to follow. You never got from him, 'I am the Negro writer,' but only 'I am a Negro writer.' He never stopped thinking about the rest of us."[56]

[edit] Recognition and honors
In 1943, Lincoln University awarded Hughes an honorary Litt.D.
In 1960, the NAACP awarded Hughes the Spingarn Medal for distinguished achievements by an African American.
1961 - Hughes was inducted into the National Institute of Arts and Letters.[57]
1963 - Howard University awarded Hughes an honorary doctorate.
In 1973, the first Langston Hughes Medal was awarded by the City College of New York.
In 1981, New York City Landmark status was given to the Harlem home of Langston Hughes at 20 East 127th Street (40°48′26.32″N 73°56′25.54″W / 40.8073111°N 73.9404278°W / 40.8073111; -73.9404278) by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and 127th St. was renamed Langston Hughes Place.[58]
On February 1, 2002, The United States Postal Service added the image of Langston Hughes to its Black Heritage series of postage stamps.
In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed Langston Hughes on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.[59]
In 1979, Langston Hughes Middle School was created in Reston, Virginia.
[edit] Political views
Hughes, like many black writers and artists of his time, was drawn to the promise of Communism as an alternative to a segregated America. Many of his lesser-known political writings have been collected in two volumes published by the University of Missouri Press and reflect his attraction to Communism. An example is the poem "A New Song":[60]

I speak in the name of the black millions
Awakening to action.
Let all others keep silent a moment
I have this word to bring,
This thing to say,
This song to sing:
Bitter was the day
When I bowed my back
Beneath the slaver's whip.
That day is past.
Bitter was the day
When I saw my children unschooled,
My young men without a voice in the world,
My women taken as the body-toys
Of a thieving people.
That day is past.
Bitter was the day, I say,
When the lyncher's rope
Hung about my neck,
And the fire scorched my feet,
And the oppressors had no pity,
And only in the sorrow songs
Relief was found.
That day is past.
I know full well now
Only my own hands,
Dark as the earth,
Can make my earth-dark body free.
O thieves, exploiters, killers,
No longer shall you say
With arrogant eyes and scornful lips:
"You are my servant,
Black man-
I, the free!"
That day is past-
For now,
In many mouths-
Dark mouths where red tongues burn
And white teeth gleam-
New words are formed,
Bitter
With the past
But sweet
With the dream.
Tense,
Unyielding,
Strong and sure,
They sweep the earth-
Revolt! Arise!
The Black
And White World
Shall be one!
The Worker's World!
The past is done!
A new dream flames
Against the
Sun!

Langston Hughes with his friends on board the Europa, Meschrabpam's American Negro Film Group, June 17, 1932. Seated front center from left to right are Louise Thompson Patterson and Dorothy West.In 1932, Hughes became part of a group of blacks who went to the Soviet Union to make a film depicting the plight of African Americans in the United States. The film was never made, but Hughes was given the opportunity to travel extensively through the Soviet Union and to the Soviet-controlled regions in Central Asia, the latter parts usually closed to Westerners. While there, he met African-American Robert Robinson, living in Moscow and unable to leave. In Turkmenistan, Hughes met and befriended the Hungarian polymath Arthur Koestler. Hughes also managed to travel to China and Japan before returning to the States.

Langston Hughes, before the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations in 1953Hughes' poetry was frequently published in the CPUSA newspaper and he was involved in initiatives supported by Communist organizations, such as the drive to free the Scottsboro Boys. Partly as a show of support for the Republican faction during the Spanish Civil War, in 1937 Hughes traveled to Spain[61] as a correspondent for the Baltimore Afro-American and other various African-American newspapers. Hughes was also involved in other Communist-led organizations like the John Reed Clubs and the League of Struggle for Negro Rights. He was more of a sympathizer than an active participant. He signed a statement in 1938 supporting Joseph Stalin's purges and joined the American Peace Mobilization in 1940 working to keep the U.S. from participating in World War II.[62]

Hughes initially did not favor black American involvement in the war because of the persistence of discriminatory U.S. Jim Crow laws existing while blacks were encouraged to fight against Fascism and the Axis powers. He came to support the war effort and black American involvement in it after deciding that blacks would also be contributing to their struggle for civil rights at home.[63]

Hughes was accused of being a Communist by many on the political right, but he always denied it. When asked why he never joined the Communist Party, he wrote "it was based on strict discipline and the acceptance of directives that I, as a writer, did not wish to accept." In 1953, he was called before the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations led by Senator Joseph McCarthy. Following his appearance, he distanced himself from Communism and was subsequently rebuked by some who had previously supported him on the Radical Left. Over time, Hughes would distance himself from his most radical poems. In 1959 his collection of Selected Poems was published. He excluded his most controversial work from this group of poems.

[edit] Stage and film depictions
Hughes' life has been depicted in many stage and film productions. Hannibal of the Alps by Michael Dinwiddie and Paper Armor by Eisa Davis are plays by African-American playwrights which deal with Hughes' sexuality. In the 1989 film, Looking for Langston, British filmmaker Isaac Julien claimed Hughes as a black gay icon — Julien thought that Hughes' sexuality had historically been ignored or downplayed. In the film Get on the Bus, directed by Spike Lee, a black gay character, played by Isaiah Washington, invokes the name of Hughes and punches a homophobic character while commenting, "This is for James Baldwin and Langston Hughes." Film portrayals of Hughes include Gary LeRoi Gray's role as a teenage Hughes in the 2003 short subject film Salvation (based on a portion of his autobiography The Big Sea) and Daniel Sunjata as Hughes in the 2004 film Brother to Brother. Hughes' Dream Harlem, a documentary by Jamal Joseph, examines Hughes' works and environment.

[edit] Literary archives
The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University holds the Langston Hughes papers (1862–1980) and the Langston Hughes collection (1924–1969) containing letters, manuscripts, personal items, photographs, clippings, artworks, and objects that document the life of Hughes.

[edit] Bibliography

Fine Clothes to the Jew by Langston Hughes, 1927[edit] Poetry
I, Too, Sing America, Knopf, 1994
The Weary Blues, Knopf, 1926
Fine Clothes to the Jew, Knopf, 1927
The Negro Mother and Other Dramatic Recitations, 1931
Dear Lovely Death, 1931
The Dream Keeper and Other Poems, Knopf, 1932
Scottsboro Limited: Four Poems and a Play, Golden Stair Press, N.Y., 1932
Let America Be America Again, 1938
Shakespeare in Harlem, Knopf, 1942
Freedom's Plow, 1943
Fields of Wonder, Knopf, 1947
One-Way Ticket, 1949
Montage of a Dream Deferred, Holt, 1951
Selected Poems of Langston Hughes, 1958
Ask Your Mama: 12 Moods for Jazz, Hill & Wang, 1961
The Panther and the Lash: Poems of Our Times, 1967
The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, Knopf, 1994
Spring, 2005
Madam and The Rent Man
Thank you, m'am
Mother to son
As I Grew Older
Dreams
Life Is Fine
[edit] Fiction

The Best of Simple by Langston Hughes, 1961Not Without Laughter. Knopf, 1930
The Ways of White Folks. Knopf, 1934
Simple Speaks His Mind. 1950
Laughing to Keep from Crying, Holt, 1952
Simple Takes a Wife. 1953
Sweet Flypaper of Life, photographs by Roy DeCarava. 1955
Simple Stakes a Claim. 1957
Tambourines to Glory (book), 1958
The Best of Simple. 1961
Simple's Uncle Sam. 1965
Something in Common and Other Stories. Hill & Wang, 1963
Short Stories of Langston Hughes. Hill & Wang, 1996
Ardella by Langston Hughes
Negro Speaks of Rivers by Langston Hughes
[edit] Non-fiction
The Big Sea. New York: Knopf, 1940
Famous American Negroes. 1954
Marian Anderson: Famous Concert Singer. 1954
I Wonder as I Wander. New York: Rinehart & Co., 1956
A Pictorial History of the Negro in America, with Milton Meltzer. 1956
Famous Negro Heroes of America. 1958
Fight for Freedom: The Story of the NAACP. 1962
[edit] Major plays

Don't You Want to Be Free? (1938) by Langston Hughes was performed for his Harlem Suitcase Theatre in Harlem, New York City.Mule Bone, with Zora Neale Hurston. 1931
Mulatto. 1935 (renamed The Barrier, an opera, in 1950)
Troubled Island, with William Grant Still. 1936
Little Ham. 1936
Emperor of Haiti. 1936
Don't You Want to be Free? 1938
Street Scene, contributed lyrics. 1947
Tambourines to glory. 1956
Simply Heavenly. 1957
Black Nativity. 1961
Five Plays by Langston Hughes. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1963.
Jericho-Jim Crow. 1964
[edit] Works for children
Popo and Fifina, with Arna Bontemps. 1932
The First Book of the Negroes. 1952
The First Book of Jazz. 1954
The First Book of Rhythms. 1954
The First Book of the West Indies. 1956
First Book of Africa. 1964
[edit] Other
The Langston Hughes Reader. New York: Braziller, 1958.
Good Morning Revolution: Uncollected Social Protest Writings by Langston Hughes. Lawrence Hill, 1973.
The Collected Works of Langston Hughes. Missouri: University of Missouri Press, 2001.
African Morning
[edit] Notes
1.^ "African-Native American Scholars". African-Native American Scholars. 2008. http://redblackscholars.wearetheones.org/scholarship.html. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
2.^ Faith Berry, Langston Hughes, Before and Beyond Harlem, Westport, CT: Lawrence Hill & Co., 1983; reprint, Citadel Press, 1992, p.1
3.^ a b Richard B. Sheridan, "Charles Henry Langston and the African American Struggle in Kansas", Kansas State History, Winter 1999, accessed 15 Dec 2008
4.^ Laurie F. Leach, Langston Hughes: A Biography, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2004, pp.2-4
5.^ William and Aimee Lee Cheek, "John Mercer Langston: Principle and Politics", in Leon F. Litwack and August Meier, eds., Black Leaders of the Nineteenth Century, University of Illinois Press, 1991, pp. 106-111
6.^ West, Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance, 2003, p.160
7.^ Hughes recalled his maternal grandmother’s stories: "Through my grandmother’s stories life always moved, moved heroically toward an end. Nobody ever cried in my grandmother’s stories. They worked, schemed, or fought. But no crying." Rampesad, Arnold & Roessel, David (2002). The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, p.620
8.^ The poem Aunt Sues’s Stories (1921) is an oblique tribute to his grandmother and his loving Auntie Mary Reed. Rampersad.vol.1, 1986, p.43
9.^ Imbued by his grandmother with a duty to help his race, Langston Hughes identified with neglected and downtrodden blacks all his life, and glorified them in his work. Brooks, Gwendolyn, (Oct. 12, 1986). "The Darker Brother". The New York Times
10.^ Langston Hughes Reads his poetry with commentary, audiotape from Caedmon Audio
11.^ Langston Hughes, Writer, 4, Dead. (May 23, 1967). The New York Times
12.^ Langston Hughes, The Big Sea (1940), pp.54-56
13.^ James Hughes, a wealthy lawyer and landowner and himself a black man, hated both the racism of the North and Negroes, whom he portrayed in crude racial caricature. Smith, Dinitia (Nov. 26, 1997). Child’s Tale About Race Has a Tale of Its Own. The New York Times
14.^ And the father, Hughes said, "hated Negroes. I think he hated himself, too, for being a Negro. He disliked all of his family because they were Negroes." James Hughes was tightfisted, uncharitable, cold. Brooks, Gwendolyn, (Oct. 12, 1986). The Darker Brother. The New York Times
15.^ Rampersad.vol.1, 1986, p.56
16.^ Poem or To. F.S. first appeared in The Crisis in May 1925, and was reprinted in The Weary Blues and The Dream Keeper. Hughes never publicly identified F.S., but it is conjectured he was Ferdinand Smith, a merchant seaman whom the poet first met in New York in the early 1920s. Nine years older than Hughes, Smith first influenced the poet to go to sea. Born in Jamaica in 1893, Smith spent most of his life as a ship steward and political activist at sea--and later in New York as a resident of Harlem. Smith was deported back to Jamaica for alleged Communist activities and illegal alien status in 1951. Hughes corresponded with Smith up until 1961, when Smith died. Berry, p.347
17.^ In 1926, a patron of Hughes, Amy Spingarn, wife of Joel Elias Spingarn, provided the funds ($300) for him to attend Lincoln University. Rampersad.vol.1, 1986,p.122-23
18.^ In November 1927, Charlotte Osgood Mason, (“Godmother” as she liked to be called), became Hughes' major patron. Rampersad. vol.1,1986,p.156
19.^ a b Nero, Charles I. (1997). "Queer Representations: Reading Lives, Reading Cultures." In Martin Duberman (Ed.), Re/Membering Langston, p.192. New York University Press
20.^ Yale Symposium, Was Langston Gay? commemorating the 100th birthday of Hughes in 2002
21.^ Schwarz, pp.68-88
22.^ Although Hughes was extremely closeted, some of his poems hint at his homosexuality. These include: Joy, Desire, Cafe: 3 A.M., Waterfront Streets, Young Sailor, Trumpet Player, Tell Me, F.S. and some poems in Montage of a Dream Deferred. Langston Hughes page [1] Retrieved January 10, 2007
23.^ ...Cafe 3 A.M. was against gay bashing by police, and Poem for F.S. which was about his friend Ferdinand Smith. Nero, Charles I. (1999), p.500
24.^ Jean Blackwell Hutson, former chief of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, said, “He was always eluding marriage. He said marriage and career didn’t work.....It wasn’t until his later years that I became convinced he was homosexual.” Hutson & Nelson. Essence magazine, February 1992. p.96
25.^ "Though there were infrequent and half-hearted affairs with women, most people considered Hughes asexual, insistent on a skittish, carefree 'innocence.' In fact, he was a closeted homosexual...." McClatchy, J.D. (2002).Langston Hughes: Voice of the Poet. New York: Random House Audio, p.12
26.^ Aldrich, (2001), p.200
27.^ "Referring to men of African descent, Rampersad writes "...Hughes found some young men, especially dark-skinned men, appealing and sexually fascinating. (Both in his various artistic representations, in fiction especially, and in his life, he appears to have found young white men of little sexual appeal.) Virile young men of very dark complexion fascinated him. Rampersad, vol.2,1988,p.336
28.^ "His fatalism was well placed. Under such pressure, Hughes' sexual desire, such as it was, became not so much sublimated as vaporized. He governed his sexual desires to an extent rare in a normal adult male; whether his appetite was normal and adult is impossible to say. He understood, however, that Cullen and Locke offered him nothing he wanted, or nothing that promised much for him or his poetry. If certain of his responses to Locke seemed like teasing (a habit Hughes would never quite lose with women, or, perhaps, men) they were not therefore necessarily signs of sexual desire; more likely , they showed the lack of it. Nor should one infer quickly that Hughes was held back by a greater fear of public exposure as a homosexual than his friends had; of the three men, he was the only one ready, indeed eager, to be perceived as disreputable." "Rampersad, "The Life of Langston Hughes, Vol I. p 69
29.^ Sandra West explicitly states: Hughes' "apparent love for black men as evidenced through a series of unpublished poems he wrote to a black male lover named 'Beauty'." West,2003. p.162
30.^ Whitaker, Charles.Ebony magazine In Langston Hughes:100th birthday celebration of the poet of Black America. April 2002.
31.^ The Negro Speaks of Rivers: First published in Crisis (June 1921), p.17. Included in "The New Negro" (1925), The Weary Blues, Langston Hughes Reader, and Selected Poems. In The Weary Blues, the poem is dedicated to W. E. B. Du Bois. The dedication does not appear in later printings of the poem. Hughes' first and last published poems appeared in The Crisis; more of his poems appeared in The Crisis than in any other journal. Rampesad, Arnold & Roessel, David (2002). In The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. p.23 & p.620, Knopf
32.^ Hughes "disdained the rigid class and color differences the 'best people' drew between themselves and Afro-Americans of darker complexion, of smaller means and lesser formal education. Berry, 1983 & 1992, p.60
33.^ "....but his tastes and selectivity were not always accurate, and pressures to survive as a black writer in a white society (and it was a miracle that he did for so long) extracted an enormous creative toll. Nevertheless, Hughes, more than any other black poet or writer, recorded faithfully the nuances of black life and its frustrations." Patterson, Lindsay (June 29, 1969). Langston Hughes--The Most Abused Poet in America? The New York Times
34.^ Brooks, Gwendolyn, (Oct. 12, 1986). The Darker Brother. The New York Times
35.^ Rampesad, Arnold & Roessel, David (2002). The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. p.3
36.^ Rampersad,1988,vol.2,p.418
37.^ West. 2003, p.162
38.^ My People: First published as Poem in Crisis (Oct.1923), p. 162, and The Weary Blues (1926). The title My People was used in The Dream Keeper (1932) and the Selected Poems of Langston Hughes (1959). Rampersad, Arnold & Roessel, David (2002). In The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. p.36 & p.623, Knopt.
39.^ Rampersad.vol.2, 1988, p.297
40.^ Rampersad.vol.1, 1986, p. 91
41.^ Mercer Cook, African American scholar of French culture: "His (Langston Hughes) work had a lot to do with the famous concept of Négritude, of black soul and feeling, that they were beginning to develop." Rampersad.vol.1, 1986, p. 343
42.^ Rampersad.vol.1, 1986, p. 343
43.^ Charlotte Mason generously supported him (Hughes) for two years. She supervised the writing of his first novel, Not Without Laughter (1930). Her patronage of Hughes ended about the time the novel appeared. Rampersad. Langston Hughes. In The Concise Oxford Companion to African American Literature, 2001, p.207
44.^ Noel Sullivan, after working out an agreement with Hughes, became a patron for him in 1933. Rampersad. vol.1, 1986, p.277
45.^ Sullivan provided Hughes with the opportunity to complete the The Ways of White Folks (1934) in Carmel, California. Hughes stayed a year in a cottage Sullivan provided for him to work in. Rampersad. Langston Hughes. In The Concise Oxford Companion to African American Literature, 2001, p.207
46.^ Rampersad. “Langston Hughes.” In The Concise Oxford Companion to African American Literature.2001.p.207
47.^ Co-written with Clarence Muse, African American Hollywood actor and musician. Rampersad.vol.1, 1986, p. 366-69
48.^ Gwendolyn Brooks, who met Hughes when she was 16 says, "I met Langston Hughes when I was 16 years old, and saw enough of him in subsequent years to observe that, when subjected to offense and icy treatment because of his race, he was capable of jagged anger--and vengeance, instant or retroactive. And I have letters from him that reveal he could respond with real rage when he felt he was treated cruelly by other people. Brooks, Gwendolyn, (Oct. 12, 1986). The Darker Brother. The New York Times
49.^ Rampersad,1988,vol.2,p.207
50.^ Langston’s misgivings about the new black writing mainly concerned its emphasis on black criminality and on profanity. Rampersad, vol.2,p.207
51.^ Hughes said, "There are millions of blacks who never murder anyone, or rape or get raped or want to rape, who never lust after white bodies, or cringe before white stupidity, or Uncle Tom, or go crazy with race, or off-balance with frustration." Rampersad, p.119, vol.2
52.^ Langston eargerly looked to the day when the gifted young writers of his race would go beyond the clamor of civil rights and integration and take a genuine pride in being black....he found this latter quality starkly absent in even the best of them....Rampersad, vol. 2, p.310
53.^ Rampersad.vol.2, 1988, p. 297
54.^ "As for whites in general, Hughes did not like them...He felt he had been exploited and humiliated by them." Rampersad, 1988,vol.2,p.338
55.^ Hughes's advice on how to deal with racists was "'Always be polite to them...be over-polite. Kill them with kindness.' But, he insisted on recognizing that all whites are not racist, and definitely enjoyed the company of those who sought him out in friendship and with respect." Rampersad, 1988,vol.2,p.368
56.^ Rampersad, 1988, vol.2, p.409
57.^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A32779164
58.^ Jean Carlson(2007).[2] Retrieved June 30, 2007.
59.^ Asante, Molefi Kete (2002). 100 Greatest African Americans: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Amherst, New York. Prometheus Books. ISBN 1-57392-963-8.
60.^ A New Song: The end of the poem was substantially changed when it was included in A New Song (New York: International Workers Order, 1938). The first version, in Opportunity (Jan. 1933), p. 123, and Crisis (March 1933), p.59. reads after line 39:
New words are formed,
Bitter
With the past
And sweet
with the dream.
Tense, silent,
Without a sound.
They fall unuttered--
Yet heard everywhere:
Take care!
Black world
Against the wall,
Open your eyes--
The long white snake of greed has struck to kill!
Be wary and
Be wise!
Before
The darker world
The future lies.
Rampesad, Arnold & Roessel, David (2002). In The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. p.170 & p.643, Knopf
61.^ Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives
62.^ Langston Hughes (2001), Fight for Freedom and Other Writings. p.9, University of Missouri Press
63.^ Irma Cayton, African American, said "He had told me that it wasn't our war, it wasn't our business, there was too much Jim Crow. But he had changed his mind about all that." Rampersad,1988,vol.2,p.85
[edit] See also
African American portal
Langston Hughes Society
Harlem Renaissance
African American literature
Pan-Africanism
Négritude
[edit] References
Aldrich, Robert (2001). Who's Who in Gay & Lesbian History. Routledge. ISBN 041522974X
Bernard, Emily (2001). Remember Me to Harlem: The Letters of Langston Hughes and Carl Van Vechten, 1925-1964. Knopf. ISBN 0-679-45113-7
Berry, Faith (1983.1992,). Langston Hughes: Before and Beyond Harlem. In On the Cross of the South, p. 150; & Zero Hour, p. 185-186. Citadel Press ISBN 0-517-14769-6
Hughes, Langston (2001). Fight for Freedom and Other Writings on Civil Rights (Collected Works of Langston Hughes, Vol 10). In Christopher C. DeSantis (Ed). Introduction, p. 9. University of Missouri Press ISBN 0826213715
Hutson, Jean Blackwell; & Nelson, Jill (February 1992). "Remembering Langston". Essence magazine, p. 96.
Joyce, Joyce A. (2004). A Historical Guide to Langston Hughes. In Steven C. Tracy (Ed.), Hughes and Twentieth-Century Genderracial Issues, p. 136. Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-514434-1
Nero, Charles I. (1997). Queer Representations: Reading Lives, Reading Cultures. In Martin Duberman (Ed.), Re/Membering Langston, p. 192. New York University Press ISBN 0814718833
Nero, Charles I. (1999).Columbia Reader on Lesbians and Gay Men in Media, Society, and Politics. In Larry P. Gross & James D. Woods (Eds.), In Free Speech or Hate Speech: Pornography and its Means of Production, p. 500. Columbia University Press ISBN 0231104472
Nichols, Charles H. (1980). Arna Bontempts-Langston Hughes Letters, 1925-1967. Dodd, Mead & Company. ISBN 0-396-07687-4
Ostrom, Hans (1993). Langston Hughes: A Study of the Short Fiction. New York: Twayne. ISBN 0805783431
Ostrom, Hans (2002). A Langston Hughes Encyclopedia. Westport: Greenwood Press, 2002. ISBN 0313303924
Rampersad, Arnold (1986). The Life of Langston Hughes Volume 1: I, Too, Sing America. Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-514642-5
Rampersad, Arnold (1988). The Life of Langston Hughes Volume 2: I Dream A World. In Ask Your Mama!, p. 336. Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-514643-3
Schwarz, Christa A.B. (2003). Gay Voices of the Harlem Renaissance. In Langston Hughes: A "true 'people's poet",pp. 68–88. Indiana University Press ISBN 0-253-21607-9
West, Sandra L. (2003). Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance. In Aberjhani & Sandra West (Ed.), Langston Hughes, p. 162. Checkmark Press ISBN 0-8160-4540-2
[edit] External links
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Langston Hughes
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Langston Hughes

Yale College Lecture on Langston Hughes audio, video and full transcripts from Open Yale Courses
Poems by Langston Hughes at PoetryFoundation.org
The Collected Works of Langston Hughes
Langston Hughes on Poets.org With poems, related essays, and links, from the Academy of American Poets
A Centennial Tribute to L. Hughes at Howard University
Representative Poetry Online, University of Toronto
A selection of Langston Hughes's more political poetry
Langston Hughes Elementary School, Lawrence, KS, including photos and texts of the writer
Smithsonian "The Music in Poetry: Langston Hughes & His use of the Blues"
The Langston Hughes Papers Digital collection from the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University
Langston Hughes & His Poetry, Library of Congress
The Worlds of Langston Hughes, Ford Foundation Report
The Negro Artist and The Racial Mountain by Langston Hughes
Beinecke Library,Yale University, Langston Hughes at 100
Langston Hughes in Lawrence, KS: Photographs & Biographical Resources
An Analization of Langston Hughes
Phat African American Poetry Book
Sweet Flypaper of Life with Roy DeCarava
Langston Hughes -- "Dream Deferred,"Clip from the Langston Hughes program the Voices & Visions video
Langston Hughes Papers on deposit at Yale
America's Library, Library of Congress, Langston Hughes
I Hear America Singing, PBS.ORG
Obituary of Langston Hughes, The New York Times
Atrium where the ashes of Langston Hughes reside in the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem
List of previewable works on Google Book Search by and concerning Langston Hughes
"My Adventures as a Social Poet" by Langston Hughes on NegroArtist.com
Langston Hughes FBI File
Modern American Poetry
Persondata
NAME Hughes, Langston
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hughes, James Mercer Langston
SHORT DESCRIPTION Poet, playwright, novelist
DATE OF BIRTH 1902-02-01
PLACE OF BIRTH Joplin, Missouri
DATE OF DEATH 1967-05-22
PLACE OF DEATH New York, New York
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langston_Hughes"
Categories: African American dramatists and playwrights | African American novelists | African American poets | African American writers | American novelists | Americans of European descent | American poets | American people of Native American descent | Cancer deaths in New York | Columbia University alumni | Columbia Engineering Alumni | Deaths from prostate cancer | Gay writers | Jazz poetry | LGBT African Americans | LGBT writers from the United States | Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) alumni | Literary collaborators | Native American writers | People from Joplin, Missouri | People from New York City | People from Staten Island | People from Union County, New Jersey | Writers from Missouri | 1902 births | 1967 deaths | Guggenheim Fellows | Harmon prize winners | Spingarn Medal winners
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Richard Wright

2010-04-19T16:10:00.000-07:00

For other people named Richard Wright, see Richard Wright (disambiguation).
Richard Wright

Richard Wright photographed in 1939 by Carl Van Vechten
Born September 4, 1908(1908-09-04)
Rucker Plantation,
Roxie, Mississippi
Died November 28, 1960 (aged 52)
Paris, France
Occupation Novelist, Writer, Poet, Essayist, Short story writer
Nationality United States
Notable work(s) Uncle Tom's Children, Native Son, Black Boy and The Outsider

Influences[show]Albert Camus, Fyodor Dostoevsky, James T. Farrell, Sinclair Lewis,Jack London, H.L. Mencken, Marcel Proust, Jean-Paul Sartre,Gertrude Stein

Influenced[show]Ralph Ellison, James Baldwin, Gwendolyn Brooks

Richard Nathaniel Wright (September 4, 1908 – November 28, 1960) was an American author of powerful, sometimes controversial novels, short stories and non-fiction. Much of his literature concerned racial themes. His work helped redefine discussions of race relations in America in the mid-20th century.

Contents [hide]
1 Biography
1.1 Early life
1.2 Chicago
1.3 New York
1.4 Paris
1.5 Family
2 Literary Influences
3 Awards
4 Legacy
5 Publications
5.1 Collections
5.2 Drama
5.3 Fiction
5.4 Non-fiction
5.5 Essays
5.6 Poetry
6 Secondary sources
7 Notes
8 External links
8.1 Biographies and collections
8.2 Summaries and reviews
8.3 Online texts and excerpts
8.4 Television
8.5 Podcasts

[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Wright, the grandson of formerly enslaved African-Americans, was born on the Rucker plantation in Roxie, Mississippi in Franklin County, outside of Natchez.

His family soon moved to Memphis, Tennessee. While in Memphis, his father Nathaniel, a former sharecropper, abandoned the family. His mother, a schoolteacher, had to support herself and her children. In 1914, Ella Wright became ill, and the two brothers were sent to Settlement House, a Methodist orphanage. In 1916, Wright, his brother, and their mother returned to Mississippi, moving in with Margaret Wilson, Wright’s grandmother.

Later, the family moved in with Wright’s aunt and uncle in Elaine, Arkansas, but left after whites murdered Wright’s uncle, Silas Hoskins, in 1916. The family fled to West Helena, where they lived in fear in rented rooms for several weeks.[1] Mrs. Wright took the boys to Jackson, Mississippi, for several months in 1917, but they returned to West Helena by the winter of 1918. Further family disintegration occurred after Mrs. Wright suffered a stroke in 1919. Wright reluctantly chose to live with Uncle Clark and Aunt Jody in Greenwood, Mississippi, where he could be near his mother, but restrictions placed on him by his aunt and uncle made him an emotional wreck. On the verge of a nervous breakdown, he was permitted to return to Jackson, where he lived with Grandmother Wilson from early 1920 until late 1925. Wright felt stifled by his aunt and his maternal grandmother, who tried to force him to pray that he might find God. He later threatened to leave home because Grandmother Wilson refused to permit him to work on Saturdays, the Adventist Sabbath. Early strife with his aunt and grandmother left him with a permanent, uncompromising hostility toward religious solutions to everyday problems.

At the age of fifteen, Wright penned his first story, "The Voodoo of Hell's Half-Acre". It was published in Southern Register, a local black newspaper. In 1923, Wright was made class valedictorian. Determined not to be called an Uncle Tom, he refused to deliver the assistant principal's carefully prepared valedictory address that would not offend the white school officials and finally convinced the black administrators to let him read a compromise version of what he had written. In September of the same year, Wright registered for mathematics, English, and history courses at the new Lanier High School in Jackson, but had to stop attending classes after a few weeks of irregular attendance because he needed to earn money for family expenses. His childhood in Memphis and Mississippi shaped his lasting impressions of American racism.[2]

[edit] Chicago
Wright moved to Chicago in 1927. After finally securing employment as a postal clerk, he read other writers and studied their styles during his time off. When his job at the post office was eliminated by the Great Depression, he was forced to go on relief in 1931. In 1932, he began attending meetings of the John Reed Club. As the club was dominated by the Communist Party, Wright established a relationship with a number of party members. Especially interested in the literary contacts made at the meetings, Wright formally joined the Communist Party in late 1933 and as a revolutionary poet wrote numerous proletarian poems ("I Have Seen Black Hands," "We of the Streets," "Red Leaves of Red Books," for example) for The New Masses and other left-wing periodicals.

A power struggle within the Chicago chapter of the John Reed Club led to the dissolution of the club's leadership; Wright was told he had the support of the club's party members if he was willing to join the party.[3]

By 1935, Wright had completed his first novel, Cesspool, published as Lawd Today (1963), and in January 1936 his story "Big Boy Leaves Home" was accepted for publication in New Caravan. In February, Wright began working with the National Negro Congress, and in April he chaired the South Side Writers' Group, whose membership included Arna Bontemps and Margaret Walker. Wright submitted some of his critical essays and poetry to the group for criticism and read aloud some of his short stories. In 1936, he was also revising "Cesspool".

Through the club, Wright edited Left Front, a magazine that the Communist Party shut down in 1937, despite Wright's repeated protests.[4] Throughout this period, Wright also contributed to the New Masses magazine.

While Wright was at first pleased by positive relations with white Communists in Chicago, he was later humiliated in New York City by some who rescinded an offer to find housing for Wright because of his race.[5] To make matters worse, some black Communists denounced the articulate, polished Wright as a bourgeois intellectual, assuming he was well educated and overly assimilated into white society. However, he was largely autodidactic after having been forced to end his public education after the completion of grammar school.[6]

Wright's insistence that young communist writers be given space to cultivate their talents and his working relationship with a black nationalist communist led to a public falling out with the party and the leading African-American communist Buddy Nealson.[7] Wright was threatened at knife point by fellow-traveler coworkers, denounced as a Trotskyite in the street by strikers and physically assaulted by former comrades when he tried to join them during the 1936 May Day march.[8]

[edit] New York
In 1937, Richard Wright moved to New York, where he forged new ties with Communist Party members there after getting established. He worked on the WPA Writers’ Project guidebook to the city, New York Panorama (1938), and wrote the book’s essay on Harlem. Wright became the Harlem editor of the Daily Worker. He was happy that during his first year in New York all of his activities involved writing of some kind. In the summer and fall he wrote over two hundred articles for the Daily Worker and helped edit a short-lived literary magazine New Challenge. The year was also a landmark for Wright because he met and developed a friendship with Ralph Ellison that would last for years, and he learned that he would receive the Story magazine first prize of five hundred dollars for his short story "Fire and Cloud."[9]

After Wright received the Story magazine prize in early 1938, he shelved his manuscript of Lawd Today and dismissed his literary agent, John Troustine. He hired Paul Reynolds, the well-known agent of Paul Laurence Dunbar, to represent him. Meanwhile, the Story Press offered Harper all of Wright's prize-entry stories for a book, and Harper agreed to publish them.

Wright gained national attention for the collection of four short stories titled Uncle Tom's Children (1938). He based some stories on lynching in the Deep South. The publication and favorable reception of Uncle Tom's Children improved Wright's status with the Communist party and enabled him to establish a reasonable degree of financial stability. He was appointed to the editorial board of New Masses, and Granville Hicks, prominent literary critic and Communist sympathizer, introduced him at leftist teas in Boston. By May 6, 1938 excellent sales had provided him with enough money to move to Harlem, where he began writing Native Son (1940).

The collection also earned him a Guggenheim Fellowship, which allowed him to complete his first novel Native Son (1940). Native Son was selected by the Book of the Month Club as its first book by an African-American author. The lead character, Bigger Thomas, represented limitations that society placed on African Americans. He could only gain his own agency and self-knowledge by committing heinous acts. Wright was criticized for his works' concentration on violence. In the case of Native Son, people complained that he portrayed a black man in ways that seemed to confirm whites' worst fears. The period following publication of Native Son was a busy time for Wright. In July 1940 he went to Chicago to do research for the text for a folk history of blacks to accompany photographs selected by Edwin Rosskam. While in Chicago he visited the American Negro Exhibition with Langston Hughes, Arna Bontemps, and Claude McKay.

He then went to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where he and Paul Green collaborated on a dramatic version of Native Son. In January 1941 Wright received the prestigious Spingarn Medal for noteworthy achievement by a black. Native Son opened on Broadway, with Orson Welles as director, to generally favorable reviews in March 1941. A volume of photographs almost completely drawn from the files of the Farm Security Administration, with text by Wright, Twelve Million Black Voices: A Folk History of the Negro in the United States was published in October 1941 to wide critical acclaim.

Wright's semi-autobiographical Black Boy (1945) described his early life from Roxie through his move to Chicago, his clashes with his Seventh-day Adventist family, his troubles with white employers and social isolation. American Hunger, published posthumously in 1977, was originally intended as the second volume of Black Boy. The Library of America edition restored it to that form.

This book detailed Wright's involvement with the John Reed Clubs and the Communist Party, which he left in 1942. The book implied he left earlier, but his withdrawal was not publicized until 1944. In the volumes' restored form, the diptych structure compared the certainties and intolerance of organized communism, the "bourgeois" books and condemned members, with similar qualities in fundamentalist organized religion. Wright disapproved of the purges in the Soviet Union. Nevertheless, Wright continued to believe in far-left democratic solutions to political problems.

[edit] Paris
Wright moved to Paris in 1946, and became a permanent American expatriate. In Paris, he became friends with Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. His Existentialist phase was depicted in his second novel, The Outsider (1953), which described an African-American character's involvement with the Communist Party in New York. In the book considered the first American existential novel, Wright warned that the black man had awakened in a disintegrating society not ready to include him. In 1954 he published a minor novel, Savage Holiday. After becoming a French citizen in 1947, Wright continued to travel through Europe, Asia, and Africa. These experiences were the basis of numerous nonfiction works. One was Black Power (1954), a commentary on the emerging nations of Africa.

In 1949, Wright contributed to the anti-communist anthology The God That Failed; his essay had been published in the Atlantic Monthly three years earlier and was derived from the unpublished portion of Black Boy. He was invited to join the Congress for Cultural Freedom, which he rejected, correctly suspecting that it had connections with the CIA. The CIA and FBI had Wright under surveillance starting in 1943. Due to McCarthyism, Wright was blacklisted by the Hollywood movie studio executives in the 1950s, but he starred as teenager Bigger Thomas (Wright was 42) in an Argentinian film version of Native Son in 1950.

In 1955, Wright visited Indonesia for the Bandung Conference and recorded his observations in The Color Curtain: A Report on the Bandung Conference. Wright was upbeat about the possibilities posed by this meeting between recently oppressed nations.

Other works by Richard Wright included White Man, Listen! (1957); a novel The Long Dream in 1958; as well as a collection of short stories Eight Men, published in 1961, shortly after his death in 1960. His works primarily dealt with the poverty, anger, and protests of northern and southern urban black Americans.

His agent, Paul Reynolds sent overwhelmingly negative criticism of Wright's four-hundred page "Island of Hallucinations" manuscript in February 1959. Despite that, in March Wright outlined a novel in which Fish was to be liberated from his racial conditioning and become a dominating character. By May 1959, Wright wanted to leave Paris and live in London. He felt French politics had become increasingly submissive to American pressure. The peaceful Parisian atmosphere he had enjoyed had been shattered by quarrels and attacks instigated by enemies of the expatriate black writers.

On June 26, 1959, after a party marking the French publication of White Man, Listen! Wright became ill, victim of a virulent attack of amoebic dysentery probably contracted during his stay on the Gold Coast. By November 1959 his wife had found a London apartment, but Wright's illness and "four hassles in twelve days" with British immigration officials ended his desire to live in England.

On February 19, 1960 Wright learned from Reynolds that the New York premiere of the stage adaptation of The Long Dream received such bad reviews that the adapter, Ketti Frings, had decided to cancel other performances. Meanwhile, Wright was running into additional problems trying to get The Long Dream published in France. These setbacks prevented his finishing revisions of Island of Hallucinations, which he needed to get a commitment from Doubleday.

In June 1960, Wright recorded a series of discussions for French radio dealing primarily with his books and literary career. He also covered the racial situation in the United States and the world, and specifically denounced American policy in Africa. In late September, to cover extra expenses for his daughter Julia's move from London to Paris to attend the Sorbonne, Wright wrote blurbs for record jackets for Nicole Barclay, director of the largest record company in Paris.

In spite of his financial straits, Wright refused to compromise his principles. He declined to participate in a series of programs for Canadian radio because he suspected American control over the programs. For the same reason, Wright rejected an invitation from the Congress for Cultural Freedom to go to India to speak at a conference in memory of Leo Tolstoy. Still interested in literature, Wright helped Kyle Onstott get Mandingo (1957) published in France. His last display of explosive energy occurred on November 8, 1960 in his polemical lecture, "The Situation of the Black Artist and Intellectual in the United States," delivered to students and members of the American Church in Paris. Wright argued that American society reduced the most militant members of the black community to slaves whenever they wanted to question the racial status quo. He offered as proof the subversive attacks of the Communists against Native Son and the quarrels which James Baldwin and other authors sought with him.

On November 26, 1960 Wright talked enthusiastically about Daddy Goodness with Langston Hughes and gave him the manuscript. Wright contracted Amoebic dysentery on a visit to Africa in 1957, and despite various treatments, his health deteriorated over the next three years.[10] He died in Paris of a heart attack at the age of 52. He was interred in Le Père Lachaise Cemetery. However, Wright's daughter Julia claimed that her father was murdered.[11]

A number of Wright's works have been published posthumously. Some of Wright's more shocking passages dealing with race, sex, and politics were cut or omitted before original publication. In 1991, unexpurgated versions of Native Son, Black Boy, and his other works were published. In addition, his novella Rite of Passage was published in 1994 for the first time.

In the last years of his life, Richard Wright became enamored with the Japanese poetry form haiku and he wrote over 4,000. In 1998 a book was published ("Haiku: This Other World" ISBN 0-385-72024-6) with 817 haiku which he preferred.

A collection of Wright's travel writings, edited by Virginia Whatley Smith, was published by the Mississippi University Press in 2001. At his death, Wright left an unfinished book, A Father's Law. It dealt with a black policeman and the son he suspected of murder. Wright's daughter Julia Wright published A Father's Law in January 2008. Julia also wished to give his political nonfiction to the public and HarperCollins worked in agreement by issuing an omnibus containing all three works under the title Three Books from Exile: Black Power; The Color Curtain; and White Man, Listen! The omnibus was published in February 2008.

[edit] Family
In 1939, he married Dhima Rose Meadman, a modern-dance teacher of Russian Jewish ancestry, but the two separated shortly afterwards. In 1941, he married Ellen Poplar, daughter of Polish Jewish immigrants and a Communist Party organizer in Brooklyn. They had two daughters: Julia in 1942 and Rachel in 1949.

[edit] Literary Influences
Wright discusses a number of authors whose works influenced his own in Black Boy, including H.L. Mencken, Gertrude Stein, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Sinclair Lewis, Marcel Proust, and Edgar Lee Masters.

[edit] Awards
Richard Wright received several different literary awards during his lifetime including the Spingarn Medal in 1941, the Guggenheim Fellowship, and the Story Magazine Award.[9][12]

[edit] Legacy
Wright's stories published during the 1950s disappointed some critics, who said that his move to Europe alienated him from American blacks and separated him from his emotional and psychological roots. Many of Wright’s works failed to satisfy the rigid standards of New Criticism. During the 1950s Wright grew more internationalist in outlook. While he accomplished much as an important public literary and political figure with a worldwide reputation, his very creative work did decline.[13]

Wright's influence was revived in the 1960s. With the growth of the militant black consciousness movement, there came a resurgence of interest in Wright's work. It is generally agreed that Wright's influence in Native Son is not a matter of literary style or technique. His impact, rather, has been on ideas and attitudes, and his work has been a force in the social and intellectual history of the United States in the last half of the twentieth century. "Wright was one of the people who made me conscious of the need to struggle," said writer Amiri Baraka.[14]

During the 1970s and 1980s, scholars published critical essays about Wright in prestigious journals. Richard Wright conferences were held on university campuses from Mississippi to New Jersey. A new film version of Native Son, with a screenplay by Richard Wesley, was released in December 1986. Certain Wright novels became required reading in a number of American universities and colleges.[15]

"Recent critics have called for a reassessment of Wright's later work in view of his philosophical project. Notably, Paul Gilroy has argued that 'the depth of his philosophical interests has been either overlooked or misconceived by the almost exclusively literary enquiries that have dominated analysis of his writing.'"[16] "His most significant contribution, however, was his desire to accurately portray blacks to white readers, thereby destroying the white myth of the patient, humorous, subservient black man."[17] While some of his work was weak[citation needed] and unsuccessful especially that completed within the last three years of his life—his best work will continue to attract readers. His three masterpieces Uncle Tom's Children, Native Son, and Black Boy—are a crowning achievement for him and for American literature.[citation needed]

In April, 2009, Wright was featured on a U.S. Postage Stamp. The 61 cent, two ounce rate stamp is the 25th installment of the literary arts series and features a portrait of Richard Wright in front of snow–swept tenements on the South Side of Chicago, a scene that recalls the setting of Native Son.[18]

[edit] Publications

A remembrance of Richard Wright in Natchez[edit] Collections
Richard Wright: Early Works (Arnold Rampersad, ed.) (Library of America, 1991) ISBN 978-0-94045066-6
Richard Wright: Later Works (Arnold Rampersad, ed.) (Library of America, 1991) ISBN 978-0-94045067-7
[edit] Drama
Native Son: The Biography of a Young American with Paul Green (New York: Harper, 1941)
[edit] Fiction
Uncle Tom's Children (New York: Harper, 1938)
"The Man Who Was Almost a Man" (New York: Harper, 1939)
Native Son (New York: Harper, 1940)
The Outsider (New York: Harper, 1953)
Savage Holiday (New York: Avon, 1954)
The Long Dream (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1958)
Eight Men (Cleveland and New York: World, 1961)
Lawd Today (New York: Walker, 1963)
Rite of Passage (New York: Harper Collins, 1994)
A Father's Law (London: Harper Perennial, 2008)
[edit] Non-fiction
How "Bigger" Was Born; Notes of a Native Son (New York: Harper, 1940)
12 Million Black Voices: A Folk History of the Negro in the United States (New York: Viking, 1941)
Black Boy (New York: Harper, 1945)
Black Power (New York: Harper, 1954)
The Color Curtain (Cleveland and New York: World, 1956)
Pagan Spain (New York: Harper, 1957)
Letters to Joe C. Brown (Kent State University Libraries, 1968)
American Hunger (New York: Harper & Row, 1975)
[edit] Essays
The Ethics Of Living Jim Crow: An Autobiographical Sketch (1937)
Introduction to Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City (1945)
I Choose Exile (1951)
White Man, Listen! (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1957)
[edit] Poetry
Haiku: This Other World. (Eds. Yoshinobu Hakutani and Robert L. Tener. Arcade, 1998)
[edit] Secondary sources
Yarborough, Richard. "Introduction." Uncle Tom's Children. Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2008.
Meyerson, Gregory. "Aunt Sue's Mistake: False Consciousness in Richard Wright's 'Bright and Morning Star'" Reconstruction 8.4. Winter, 2008. Article analyzing Wright's Uncle Tom's Children.
Special Centenary Section on "Facing the Future After Richard Wright" Reconstruction 8.4. Winter, 2008. Edited by Graham Barnfield and Joseph G. Ramsey.
“Sketches of Spain”: Richard Wright's Pagan Spain and African-American Representations of the Hispanic, by Guy Reynolds, from Journal of American Studies, 34 (2000)
[edit] Notes
1.^ Canada, Mark (2002-10-08). "Lesson 8: Richard Wright, Outsider". UNC Pembroke. http://www.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/markport/lit/amnovel/fall2002/08wright.htm. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
2.^ Wright, Richard (1993). Black Boy. New York: Harper Collins. pp. 455–459. ISBN 0060812508.
3.^ Wright, Richard (1965). "Richard Wright". in Crossman, Richard. The God That Failed. New York: Bantam Books. pp. 109–10.
4.^ Wright, Richard (1965). "Richard Wright". in Crossman, Richard. The God That Failed. New York: Bantam Books. pp. 121.
5.^ Wright, Richard (1965). "Richard Wright". in Crossman, Richard. The God That Failed. New York: Bantam Books. pp. 123–26.
6.^ Wright, Richard (1965). "Richard Wright". in Crossman, Richard. The God That Failed. New York: Bantam Books. pp. 113–16.
7.^ Wright, Richard (1960). "Richard Wright". in Crossman, Richard. The God That Failed. New York: Bantam Books. pp. 126–34.
8.^ Wright, Richard (1965). "Richard Wright". in Crossman, Richard. The God That Failed. New York: Bantam Books. pp. 143–45.
9.^ a b Wright, Richard (1993). Black Boy. New York: Harper Collins. pp. 465. ISBN 0060812508.
10.^ Nance, Kevin (2007-02-16). "Celebrating Black History Month: Richard Wright". Chicago Sun-Times. http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/260081,CST-FTR-black16.article. Retrieved 2008-06-02.
11.^ "Richard (Nathaniel) Wright (1908-1960)". Books and Authors. 2003. http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/rwright.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-02.
12.^ "The Spingarn Medal, 1915-2007". World Almanac & Book of Facts. World Almanac Education Group, Inc. 2008. pp. 256.
13.^ Mullen, Bill. "Richard Wright (1908-1960)". An Online Journal and Multimedia Companion to Anthology of Modern American Poetry. University of Illinois. http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/poets/s_z/r_wright/r_wright.htm. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
14.^ "Richard Wright - Black Boy". Richard Wright: Black Boy. Independent Television Service. http://www.itvs.org/RichardWright/more_info.html. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
15.^ "Richard Wright". Harper Collins. http://www.harpercollins.com/authors/10748/Richard_Wright/index.aspx. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
16.^ Sarah Relyea, Outsider Citizens (New York: Routledge, 2006): 62. Paul Gilroy, The Black Atlantic (Cambridge: Harvard UP: 1993): 147.
17.^ Duffus, Matthew (1999-01-26). "Richard Wright". The Mississippi Writers Page. University of Mississippi. http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/english/ms-writers/dir/wright_richard/. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
18.^ United States Postal Service http://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10152&storeId=10001&categoryId=11828&productId=44351&langId=-1&WT.ac=44351
[edit] External links
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Richard Wright

[edit] Biographies and collections
Richard Wright Papers at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University
Richard Wright Collection (MUM00488) at the University of Mississippi.
Richard Wright: Black Boy (documentary film)
Richard Wright's Biography at the Mississippi Writers Page
Richard Wright at the Independent Television Service
Richard Wright's Photo & Gravesite
Biography of Wright and his works
Brief biography below image of Richard Wright Immortalized 4'09 on 61-cent/2oz USPS stamp (amends above Note#18 URL)
[edit] Summaries and reviews
Summary of Richard Wright's Novels
Synopsis of Wright's Fiction
Reviews of Wright's Work
Critical Reception of Wright's Travel Writings
Review of The Outsider
Special Section on "Facing the Future After Richard Wright"
A Western Man of Color: Richard Wright and the World
[edit] Online texts and excerpts
Online text of 12 Million Black Voices
Excerpt from Black Power
Online Text of The Color Curtain
Online Text of Pagan Spain
Online text of The Long Dream
Excerpt from The God That Failed
Blueprint for Negro Literature
Online text of Native Son
[edit] Television
In 2009, Wright was featured in a 90-minute documentary about the WPA Writers' Project titled Soul of a People: Writing America's Story. His life and work during the 1930s is also highlighted in the companion book, Soul of a People: The WPA Writers' Project Uncovers Depression America.

[edit] Podcasts
Looking for Richard Wright from the Beinecke Library, Yale University
Richard Wright, Native Son, and the Beinecke: Being Brought to My Senses from the Beinecke Library, Yale University
Persondata
NAME Wright, Richard Nathaniel
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION American Novelist, writer
DATE OF BIRTH September 4, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Roxie, Mississippi, United States
DATE OF DEATH 28 November 1960
PLACE OF DEATH Paris, France
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Wright_(author)"
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2010-04-19T15:53:00.000-07:00

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Ralph Ellison

Ralph Ellison
Born March 1, 1914(1914-03-01)[1]
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States
Died April 16, 1994 (aged 80)
New York, New York, United States
Occupation Novelist, Essayist, Short story writer
Genres Fiction, Short Stories, Criticism
Notable work(s) Invisible Man

Influences[show]Hemingway, Emerson, James Joyce, Thoreau, Whitman, Louis Armstrong, Richard Wright, Twain, Faulkner, Henry James, T. S. Eliot, Dostoevsky

Ralph Waldo Ellison (March 1, 1914[1] – April 16, 1994) was a novelist, literary critic, scholar and writer. He was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Ellison is best known for his novel Invisible Man (ISBN 0-679-60139-2), which won the National Book Award in 1953. He also wrote Shadow and Act (1964), a collection of political, social and critical essays, and Going to the Territory (1986). Research by Lawrence Jackson, one of Ellison's biographers, has established that he was born a year earlier than had been previously thought.

Rallph Ellison was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma to Lewis Alfred Ellison and Ida Millsap. He had one brother named Herbert Millsap Ellison, who was born in 1916. Lewis Alfred Ellison, a small-business owner and a construction foreman, died when Ralph was three years old. Many years later, Ellison would find out that his father hoped he would grow up to be a poet.

In 1933,Ellison entered the Tuskegee Institute on a scholarship to study music. Tuskegee's music department was perhaps the most renowned department at the school, headed by the conductor Charles L. Dawson. Ellison also had the good fortune to come under the close tutelage of the piano instructor Hazel Harrison. While he studied music primarily in his classes, he spent increasing amounts of time in the library, reading up on modernist classics. He specifically cited reading The Waste Land as a major awakening moment for him.

After his third year, Ellison moved to New York City to earn money for his final year. He decided to study sculpture and he made acquaintance with the artist Romare Bearden. Perhaps Ellison's most important contact would be with the author Richard Wright, with whom he would have a long and complicated relationship. After Ellison wrote a book review for Wright, Wright encouraged Ellison to pursue a career in writing, specifically fiction. The first published story written by Ellison was a short story entitled "Hymie's Bull," a story inspired by Ellison's hoboing on a train with his uncle to get to Tuskegee. From 1937 to 1944 Ellison had over twenty book reviews as well as short stories and articles published in magazines such as New Challenge and New Masses.

Contents [hide]
1 Writing career
2 Final years
3 Notes
4 Sources
5 External links

[edit] Writing career
During World War II, Ellison joined the Merchant Marine, and in 1946 he married his second wife, Fanny McConnell. She worked as a photographer to help sustain Ellison. From 1947 to 1951 he earned some money writing book reviews, but spent most of his time working on Invisible Man. Fanny also helped type Ellison's longhand text and assisted her husband in editing the typescript as it progressed.

Invisible Man explores the theme of man’s search for his identity and place in society, as seen from the perspective of an unnamed black man in the New York City of the 1940s. In contrast to his contemporaries such as Richard Wright and James Baldwin, Ellison created characters that are dispassionate, educated, articulate and self-aware. Through the protagonist, Ellison explores the contrasts between the Northern and Southern varieties of racism and their alienating effect. The narrator is "invisible" in a figurative sense, in that "people refuse to see" him, and also experiences a kind of dissociation. The novel, with its treatment of taboo issues such as incest, won the National Book Award in 1953.

In 1955, Ellison went abroad to Europe to travel and lecture before settling for a time in Rome, Italy, where he wrote an essay that appeared in a Bantam anthology called A New Southern Harvest in 1957. In 1958, he returned to the United States to take a position teaching American & Russian literature at Bard College and to begin a second novel, Juneteenth. During the 1950s he corresponded with his lifelong friend, the writer Albert Murray. In these letters they commented on the development of their careers, the civil rights movement and other common interests including jazz. Much of this material was published in the collection Trading Twelves (2000).

In 1964, Ellison published Shadow and Act, a collection of essays, and began to teach at Rutgers University and Yale University, and continued to work on his novel. The following year, a survey of 200 prominent literary figures was released that proclaimed Invisible Man as the most important novel since World War II.

In 1967, Ellison experienced a major house fire at his home in Plainfield, Massachusetts, in which he claimed more than 300 pages of his second novel manuscript were lost. This assertion is challenged in the 2007 biography of Ellison by Arnold Rampersad. A perfectionist regarding the art of the novel, Ellison had said in accepting his National Book Award for Invisible Man, that he felt he had made "an attempt at a major novel", and despite the award, he was unsatisfied with the book. Ellison ultimately wrote over 2000 pages of this second novel. He never finished.

Writing essays about both the black experience and his love for jazz music, Ellison continued to receive major awards for his work. In 1969 he received the Medal of Freedom; the following year, he was made a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by France and became a permanent member of the faculty at New York University as the Albert Schweitzer Professor of Humanities, acting from 1970–1980.

In 1975, Ellison was elected to the The American Academy of Arts and Letters and his hometown of Oklahoma City honored him with the dedication of the Ralph Waldo Ellison Library. Continuing to teach, Ellison published mostly essays, and in 1984, he received the New York City College's Langston Hughes Medal. In 1985, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts. In 1986, his Going to the Territory was published. This is a collection of seventeen essays that included insight into southern novelist William Faulkner and his friend Richard Wright, as well as the music of Duke Ellington and the contributions of African Americans to America’s national identity.

[edit] Final years
In 1992, at age 79, Ellison was awarded a special achievement award from the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards. Ellison was also an accomplished sculptor, musician, photographer and college professor. He taught at Bard College, Rutgers University, the University of Chicago, and New York University. Ellison was also a charter member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers.

Ralph Ellison died on April 16, 1994 of pancreatic cancer, and was buried in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City. He was survived by his wife Fanny Ellison, who died November 19, 2005.

After his death, more manuscripts were discovered in his home, resulting in the publication of Flying Home: And Other Stories in 1996. In 1999, five years after his death, Ellison's second novel, Juneteenth (ISBN 0-394-46457-5), was published under the editorship of John F. Callahan, a professor at Lewis & Clark College and Ellison's literary executor. It was a 368-page condensation of over 2000 pages written by Ellison over a period of forty years. All the manuscripts of this incomplete novel was published on January 26, 2010 by Modern Library, under the title, Three Days Before the Shooting.[2]

[edit] Notes
1.^ a b Ellison's birthday has been listed as either 1913 or 1914 by various reputable sources.
2.^ "Three Days Before The Shooting...". Random House. http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9781588360892. Retrieved Jan. 26, 2010.
[edit] Sources
Lifetime Honors - National Medal of Arts
Going to the Territory by Ralph Ellison
[edit] External links
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Ralph Ellison

Literary Encyclopedia Biography
Literary Encyclopedia, Invisible Man
Ralph Ellison: an American Journey a documentary from California Newsreel
Soul of a People: Writing America's Story a 90-minute documentary about the WPA Writers' Project
Biography
PBS
The Paris Review Interview
Notes on Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man
Saul Bellow's 1952 Review of Invisible Man
Shadowing Ralph Ellison by John Wright
Photos of the first edition of Invisible Man
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Ellison, Ralph
Persondata
NAME Ellison, Ralph Waldo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ellison, Ralph
SHORT DESCRIPTION 20th century American writer
DATE OF BIRTH March 1, 1913
PLACE OF BIRTH Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States
DATE OF DEATH April 16, 1994
PLACE OF DEATH New York, New York, U.S.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Ellison"
Categories: 1994 deaths | American essayists | American novelists | American music critics | African American writers | African American essayists | African American novelists | Deaths from pancreatic cancer | United States National Medal of Arts recipients | Writers from Oklahoma | Writers from New York | National Book Award winners | People from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | Tuskegee University alumni | Cancer deaths in New York | Bard College faculty | 1913 birthsViews
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Moorfield Storey

2010-04-19T15:46:00.000-07:00

Biography
[edit] Early life
Storey's family was descended from the earliest Puritan settlers and had close connections with the abolitionist movement. He was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts, and arrived in Northeast Harbor after the Civil War, building a house there. He graduated at Harvard in 1866, studied at Harvard Law School, and in 1869 was admitted to the bar. In 1887 he built a house on Great Cranberry Island.

[edit] Career
In 1867-69, Storey was private secretary to Senator Charles Sumner. During his tenure, he initially supported the removal of President Andrew Johnson from office but soon became disgusted by the corruption and opportunism of politicians on both sides. He began the practice of his profession in Boston, and was a well-known person in the "Mugwump" movement of 1884.

Storey went on to have a distinguished law practice in Boston and was elected president of the American Bar Association in 1896. He was an active supporter of Grover Cleveland. As a strong believer in the gold standard, freedom of contract, and property rights, he could not abide the candidacy of William Jennings Bryan and supported the National Democratic Party (United States) (Gold Democrats) third ticket in 1896. [1].

Storey spoke at the first anti-imperialist mass meeting in Boston in June 1898, was a vice president of the New England Anti-Imperialist League. In addition, he wrote a book brief for the Lodge Committee summarizing the war crimes of the Philippine-American War. From 1905 until its dissolution in 1921, he was president of the national Anti-Imperialist League.

[edit] Congressional campaign
Late in the campaign of 1900, Storey seriously pondered running for president on a third party ticket but decided against it because it was impractical. Instead, he ran a losing, but spirited and high profile, campaign for Congress as an independent anti-imperialist candidate. Other planks in his platform included support for the gold standard and free trade.

[edit] Champion of civil rights
Storey consistently and aggressively championed civil rights not only for blacks but also for American Indians and immigrants (he opposed immigration restriction). "When the white man governs himself that is self-government," he declared, "but when he governs himself, and also governs another man, that is more than self-government–that is despotism."[2].

Storey was the first president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) between 1909 and 1915. He played a critical role in several important NAACP victories. Most notably, in 1917, he was lead counsel before the Supreme Court in Buchanan v. Warley. In that case, the Court unanimously overturned a Louisville law that forcibly segregated blacks by city blocks. The Court's opinion reflected the jurisprudence of property rights and freedom of contract as embodied in the earlier precedent it established in Lochner v. New York.

[edit] Later life
In the 1920s, Storey served as the chairperson of the Haiti-Santo Domingo Independence Society and on the advisory committee of the American Fund for Public Service Committee on American Imperialism.

[edit] Legacy
Damon W. Root touted him as an historical role model for libertarian Democrats in a 2007 article for Reason Magazine.[3]

[edit] Bibliography
Wikisource has original works written by or about: Moorfield Storey

Charles Sumner (1900) in "American Statesmen Series."
The Reform of Legal Procedure (1911).
Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar, a Memoir (1911), with E. E. Emerson.
[4] Problems of To-Day (1920), the E. L. Godkin Lectures delivered at Harvard, March 1920.
[edit] References
William B. Hixson Jr., Moorfield Storey and the Abolitionist Tradition (1972).
1.^ David T. Beito and Linda Royster Beito, "Gold Democrats and the Decline of Classical Liberalism, 1896-1900," Independent Review 4 (Spring 2000), 555-75
2.^ David T. Beito and Linda Royster Beito, "Gold Democrats and the Decline of Classical Liberalism, 1896-1900," Independent Review 4 (Spring 2000), 555-75
3.^ Root, Damon W. (December 2007). "The Party of Jefferson: What the Democrats can learn from a dead libertarian lawyer". Reason Magazine. http://www.reason.com/news/show/123020.html.
4.^ Moorfield Storey (1920). Problems of To-day. Houghton Mifflin company. http://books.google.com/books?id=7d5DhXmAuuwC&dq=moorfield+storey&as_brr=1&output=html&rview=1.
[hide]v • d • eNational Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Leaders Presidents/CEOs
(executive secretaries 1910-1977;
executive directors 1977-1996) Frances Blascoer (1910-1911) · Mary White Ovington (1911-1912) · Mary Childs Nerney (1912-1916) · Mary White Ovington (1916) · Royall Freeman Nash (1916-1917) · James Weldon Johnson (1917-1918) · John R. Shillady (1918-1920) · James Weldon Johnson (1920-1931) · Walter Francis White (1931-1955) · Roy Wilkins (1955-1977) · Benjamin Hooks (1977-1992) · Benjamin Chavis Muhammad (1993-1994) · Earl Shinhoster (1994-1996) · Kweisi Mfume (1996-2004) · Dennis Courtland Hayes (2005) · Bruce S. Gordon (2005-2007) · Dennis Courtland Hayes (2007-2008) · Benjamin Jealous (2007-present)

Elected presidents
(1909-1996, abolished) Moorfield Storey (1909-1929) · Joel Elias Spingarn (1930-1939) · Arthur B. Spingarn (1940-1965) · Kivie Kaplan (1966-1975) · William Montague Cobb (1976-1982) · James Kemp (1983) · Enolia McMillan (1984-1990) · Hazel N. Dukes (1990-1992) · Rupert Richardson (1992-1996)

Chairpersons William English Walling (1910-1911) · Oswald Garrison Villard (1911 – 1914) · Joel Elias Spingarn (1914 – 1919) · Mary White Ovington (1919 – 1934) · Louis T. Wright (1934 – 1953) · Channing Heggie Tobias (1953 – 1960) · Robert C. Weaver (1960 – 1961) · Stephen Gill Spottswood (1961 – 1975) · Margaret Bush Wilson (1975-1983) · Kelly Alexander (1983-1984) · William Gibson (1985-1995) · Myrlie Evers-Williams (1995-1998) · Julian Bond (1998-2010) · Roslyn Brock (2010-present)

See also NAACP Theatre Awards · NAACP Image Awards · NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund · NAACP Youth Council · Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics · Spingarn Medal · Niagara Movement · National Negro Committee · The Crisis

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moorfield_Storey"
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Fannie Jackson Coppin

2010-04-19T15:29:00.000-07:00

Fanny Jackson Coppin.Fanny Jackson Coppin (October 15, 1837 – January 21, 1913) was an African American educator and missionary. Born an American slave, Fanny Jackson's freedom was purchased by her aunt at age 12. Fanny Jackson spent the rest of her youth working as a servant for author George Henry Calvert, studying at every opportunity. In 1860, she enrolled in Oberlin College in Ohio, the first college in the United States to accept both black and female students. During her years as a student at Oberlin College, she taught an evening course for free African Americans in reading and writing, and she graduated with a Bachelor's degree in 1865.

In 1865, Fanny Jackson accepted a position at Philadelphia's Institute for Colored Youth (now Cheyney University of Pennsylvania). She served as the principal of the Ladies Department and taught Greek, Latin, and Mathematics. In 1869, Fanny Jackson was appointed as the principal of the Institute after the departure of Ebenezer Bassett, becoming the first African American woman to become a school principal. In her 37 years at the Institute, Fanny Jackson was responsible for vast educational improvements in Philadelphia.

On December 21, 1881, Fanny married Reverend Levi Jenkins Coppin, a minister of the African Methodist Episcopal Church pastor of Bethel AME Church Baltimore. Fanny Jackson Coppin started to become very involved with her husband's missionary work, and in 1902 the couple went to South Africa and performed a variety of missionary work, including the founding of the Bethel Institute, a missionary school with self-help programs.

After almost a decade of missionary work, Fanny Jackson Coppin's declining health forced her to return to Philadelphia, and she died on January 21, 1913. In 1926, a Baltimore teacher training school was named the Fanny Jackson Coppin Normal School (now Coppin State University).

[edit] External links
Reminiscences of School Life, and Hints on Teaching. Philadelphia, Pa.: A.M.E. Book Concern, 1913.
[edit] References
This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (July 2009)

"History of Coppin State University". http://www.coppin.edu/welcome/fjcoppin.asp. Retrieved December 6, 2005.
"Fanny Jackson Coppin". PageWise, Inc.. 2002. http://pa.essortment.com/fannyjacksonco_ozb.htm. Retrieved December 6, 2005.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fanny_Jackson_Coppin"
Categories: 1837 births | 1913 deaths | School principals and headteachers | American educators | African American people | Coppin State University | Oberlin College alumni
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Al Sharpton

2010-04-17T07:16:00.001-07:00

Al Sharpton

Al Sharpton, November 2007
Born Alfred Charles Sharpton, Jr.
October 3, 1954 (1954-10-03) (age 55)
Brooklyn, New York,
United States
Residence New York, NY
Occupation Baptist minister, civil rights/social justice activist, radio talk show host
Political party Democratic
Religion Baptist
Spouse(s) Kathy Jordan

Alfred Charles "Al" Sharpton, Jr. (born October 3, 1954) is an American Baptist minister, civil rights activist, and radio talk show host.[1][2] In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. presidential election. He hosts his own radio talk show, Keepin’ It Real,[3] and he makes regular guest appearances on Fox News (such as The O'Reilly Factor[4][5][6]) CNN, and MSNBC.

Sharpton's supporters praise "his ability and willingness to defy the power structure that is seen as the cause of their suffering"[7] and consider him "a man who is willing to tell it like it is".[7] Former New York Mayor Ed Koch, a one-time foe, said that Sharpton deserves the respect he enjoys among African-Americans: "He is willing to go to jail for them, and he is there when they need him."[8]

His critics describe him as "a political radical who is to blame, in part, for the deterioration of race relations".[9] Sociologist Orlando Patterson has referred to him as a racial arsonist,[10] while liberal columnist Derrick Z. Jackson has called him the black equivalent of Richard Nixon and Pat Robertson.[10] Sharpton sees much of the criticism as a sign of his effectiveness. "In many ways, what they consider criticism is complimenting my job," he said. "An activist’s job is to make public civil rights issues until there can be a climate for change."[11]

Contents [hide]
1 Personal life
1.1 Religion
1.2 Assassination attempt
1.3 Indirect familial relation to Strom Thurmond
1.4 Michael Jackson
2 Activism
2.1 Bernhard Goetz
2.2 Howard Beach
2.3 Bensonhurst
2.4 National Action Network
2.5 Crown Heights Riot
2.6 Freddie's Fashion Mart
2.7 Amadou Diallo
2.8 Vieques
2.9 Ousmane Zongo
2.10 Sean Bell
2.11 Dunbar Village
3 Political views
3.1 2008 presidential race
3.2 Gay rights
3.3 Animal rights
4 Controversy
4.1 Comments on Jews
4.2 Kean College
4.3 Mitt Romney
4.4 Tawana Brawley controversy
5 Political campaigns
6 Celebrity status
7 Tax issues
8 Bibliography
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links

Personal life
“ What I do functionally is what Dr. King, Reverend Jackson and the movement are all about; but I learned manhood from James Brown. I always say that James Brown taught me how to be a man. ”
—Sharpton on Brown as a father figure., [11]

Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Alfred Charles Sharpton, Sr. and Ada Sharpton.[12] He preached his first sermon at the age of four and toured with gospel singer Mahalia Jackson.[13]

In 1963, Sharpton's father left his wife to have a relationship with Sharpton's half-sister. Ada Sharpton took a job as a maid, but her income was so low that the family qualified for welfare and had to move from middle class Hollis, Queens, to the public housing projects in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn.[14]

Sharpton graduated from Samuel J. Tilden High School in Brooklyn, and attended Brooklyn College, dropping out after two years in 1975.[15] He became a tour manager for James Brown in 1971, where he met his future wife, Kathy Jordan, who was a backup singer.[16] Sharpton and Jordan married in 1980.[17] The couple separated in 2004.[18]

Religion
Sharpton was licensed and ordained a Pentecostal minister by Bishop F.D. Washington at the age of nine[19] or ten.[20] After Bishop Washington's death in the late 1980s, Sharpton became a Baptist. He was re-baptized as a member of the Bethany Baptist Church in 1994 by the Reverend William Jones[21] and became a Baptist minister.[19][22]

During 2007, Sharpton participated in a public debate with Christopher Hitchens, who is an atheist, and Sharpton defended his religious faith and his belief in the existence of God.[23][24]

Assassination attempt
On January 12, 1991, Sharpton escaped serious injury when he was stabbed in the chest by Michael Riccardi while Sharpton was preparing to lead a protest through Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, New York. The intoxicated attacker was apprehended by Sharpton's aides and handed over to police who were present for the planned protest. Sharpton, although forgiving his attacker and pleading for leniency on his behalf, filed suit against New York City alleging that the many police present had failed to protect him from his attacker. In December 2003 he finally reached a $200,000 settlement[25] with the city just as jury selection was about to start.

Indirect familial relation to Strom Thurmond
In February 2007, genealogists using the website Ancestry.com discovered that Sharpton's great-grandfather, Coleman Sharpton, was a slave owned by Julia Thurmond, whose grandfather was Strom Thurmond's great-great-grandfather. Coleman Sharpton was later freed during the Civil War.

Thurmond was notable as the longest serving Senator (at the time of his death) who was a major advocate of racial segregation during the middle of the twentieth century.[26] Thurmond's illegitimate daughter, Essie Mae Washington-Williams, stated she would welcome Sharpton to the family if a DNA test shows he is a relative.[27] In an interview, Sharpton said he has no plans for the DNA test to see if he is related.[11]

The Sharpton family name originated with Coleman Sharpton's previous slave-owner, who was named Alexander Sharpton.[28]

Michael Jackson
Speaking at the Michael Jackson memorial service on July 7, 2009, Sharpton received a standing ovation for a rousing eulogy, which included telling Jackson's children from the stage, "Wasn't nothing strange about your Daddy. It was strange what your Daddy had to deal with. But he dealt with it anyway."[29]

Activism
Wikinews has related news: Al Sharpton speaks out on race, rights and what bothers him about his critics

In 1969, Sharpton was appointed by Jesse Jackson as youth director of Operation Breadbasket, a group that focused on the promotion of new and better jobs for African-Americans.[30]

In 1971, Sharpton founded the National Youth Movement to raise resources for impoverished youth.[31]

Bernhard Goetz
For more details on this topic, see Bernhard Goetz.
Bernhard Goetz shot four African-American men on a New York subway train on December 22, 1984, when they approached him and allegedly tried to rob him. At his trial Goetz was cleared of all charges except criminal possession of a weapon. Sharpton led several marches protesting what he saw as the weak prosecution of the case.[32]

Sharpton and other civil rights leaders said Goetz's actions were racist and requested a federal civil rights investigation.[33] A federal investigation concluded the shooting was due to an attempted robbery and not race.[34]

Howard Beach
On December 20, 1986, three African-American men were assaulted in the Howard Beach neighborhood of Queens by a mob of white men. The three men were chased by their attackers onto the Belt Parkway, where one of them, Michael Griffith, was struck and killed by a passing motorist.[35]

A week later, on December 27, Sharpton led 1,200 demonstrators on a march through the streets of Howard Beach. Residents of the neighborhood, who were overwhelmingly white, screamed racial epithets at the protesters, who were largely black.[36] Sharpton's role in the case, which led to the appointment of a special prosecutor by New York Governor Mario Cuomo after the two surviving victims refused to co-operate with the Queens district attorney, helped propel him to national prominence.

Bensonhurst
On August 23, 1989, four African-American teenagers were beaten by a group of 10 to 30 white youths in Bensonhurst, a Brooklyn neighborhood. One Bensonhurst resident, armed with a handgun, shot and killed sixteen-year-old Yusef Hawkins.

In the weeks following the assault and murder, Sharpton led several marches through Bensonhurst. The first protest, just days after the incident, was greeted by neighborhood residents shouting "Niggers go home" and holding watermelons to mock the demonstrators.[37]

In May 1990, when one of the two leaders of the mob was acquitted of the most serious charges brought against him, Sharpton led another protest through Bensonhurst. In January 1991, when other members of the gang were given light sentences, Sharpton planned another march for January 12, 1991. Before that demonstration began, neighborhood resident Michael Riccardi tried to kill Sharpton by stabbing him in the chest.[38] Sharpton recovered from his wounds, and later asked the judge for leniency when Riccardi was sentenced.[39]

National Action Network

Al Sharpton at National Action Network's headquarters.In 1991, Sharpton founded the National Action Network, an organization designed to increase voter education, to provide services to those in poverty, and to support small community businesses.[21]

Crown Heights Riot
For more details on this topic, see Crown Heights riot.
The Crown Heights riot began on August 19, 1991, after a car driven by a Jewish man, and part of a procession led by an unmarked police car, went through an intersection and was struck by another vehicle causing it to veer onto the sidewalk where it accidentally struck and killed a seven-year-old Guyanese boy named Gavin Cato and severely injured his cousin Angela. Witnesses could not agree upon the speed and could not agree whether the light was yellow or red. One of the factors that sparked the riot was the arrival of a private ambulance which, on the orders of a police officer worried for the Jewish driver's safety, removed the uninjured driver from the scene while Cato lay pinned under his car.[40] Cato and his cousin were treated soon after by a city ambulance. Caribbean-American and African-American residents of the neighborhood rioted for four consecutive days fueled by rumors that the private ambulance had refused to treat Cato.[41][40] During the riot blacks looted stores,[40] beat Jews in the street,[40] and clashed with groups of Jews, hurling rocks and bottles at one another [42] after Yankel Rosenbaum, a visiting student from Australia, was stabbed and killed by a member of a mob shouting "Kill the Jew."[43] Sharpton marched through Crown Heights and in front of "770", shortly after the riot, with about 400 protesters (who chanted "Whose streets? Our streets!" and "No justice, no peace!"), in spite of Mayor David Dinkins's attempts to keep the march from happening.[44]

Freddie's Fashion Mart
In 1995, a black Pentecostal Church, the United House of Prayer, which owned a retail property on 125th Street, asked Fred Harari, a Jewish tenant who operated Freddie's Fashion Mart, to evict his longtime subtenant, a black-owned record store called The Record Shack. Sharpton led a protest in Harlem against the planned eviction of The Record Shack.[45][46][47] Sharpton told the protesters, "We will not stand by and allow them to move this brother so that some white interloper can expand his business."[48]

On December 8, 1995, Roland J. Smith Jr., one of the protesters, entered Harari's store with a gun and flammable liquid, shot several customers and set the store on fire. The gunman fatally shot himself, and seven store employees died of smoke inhalation.[49][50] Fire Department officials discovered that the store's sprinkler had been shut down, in violation of the local fire code.[51] Sharpton claimed that the perpetrator was an open critic of himself and his nonviolent tactics. Sharpton later expressed regret for making the racial remark, "white interloper," and denied responsibility for inflaming or provoking the violence.[13][52]

Amadou Diallo
Main article: Amadou Diallo
In 1999, Sharpton led a protest to raise awareness about the death of Amadou Diallo, an immigrant from Guinea who was shot to death by NYPD officers. Sharpton claimed that Diallo's death was the result of police brutality and racial profiling. Diallo's family was later awarded $3 million in a wrongful death suit filed against the city.[53]

Vieques
For more details on this topic, see Navy-Vieques protests.
In 2001, Sharpton was jailed for 90 days for protesting against U.S. military target practice exercises in Puerto Rico near a United States Navy bombing site.[54]

Ousmane Zongo
In 2002, Sharpton was involved in protests following the death of West African immigrant Ousmane Zongo. Zongo, who was unarmed, was shot by an undercover police officer during a raid on a warehouse in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. Sharpton met with the family and also provided some legal services.[55]

Sean Bell
For more details on this topic, see Sean Bell shooting incident.
On November 25, 2006, Sean Bell was shot and killed in the Jamaica section of Queens in New York City by plainclothes detectives from the New York Police Department in a hail of 50 bullets. The incident sparked fierce criticism of the police from the public and drew comparisons to the 1999 killing of Amadou Diallo. Three of the five detectives involved in the shooting went to trial in 2008 on charges ranging from manslaughter to reckless endangerment but were found not guilty.

On May 7, 2008, in response to the acquittals of the officers, Sharpton co-ordinated peaceful protests at major transportation centers in New York City, including the Brooklyn Bridge, the Queensboro Bridge, the Triborough Bridge, the Manhattan Bridge, the Holland Tunnel, and the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. Sharpton and about 200 others were arrested.[56]

Dunbar Village
On March 11, 2007, Sharpton held a press conference to highlight what he said was unequal treatment of four suspected rapists in a high-profile crime in the Dunbar Village Housing Projects in West Palm Beach, Florida. The suspects, who were young black men, were arrested for allegedly raping and beating a black Haitian woman at gunpoint. The crime also involved forcing the woman to perform oral sex on her 12-year-old son.[57]

At his press conference Sharpton said that any violent act toward a woman is inexcusable but he felt that the accused youths were being treated unfairly because they were black. Sharpton contrasted the treatment of the suspects, who remain in jail, with white suspects involved in a gang rape who were released after posting bond.[57]

Political views
2008 presidential race
In September 2007, when he was asked whether he thought it was important for America to have a black president, Sharpton said, "It would be a great moment as long as the black candidate was supporting the interest that would inevitably help our people. A lot of my friends went with Clarence Thomas and regret it to this day. I don't assume that just because somebody's my color, they're my kind. But I'm warming up to Obama, but I'm not there yet."[58]

Gay rights
Sharpton is a supporter of equal rights for gays and lesbians, including same-sex marriage. During his presidential campaign in 2003, Sharpton said he thought it was insulting to be asked to discuss the issue of gay marriage. "It's like asking do I support black marriage or white marriage.... The inference of the question is that gays are not like other human beings."[59]

Sharpton is leading a grassroots movement to eliminate homophobia within the Black church.[60]

Animal rights
Sharpton has also spoken out against cruelty to animals in a video recorded for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).[61]

Controversy
Comments on Jews
During the Crown Heights Riot, Sharpton (who arranged a rally in Crown Heights after Cato's death[40]) has been seen by some commentators as inflaming tensions by making remarks that included "If the Jews want to get it on, tell them to pin their yarmulkes back and come over to my house"[62] and referring to Jews as "diamond merchants."[63]

Kean College
Sharpton was quoted as saying to an audience at Kean College in 1994 that, “White folks was [sic] in caves while we was building empires.... We taught philosophy and astrology and mathematics before Socrates and them Greek homos ever got around to it.”[64] Sharpton defended his comments by noting that the term "homo" was not homophobic but added that he no longer uses the term.[65] Sharpton has since called for an end to homophobia in the African-American community.[66]

Mitt Romney
During 2007, Sharpton was accused of bigotry for comments he made on May 7, 2007, concerning presidential candidate Mitt Romney and his religion, Mormonism:

"As for the one Mormon running for office, those who really believe in God will defeat him anyways, so don't worry about that; that's a temporary situation."[67][68]
In response, a representative for Romney told reporters that "bigotry toward anyone because of their beliefs is unacceptable."[69] The Catholic League compared Sharpton to Don Imus, and said that his remarks "should finish his career".[70]

On May 9, during an interview on Paula Zahn NOW, Sharpton said that his views on Mormonism were based on the Mormon Church's traditionally racist views regarding blacks and its interpretation of the so-called "Curse of Ham".[71] On May 10, Sharpton called two apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and apologized to them for his remarks and asked to meet with them.[72] A spokesman for the Church confirmed that Sharpton had called and said that "we appreciate it very much, Rev. Sharpton's call, and we consider the matter closed."[73] He also apologized to "any member of the Mormon church" who was offended by his comments.[73] Later that month, Sharpton went to Salt Lake City, Utah, where he met with Elder M. Russell Ballard, a leader of the Church, and Elder Robert C. Oaks of the Church's Presidency of the Seventy.[74][75]

Tawana Brawley controversy
For more details on this topic, see Tawana Brawley rape allegations.

Al Sharpton interviewed in 2007 on whether he is tired of hearing about Tawana Brawley twenty years later.On November 28, 1987, Tawana Brawley, a 15-year-old African American girl, was found smeared with feces, lying in a garbage bag, her clothing torn and burned and with various slurs and epithets written on her body in charcoal. Brawley claimed she had been assaulted and raped by six white men, some of them police officers, in the town of Wappinger, New York.

Attorneys Alton H. Maddox and C. Vernon Mason joined Sharpton in support of Brawley. A grand jury was convened; after seven months of examining police and medical records, the jury determined that Brawley had fabricated her story. Sharpton, Maddox, and Mason accused the Dutchess County prosecutor, Steven Pagones, of racism and of being one of the perpetrators of the alleged abduction and rape. The three were successfully sued for slander and ordered to pay $345,000 in damages, the jury finding Sharpton liable for making seven defamatory statements about Pagones, Maddox for two, and Mason for one.[76] Sharpton refused to pay his share of the damages; it was later paid by a number of black business leaders.[41]

In 2007 Sharpton said he would have accepted the case the same as he does today. The only difference would be he would not have made it so personal with Pagones, but he still felt Brawley had a good case to go to trial. "I disagreed with the grand jury on Brawley," said Sharpton in an interview. "I believed there was enough evidence to go to trial. Grand jury said there wasn’t. Okay, fine. Do I have a right to disagree with the grand jury? Many Americans believe O.J. Simpson was guilty. A jury said he wasn’t. So I have as much right to question a jury as they do. Does it make somebody a racist? No! They just disagreed with the jury. So did I." [11]

Political campaigns
Sharpton has run unsuccessfully for elected office on multiple occasions. Of his unsuccessful runs, he said that winning office may not have been his goal. "Much of the media criticism of me assumes their goals and they impose them on me," said Sharpton in an interview. "Well, those might not be my goals. So they will say, 'Well, Sharpton has not won a political office.' But that might not be my goal! Maybe I ran for political office to change the debate, or to raise the social justice question."[11] Sharpton ran for a United States Senate seat from New York in 1988, 1992, and 1994. In 1997, he ran for Mayor of New York City.

On January 5, 2003 Sharpton announced his candidacy for the 2004 presidential election as a member of the Democratic Party.

On March 15, 2004, Sharpton announced his endorsement of leading Democratic candidate John Kerry.

On December 15, 2005, Sharpton agreed to repay $100,000 in public funds he received from the federal government for his 2004 Presidential campaign. The repayment was required because Sharpton had exceeded federal limits on personal expenditures for his campaign. At that time his most recent Federal Election Commission filings (from January 1, 2005) stated that Sharpton's campaign still had debts of $479,050 and owed Sharpton himself $145,146 for an item listed as "Fundraising Letter Preparation — Kinko's."[77]

In 2009 the Federal Election Commission announced it had levied a fine of $285,000 against Sharpton's 2004 presidential campaign for breaking campaign finance rules during his presidential campaign.[78][79]

On April 2, 2007, Sharpton announced that he would not enter the 2008 presidential race. "I am not going to run," he said.[30]

Celebrity status
This section needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2009)

Sharpton has made cameo appearances in the movies Cold Feet, Bamboozled, Mr. Deeds, and Malcolm X. He also has appeared in episodes of the television shows New York Undercover, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Girlfriends, My Wife and Kids, Rescue Me and Boston Legal. He hosted the original Spike TV reality television show I Hate My Job, and an episode of Saturday Night Live. He was a guest on Weekends at the DL on Comedy Central and has been featured in television ads for the Fernando Ferrer campaign for the New York City mayoral election, 2005. He also made a cameo appearance by telephone on the Food Network series, The Secret Life Of . . ., when host Jim O'Connor expressed disbelief that a restaurant owner who'd named a dish after Sharpton actually knew him.

During the 2005 Tony Awards, Sharpton appeared in a number put on by the cast of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

In June 2005, Sharpton signed a contract with Matrix Media to produce and host a live two-hour daily talk program, which did not air. In November 2005, Sharpton signed with Radio One to host a daily national talk radio program which began airing on January 30, 2006 entitled Keepin It Real with Al Sharpton.

Tax issues
On May 9, 2008, the Associated Press reported that Sharpton and his businesses owed almost $1.5 million in unpaid taxes and penalties. Sharpton owed $931,000 in federal income tax and $366,000 to New York, and his for-profit company, Rev. Al Communications, owed another $176,000 to the state.[8]

On June 19, 2008, the New York Post reported that the Internal Revenue Service had sent subpoenas to several corporations that had donated to Sharpton's National Action Network. In 2007 New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo began investigating the National Action Network, because it failed to make proper financial reports, as required for non-profits.[80] According to the Post, several major corporations, including Anheuser-Busch and Colgate-Palmolive, have donated thousands of dollars to the National Action Network. The Post asserted that the donations were made to prevent boycotts or rallies by the National Action Network.[81]

Sharpton countered the investigative actions with a charge that they reflected a political agenda by United States agencies.[82]

Bibliography
Go and Tell Pharaoh, Doubleday, 1996. ISBN 0-385-47583-7
Al on America, Dafina Books, 2002. ISBN 0-7582-0350-0
References
1.^ "National Action Network – About Us". http://www.nationalactionnetwork.net/about.html.
2.^ "Fox News – Bio: Rev. Al Sharpton". http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,75751,00.html.
3.^ "Radio One – Rev. Al Sharpton, Author Michael Eric Dyson and Atlanta’s ‘2 Live Stews’ Go National with News/Talk Network". http://www2.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/01-30-2006/0004270083&EDATE=.
4.^ "Al Sharpton On Ties To Sen. Thurmond". Fox News. 2007-02-27. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,254922,00.html. Retrieved 2007-04-12.
5.^ "Al Sharpton Talks with Bill O'Reilly". The O'Reilly Factor. 2005-04-13. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,153366,00.html. Retrieved 2007-04-12.
6.^ "Bill O'Reilly Interview Al Sharpton". Ifilm. 2006-02-02. http://www.ifilm.com/video/2696442. Retrieved 2007-04-12.
7.^ a b Taylor, Clarence (2002). Black Religious Intellectuals: The Fight for Equality from Jim Crow to the 21st Century. New York: Routledge. pp. 127. ISBN 0415933269.
8.^ a b Caruso, David B. (May 9, 2008). "Records show Sharpton owes overdue taxes, other penalties". Associated Press. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jZA6sc_14O4agthuje91acQjpgJwD90IFIAG0. Retrieved 2008-05-10.
9.^ Taylor. Black Religious Intellectuals. pp. 118.
10.^ a b Taylor. Black Religious Intellectuals. pp. 120.
11.^ a b c d e Interview with Al Sharpton, David Shankbone, Wikinews, December 3, 2007.
12.^ William Addams Reitwiesner. "Ancestry of Rev. Al Sharpton". http://www.wargs.com/political/sharpton.html. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
13.^ a b Alexandra Marks (2003-12-03). "The Rev. Al Sharpton's latest crusade". The Christian Science Monitor. http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/1203/p01s04-uspo.html. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
14.^ Jack Newfield (2002-01-07). "Rev Vs. Rev". New York. http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/politics/national/2004race/5570/. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
15.^ Scott Sherman (2001-04-16). "He Has a Dream". The Nation. pp. p. 4. http://www.thenation.com/doc/20010416/sherman. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
16.^ "Campaign 2004: Alfred Sharpton". USAToday.com. 2005-05-20. http://www.usatoday.com/news/politicselections/nation/president/sharptonprofile.htm. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
17.^ "Rev. Al Sharpton And Wife Kathy Renew Their Wedding Vows". Jet. 2001-01-17. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_14_100/ai_78729057. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
18.^ "Al Sharpton, wife announce separation". USA TODAY. 2004-11-07. http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2004-11-07-sharpton_x.htm. Retrieved 2007-07-10.
19.^ a b "Al Sharpton Interview Transcript". Morning Edition. National Public Radio. 2003-06-13. http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/democrats2004/transcripts/sharpton_trans.html. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
20.^ "Reverend Al Sharpton". Greater Talent Network Speakers Bureau. http://www.greatertalent.com/AlSharpton. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
21.^ a b Stefan Friedman. "Reverend Al Sharpton's Bio". National Action Network. http://www.nationalactionnetwork.net/html/history.html. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
22.^ "Rev. Al Sharpton gets baptized in Brooklyn; former Pentecostal minister becomes a Baptist". Jet. 1994-02-28. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_n17_v85/ai_14878964. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
23.^ Matthew Chayes (2007-05-08). "Hitchens, Sharpton Spar Over the Almighty". The New York Sun. http://www.nysun.com/article/54047. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
24.^ "Al Sharpton and Christopher Hitchens." FORA.tv. 7 May 2007. 6 August 2009.
25.^ NYC to Pay $200K to Al Sharpton in Case Against NYPD: Top News Stories at Officer.com
26.^ Alan Goldman, Slavery ties Sharpton to Thurmond, Associated Press, February 25, 2007.
27.^ Katrina A. Goggins, Thurmond Child Says Sharpton Overreacted, Associated Press, February 27, 2007.
28.^ Al Sharpton Jr., My link to Strom Thurmond, Los Angeles Times, March 1, 2007.
29.^ /07/michaeljackson Liveblogging Michael Jackson's funeral and memorial service, The Guardian, July 7, 2009; see Sharpton's eulogy here.
30.^ a b Candidates - Al Sharpton, CNN's "America Votes 2004", web site accessed 7 April 2007
31.^ Sharpton Biography, thehistorymakers.com, web site access 7 April 2007
32.^ Michael Slackman, "Sharpton Runs for Presidency, and Influence", The New York Times, December 5, 2003.
33.^ "U.S. Prosecution Of Goetz Sought", The New York Times, January 29, 1985.
34.^ David E. Pitt, "Blacks See Goetz Verdict As Blow To Race Relations", The New York Times, June 18, 1987.
35.^ Robert D. McFadden, "Black Man Dies After Beating In Queens", New York Times, December 21, 1986.
36.^ Ronald Smothers, "1,200 Protesters Of Racial Attack March In Queens", New York Times, December 28, 1986.
37.^ Nick Ravo, "Marchers and Brooklyn Youths Trade Racial Jeers", New York Times, August 27, 1989.
38.^ Robert D. McFadden, "Sharpton Is Stabbed at Bensonhurst Protest", New York Times, January 13, 1991.
39.^ Lee A. Daniels, "Attacker Of Sharpton Is Sentenced", New York Times, March 17, 1992.
40.^ a b c d e "As a Divided Community Begins to Forget, a Court Reopens Old Wounds in Crown Heights". The Village Voice. Last updated: 2002-22-01. http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0203,kamber,31532,1.html. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
41.^ a b "The skeletons and suits in Sharpton's closet". Salon.com. http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2003/06/20/sharpton/index.html?pn=2. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
42.^ John Kifner (1991-08-21). "A Boy's Death Ignites Clashes in Crown Heights". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE1D6173EF932A1575BC0A967958260. Retrieved 2008-03-28.
43.^ "Things Go Seriously Wrong". The Gotham Gazette. Last updated: 2003-06-01. http://www.gothamgazette.com/article//20030602/4/408. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
44.^ Blacks March by Hasidim Through a Corridor of Blue by JOHN KIFNER New York Times (1857-Current file); August 25, 1991; ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2003) pg. 36
45.^ Sexton, Joe (1995-12-09). "Bad Luck and Horror for Seven in a Shop". New York Times. p. 1.
46.^ Pyle, Richard (1995-12-12). "New Yorker Reflect on a Massacre in Harlem". Albany Times Union/Associated Press. p. B2.
47.^ Barry, Dan (1995-12-09). "DEATH ON 128TH STREET: THE DISPUTE; Plans to Evict Record-Shop Owner Roiled Residents". New York Times: p. 31. http://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/09/nyregion/death-128th-street-dispute-plans-evict-record-shop-owner-roiled-residents.html?scp=1&sq=Plans%20to%20Evict%20Record%20Shop%20Owner%20Roiled%20Residents&st=cse. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
48.^ Lowry, Rich (2003-12-03). "Sharpton's Victory". National Review. http://www.nationalreview.com/lowry/lowry200312030840.asp. Retrieved 2007-04-16.
49.^ Kifner, John (1995-12-09). "Eight killed in Harlem arson, Gunman among dead". San Francisco Chronicle. http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1995/12/09/MN74133.DTL. Retrieved 2007-04-16.
50.^ Sexton, John (1995-12-18). "A Life of Resistance: A Special Report;Gunman's Ardent Credo: Black Self-Sufficiency". New York Times. Smith was found with a card identifying himself as Aboudima Moulika and he had also used the name Abugunde Mulocko.
51.^ Inquiry Traces Sprinkler System Failure in Fatal Harlem Fire. The New York Times. December 15, 1995.
52.^ "Al Sharpton for president?". The Phoenix.com. Last updated: 2002-07-03. http://bostonphoenix.com/boston/news_features/top/features/documents/02179035.htm. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
53.^ "$3 Million Deal in Police Killing of Diallo in '99". CNN. Last updated: 2004-07-01. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/07/nyregion/07DIAL.html?ei=5007&en=d206d2bc3e5b387d&ex=1388898000&partner=USERLAND&pagewanted=all&position=. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
54.^ Lipton, Eric (2001-05-24). "Sharpton and 3 from Bronx are jailed in Vieques Protest". New York Times. p. 1.
55.^ As Outrage Mounts in New York Over the Police Killing of Another African Immigrant, Democracy Now! Interviews Kadiatou Diallo, Mother of Amadou Diallo., Democracy Now!, Tuesday, May 27th, 2003
56.^ Lueck, Thomas J. (May 7, 2008). "Bell Protesters Block Traffic Across City". The New York Times. http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/07/protesters-assail-acquittal-of-officers-in-sean-bell-case/index.html?hp. Retrieved 2008-05-08.
57.^ a b Othón, Nancy L. (March 11, 2008). "Sharpton says Dunbar Village defendants being treated unfairly". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on March 14, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080314141109/http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-311sharpton,0,1042033.story. Retrieved 2009-10-28.
58.^ Murphy, Keith (August 1, 2007). "Al Sharpton on Barack Obama". Vibe. http://www.vibe.com/obama/2007/08/sharpton_obama/. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
59.^ Sandalow, Marc (July 16, 2003). "Democrats divided on gay marriage". The San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/07/16/MN75663.DTL. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
60.^ Sharpton Chides Black Churches Over Homophobia, Gay Marriage, Dyana Bagby, Houston Voice, January 24, 2006
61.^ Rev. Al Sharpton Preaches Compassion for Chickens, Kentuckyfriedcruelty.com, web site accessed 7 April 2007
62.^ Lowery, Mark (1991-08-18). "Sharpton Calls For a Boycott Of Classes". Newsday. p. 5.
63.^ "Sharpton’s Victory". National Review Online. Last updated: 2003-03-12. http://www.nationalreview.com/lowry/lowry200312030840.asp. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
64.^ Foolish Words: The Most Stupid Words Ever Spoken
65.^ The Skeletons and Suits in Sharpton's Closet, Salon.com, June 20, 2003
66.^ Sharpton Pledges Fight Against Homophobia Among Blacks, The New York Sun, August 3, 2005
67.^ Sharpton accused of 'bigotry' after remark on faith, CNN, May 9, 2007.
68.^ audio file
69.^ Sharpton denies disputing Romney's faith, USA Today, May 9, 2007.
70.^ Catholic League Calls For End of Sharpton's Career, KSL-TV, May 10, 2007.
71.^ Romney Accuses Sharpton of a Bigoted Remark, The New York Times, May 10, 2007.
72.^ Sharpton apologizes to LDS Church apostles, Deseret Morning News, May 10, 2007.
73.^ a b Sharpton apologizes, plans Utah trip, Deseret Morning News, May 11, 2007.
74.^ The Rev. Al Sharpton Completes Visit to Church Headquarters, Newsroom, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, May 22, 2007.
75.^ 'Common ground' — Sharpton tours, meets with apostle, Deseret Morning News, May 22, 2007.
76.^ "Winner in Brawley suit says victory is bittersweet". CNN. Last updated: 1998-14-01. http://www.cnn.com/US/9807/13/brawley.verdict.02/. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
77.^ "Sharpton Returns Public Funds". Washington Post. Last updated: 2007-16-12. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/15/AR2005121501824.html. Retrieved 2007-04-06.
78.^ "FEC Reaches Settlement with Rev. Al Sharpton, Sharpton 2004 and Non-profit Corporation". April 30, 2009. http://www.fec.gov/press/press2009/20090430MUR_Sharpton.shtml. Retrieved September 5, 2009.
79.^ David B. Caruso (April 30, 2009). "Sharpton fined, but feels vindicated in FEC probe". http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/04/30/national/a173941D63.DTL. Retrieved September 5, 2009.
80.^ Chuck Bennett, "Subpoena Blitz Puts Heat on Al", New York Post, June 19, 2008.
81.^ Isabel Vincent and Susan Edelman, "Rev. Al Soaks Up Boycott Bucks: Biz Giants Pay or Face Race Rallies", New York Post, June 15, 2008.
82.^ Marzulli, John (2008-06-20). "Sharpton gets big gun to fend off feds". New York Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2008/06/19/2008-06-19_sharpton_gets_big_gun_to_fend_off_feds.html. Retrieved 2008-06-20.
Further reading
Thompson, Krissah (April 16, 2010). "Obama Administration Finds a Strong Ally in the Rev. Al Sharpton". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/16/AR2010041602381.html.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Al Sharpton
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Al Sharpton

Al Sharpton at the Internet Movie Database
The Al Sharpton Show
Salon Interview with Al Sharpton
Text of Democratic National Convention 2004 Speech
The grand jury report on the Brawley case (misdirected link as of 7/09)
A CNN story on the Pagones suit (Defunct as of 7/09)
On the Issues - Al Sharpton issue positions and quotes
Al Sharpton 1988 Poughkeepsie march photograph by photographer/filmmaker Clay Walker
[hide]v • d • eUnited States presidential election candidates, 2004

Democratic Party Straw polls · Primary polls · General polls · Debates · Primaries · Results · Delegates · Convention

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Gregory Meeks

2010-04-17T07:04:00.001-07:00

Gregory Meeks
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Gregory Meeks

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New York's 6th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
February 3, 1998
Preceded by Floyd Flake

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Member of the
New York State Assembly
from the 31st district
In office
1993–1998
Preceded by Anthony Seminerio
Succeeded by Pauline Rhodd-Cummings

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Born September 25, 1953 (1953-09-25) (age 56)
New York City, New York
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Simone Marie Meeks
Residence Queens, New York City, New York
Alma mater Adelphi University, Howard University
Occupation attorney, judge
Religion African Methodist Episcopal

Gregory Weldon Meeks (born September 25, 1953 to Brian Carpenter), American politician, has been a liberal Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1998, representing New York's 6th congressional district, which includes most of Southeastern Queens including Jamaica, Laurelton, Rosedale, Saint Albans, Springfield Gardens, and Far Rockaway, as well as John F. Kennedy International Airport. His district is made up mainly of middle-class and upper middle-class African-American communities, but also includes a small part of Ozone Park and part of Howard Beach known as Old Howard Beach, both of which are mainly made up of middle-class Italian-Americans. He also represents much of Kew Gardens and northern Richmond Hill, middle-class white and South Asian neighborhoods.

Contents [hide]
1 Early life and early professional career
2 Elected official
3 Committee assignments
3.1 Caucus memberships
4 Interest Groups
4.1 Issue Positions
5 Philippine Visit
6 Letter to "Tirofijo"
7 Congressional Auto Lease
8 2008 House Primary election
9 External links
10 References

[edit] Early life and early professional career
Born in East Harlem, New York City and raised in a housing project, he attended Adelphi University and obtained a degree in Law from Howard University. He worked as an Assistant District Attorney and Special Narcotics Prosecutor for the City of New York before joining the Investigations Commission to investigate official misconduct and organized crime. He then was Supervising Judge for the New York State Workers Compensation System.

[edit] Elected official
He was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1992. He was elected to Congress in a special election to replace right-wing Democrat Floyd Flake, a congressman, reverend, and real estate developer who was retiring to focus on his church's real estate holdings. Meeks currently serves on the House Financial Services Committee and the House International Relations Committee. He is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus and of the New Democrat Coalition and supports the Bush Administration's warrantless wiretapping programs.

His wife Simone was recently considering a 2009 run for New York City Council. However, Meeks publicly announced that he would be supporting a male candidate, not his wife, in that election.

Meeks is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African Americans. [13]

During the 2008 electoral campaign[1], he appeared in a TV ad[2] endorsing the reelection of Puerto Rico Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá.

[edit] Committee assignments
Committee on Financial Services
Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit
Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology
Subcommittee on International Monetary Policy and Trade (Chairman)
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health
Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, and the Global Environment
Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere
[edit] Caucus memberships
Co-chair of the Dialogue Caucus
Co-chair of the Malaysia Caucus
Co-chair of the Middle East Economic Partnership Caucus
Co-chair of the Services Caucus
[edit] Interest Groups
Gregory Meeks is pro-choice on abortion and he supported Planned Parenthood all throughout his career. His votes, such as voting against the prohibition of late-term or partial birth abortions, twice in 2003 against the Republicans, support and strengthen his position on abortion. However, in the recent 2008 election for funding federal money to abortions, he voted against it. [3] He is supported by NARAL Pro-Choice America, National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association is the not supported by National Rights to Life Committee. [4]

Gregory Meeks is for animal rights and he never supported or voted for the organizations supporting hunters and animals owners based on his votes in Congress. He is also a supporter of endangered species and voted to protect them. In the 2005 Endangered Reauthorization Species bill, he voted against the Republicans in vain [5]. He is supported by the Humane Society of the United States, Big Cats Rescue and is not supported by Sportmen and Animal Owner’s Voting Alliance. [6]

Gregory Meeks is not supported by the Americans for Fair Taxation, which wants to the change the tax system, so a clean slate is given to every American and he or she is taxed equally by using retail sales tax. However, this banishes Social Security, Medicare and other government supported plans. [7] Also, the National Taxpayers Union does not support Meeks. [8] The National Taxpayers Union strives to change the current tax system to make it simpler to the individual. [9] Similarly, he is not supported by the National TaxPayers Union, National Tax Limitation Committee and American for Tax Reform, which have supported more Republicans than Democrats. None of these groups have overwhelmingly supported Gregory Meeks since he has been a representative of New York. [10]

[edit] Issue Positions
On the Federal Budget, Gregory Meeks supports Social Security and Medicare and wants to balance the budget, lower national debt while sending money to education, environment and national defense. [11] He is also against the privatization of Social Security. [12] On Homeland Security, Gregory Meeks has unwavering support of on-ground troops and a large supporter of veterans and emergency responders. [13] Finally, Gregory Meeks is a strong supporter of the Health Care plan and is currently working to promote the extension and expansion of the State’s Children’s Health Insurance Program. He has also worked hard to increase the federal funding to research fields to speed cures. [14]

[edit] Philippine Visit
On August 25, 2007, Silvestre Reyes, chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Armed Services Committee and four other US Congressmen visited American troops deployed in the southern Philippines to overview the US-Philippines relationship. Reyes headed the bipartisan delegation which included New Jersey Rep. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen , member of appropriations committee and the select intelligence oversight panel; New Mexico Rep. Heather Wilson of the committee on energy and the intelligence committee; New York Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, a Democrat, of the financial services and international relations committees; and Maryland Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger of the appropriations and intelligence committees. They drove to the base of the Joint Special Operation Task Force Philippines (JSOTFP), a US-led body, which trains Filipino soldiers against terror, in Barangay Upper Calarian.[15]

[edit] Letter to "Tirofijo"
On December 20, 2007 along with 2 other US representatives (Bill Delahunt and Jim McGovern), Meeks wrote a letter thanking the head of the leftist Colombian guerilla FARC (Revolutionary army of Colombia, in Spanish) for the release of evidence that confirms the survival of several of the 45 hostages that the terrorist groups holds captive (including 3 US citizens), some of them for over a decade. The group is considered a terrorist organization by the US government and the European Union. The terrorist are currently demanding for the release of the captives the surrender of Colombian territory; this demand is vehemently rejected by the current democratically elected Colombian government. [16]

[edit] Congressional Auto Lease
It was recently noted by the New York Times that Meeks utilizes the option to use tax dollars to lease a car, for use as a member of Congress. This option does not exist for Senate members. The lease is forgone by many members of Congress, but Meeks presently holds the most expensive lease among all members. Despite having one of the most compact districts in the entire Congress, with access to public transportation, he currently uses tax dollars to lease a 2007 Lexus LS 460, at $998 per month. Meeks was unwilling to provide further comment when questioned by the New York Times, on the lease arrangement, saying "These are never lighthearted stories." [17]

[edit] 2008 House Primary election
Meeks was criticized for initially supporting Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama. His House primary election challenger is Ruben Wills, a former chief of staff for State Senator Shirley L. Huntley and an organizer Obama. Wills said “I was on board with Obama from Day 1. Meeks had to be dragged across the line.” Some suggest that a young black political class is seeking to assert the neighborhood’s power against what it sees as an older establishment, based in Harlem, that has long exercised disproportionate influence in New York City.[18][19]

[edit] External links
U.S. Congressman Gregory W. Meeks official U.S. House site
Congressman Gregory Meeks official campaign site
Gregory Meeks at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
Federal Election Commission — Gregory Weldon Meeks campaign finance reports and data
On the Issues — Gregory Meeks issue positions and quotes
OpenSecrets.org — Gregory W. Meeks campaign contributions
Project Vote Smart — Representative Gregory W. Meeks (NY) profile
SourceWatch Congresspedia — Greg Meeks profile
Washington Post — Congress Votes Database: Gregory Meeks voting record
[edit] References
1.^ http://anibalgobernador.com/blog/?n=129
2.^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BtZkdpAkgc
3.^ [1]
4.^ [2]
5.^ [3]
6.^ [4]
7.^ [5]
8.^ [6]
9.^ [7]
10.^ [8]
11.^ [9]
12.^ [10]
13.^ [11]
14.^ [12]
15.^ Inquirer.net, US congressmen visit troops in Mindanao
16.^ Congresistas de E.U. escriben a 'Tirofijo' y le agradecen pruebas de supervivencia, http://www.eltiempo.com/conflicto/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-3868513.html
17.^ What Would You Drive, if the Taxpayers Paid? - New York Times
18.^ NY Times Advertisement
19.^ Obama Forces Back Challenges To Meeks In SE Queens Primary | www.qgazette.com | Queens Gazette
Political offices
Preceded by
Anthony Seminerio New York State Assembly, 31st District
1993–1998 Succeeded by
Pauline Rhodd-Cummings
United States House of Representatives
Preceded by
Floyd H. Flake Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New York's 6th congressional district
1998– Succeeded by
Incumbent
[hide]v • d • eNew York's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators Charles E. Schumer (D), Kirsten Gillibrand (D)

Representatives (District maps), Tim Bishop (D), Steve Israel (D), Peter T. King (R), Carolyn McCarthy (D), Gary Ackerman (D), Gregory Meeks (D), Joseph Crowley (D), Jerrold Nadler (D), Anthony D. Weiner (D), Edolphus Towns (D), Yvette Clarke (D), Nydia Velázquez (D), Michael McMahon (D), Carolyn B. Maloney (D), Charles B. Rangel (D), José Serrano (D), Eliot Engel (D), Nita Lowey (D), John Hall (D), Scott Murphy (D), Paul Tonko (D), Maurice Hinchey (D), Bill Owens (D), Mike Arcuri (D), Dan Maffei (D), Chris Lee (R), Brian Higgins (D), Louise Slaughter (D), vacant

State delegations Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming

Non-voting delegations American Samoa • District of Columbia • Guam • Northern Mariana Islands • Puerto Rico • U.S. Virgin Islands

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregory_Meeks"
Categories: 1953 births | African American politicians | Living people | Members of the New York Assembly | Members of the United States House of Representatives from New York | New York Democrats | People from Harlem | American Methodists | Howard University alumni | African American members of the United States House of Representatives | Adelphi University alumni | Public officeholders of Rockaway, Queens | People of the African Methodist Episcopal church | 20th-century MethodistsViews
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Benjamin Hooks

2010-04-17T06:44:00.001-07:00

Benjamin Lawson Hooks (January 31, 1925 – April 15, 2010) was an American civil rights leader. A Baptist minister and practicing attorney, he served as executive director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) from 1977 to 1992, and throughout his career was a vocal campaigner for civil rights in the United States.[1][2][3]

Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Education
3 Legal career
4 Other endeavors
5 The NAACP
6 Views on equality
7 Retirement
8 Professional memberships
9 Honors and awards
10 Footnotes
11 External links
12 References

[edit] Early life
Benjamin Hooks was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He was the fifth of seven children of Robert B. Hooks and Bessie White Hooks. His father was a photographer and owned a photography studio with his brother Henry known at the time as Hooks Brothers, and the family was fairly comfortable by the standards of black people for the day. Still, he recalls that he had to wear hand-me-down clothes and that his mother had to be careful to make the dollars stretch to feed and care for the family.

Young Benjamin’s paternal grandmother, Julia Britton Hooks (1852–1942), graduated from Berea College in Kentucky in 1874 and was only the second American black woman to graduate from college. She was a musical prodigy who began playing piano publicly at age five, and at age 18 joined Berea’s faculty, teaching instrumental music 1870–72. Her sister, Dr. Mary E. Britton, also attended Berea, and became a physician in Lexington, Kentucky.

With such a family legacy, young Benjamin was inspired to study hard and prepare himself for college. In his youth, he had felt called to the Christian ministry. His father, however, did not approve and discouraged Benjamin from such a calling.

Benjamin was a member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.

[edit] Education
Hooks enrolled in LeMoyne-Owen College, in Memphis, Tennessee. There he undertook a pre-law course of study 1941–43. In his college years he became more acutely aware that he was one of a large number of Americans who were required to use segregated lunch counters, water fountains, and restrooms. “I wish I could tell you every time I was on the highway and couldn’t use a restroom,” he told U.S. News & World Report in an interview. “My bladder is messed up because of that. Stomach is messed up from eating cold sandwiches.”

After graduating in 1944 from Howard University, he joined the Army and had the job of guarding Italian prisoners of war. He found it humiliating that the prisoners were allowed to eat in restaurants from which he was barred. He was discharged from the Army after the end of the war with the rank of staff sergeant.

After the war he enrolled at the DePaul University College of Law in Chicago to study law. No law school in his native Tennessee would admit him. He graduated from DePaul in 1948 with his Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree.

[edit] Legal career
Upon graduation Hooks immediately returned to his native Memphis. By this time he was thoroughly committed to breaking down the practices of racial segregation that existed in the United States. Fighting prejudice at every turn, he passed the Tennessee bar exam and set up his own law practice. “At that time you were insulted by law clerks, excluded from white bar associations and when I was in court, I was lucky to be called Ben,” he recalled in an interview with Jet magazine. “Usually it was just ‘boy.’ [But] the judges were always fair. The discrimination of those days has changed and, today, the South is ahead of the North in many respects in civil rights progress.”

By 1949 Hooks had earned a local reputation as one of the few black lawyers in Memphis. At the Shelby County fair, he met a 24-year-old science teacher by the name of Frances Dancy. They began to date, and soon became inseparable. They were married in Memphis in 1952. Mrs. Hooks recalled in Ebony magazine that her husband was “good looking, very quiet, very intelligent.” She added: “He loved to go around to churches and that type of thing, so I started going with him. He was really a good catch.”

Hooks was a friend and associate of Dr. T.R.M. Howard, the head of the Regional Council of Negro Leadership (RCNL), a leading civil rights organization in Mississippi. Hooks attended the RCNL's annual conferences in the all-black town of Mound Bayou, Mississippi which often drew crowds of ten thousand or more. In 1954, only days before the U.S. Supreme Court handed down Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, he appeared on an RCNL-sponsored roundtable, along with Thurgood Marshall, and other black Southern attorneys to formulate possible litigation strategies.

[edit] Other endeavors
Hooks still felt the calling to the Christian ministry that he had felt in his youth. He was ordained as a Baptist minister in 1956 and began to preach regularly at the Greater Middle Baptist Church in Memphis, while continuing his busy law practice. He joined the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (then known as Southern Negro Leaders Conference on Transportation and Nonviolent Integration) along with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He also became a pioneer in the NAACP-sponsored restaurant sit-ins and other boycotts of consumer items and services.

In addition to his other roles, he decided to enter Tennessee state politics and ran unsuccessfully for the state legislature in 1954 and for juvenile court judge in 1959 and 1963. Despite his losses, the personable young lawyer and preacher attracted not only black voters but liberal whites as well. By 1965 he was well enough known that Tennessee Governor Frank G. Clement appointed him to fill a vacancy in the Shelby County criminal court. With this he became the first black criminal court judge in Tennessee history. His temporary appointment to the bench expired in 1966 but he campaigned for, and won election to a full term in the same judicial office.

By the late 1960s Hooks was a judge, a businessman, a lawyer, and a minister, but he continued to do more. Twice a month he flew to Detroit to preach at the Greater New Mount Moriah Baptist Church. He also continued to work with the NAACP in civil rights protests and marches. Fortunately for Hooks, his wife Frances matched him in energy and stamina. She became her husband’s assistant, secretary, advisor, and traveling companion, even though it meant sacrificing her own career. “He said he needed me to help him”, she told Ebony. “Few husbands tell their wives that they need them after 30 years of marriage, so I gave it up and here I am, right by his side.”

Hooks had been a producer and host of several local television shows in Memphis in addition to his other duties and was a strong supporter of Republican political candidates. In 1972, President Richard Nixon appointed Hooks to be one of the five commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The Senate confirmed the nomination, and Benjamin and Frances Hooks moved to Washington, D.C. in 1973. As a member of the FCC, Hooks addressed the lack of minority ownership of television and radio stations, the minority employment statistics for the broadcasting industry, and the image of blacks in the mass media. Hooks completed his five-year term on the board of commissioners in 1978, but he continued to work for black involvement in the entertainment industry.

[edit] The NAACP
On November 6, 1976, the 64-member board of directors of the NAACP elected Hooks executive director of the organization. In the late 1970s the membership had declined from a high of about 500,000 to only about 200,000. Hooks was determined to add to the enrollment and to raise money for the organization’s severely depleted treasury, without changing the NAACP’s goals or mandates. “Black Americans are not defeated,” he told Ebony soon after his formal induction in 1977. “The civil rights movement is not dead. If anyone thinks that we are going to stop agitating, they had better think again. If anyone thinks that we are going to stop litigating, they had better close the courts. If anyone thinks that we are not going to demonstrate and protest, they had better roll up the sidewalks.”

In his early years at the NAACP, Hooks had some bitter arguments with Margaret Bush Wilson, chairwoman of the NAACP’s board of directors. At one point in 1983, Wilson summarily suspended Hooks after a quarrel over the organization’s policy. Wilson accused Hooks of mismanagement but the charges were never proven. A majority of the board backed Hooks and he never officially left his post as executive director. He has overseen the organization’s positions on affirmative action, federal aid to cities, foreign relations with repressive governments such as that in South Africa, and domestic policy decisions of every sort. Hooks liked to call himself “just a poor little ol’ country preacher,” but his modesty hardly hid his long list of accomplishments.

In 1980, Hooks explained why the NAACP was against using violence to obtain civil rights:

There are a lot of ways an oppressed people can rise. One way to rise is to study, to be smarter than your oppressor. The concept of rising against oppression through physical contact is stupid and self-defeating. It exalts brawn over brain. And the most enduring contributions made to civilization have not been made by brawn, they have been made by brain.
[edit] Views on equality
Early in 1990 Hooks and his family were among the targets in a wave of bombings against civil rights leaders. Hooks visited President George H. W. Bush in the White House to discuss the escalating tensions between races. He emerged from that meeting with the government’s full support against racially motivated bomb attacks, but he was very critical of the administration’s apparent lack of action concerning inner city poverty and lack of support for public education.

On the other hand, Hooks would not lay all the blame for America’s ills at the feet of its elected officials. He has been a staunch advocate of self-help among the black community, urging wealthy and middle-class blacks to give time and resources to those less fortunate. “It’s time today... to bring it out of the closet: No longer can we proffer polite, explicable, reasons why Black America cannot do more for itself,” he told the 1990 NAACP convention delegates. “I’m calling for a moratorium on excuses. I challenge black America today—all of us—to set aside our alibis.”[4]

By 1991 some younger members of the NAACP thought that Hooks had lost touch with black America and ought to resign. One newspaper wrote: “Critics say the organization is a dinosaur whose national leadership is still living in the glory days of the civil rights movement.” Dr. Frederick Zak, a young local NAACP president, was quoted as saying, “There is a tendency by some of the older people to romanticize the struggle—especially the marching and the picketing and the boycotting and the going to jail.”

Hooks feels that the perilous times of the civil rights movement should never be taken for granted, especially by those who were born in the aftermath of the movement’s gains. “A young black man can’t understand what it means to have something he’s never been denied,’ Hooks told U.S. News & World Report. “I can’t make them understand the mental relief I feel at the rights we have. It almost infuriates me that people don’t understand what integration has done for this country.”

[edit] Retirement
Hooks and his wife handled the NAACP’s business and helped to plan for its future for more than 15 years. He told the New York Times that a “sense of duty and responsibility” to the NAACP compelled him to stay in office through the 1990s, but eventually the demands of the executive director position proved too great for a man of his age. In February 1992, at the age of 67, he announced his resignation from the post, calling it “a killing job,” according to the Detroit Free Press. Hooks stated that he would serve out the 1992 year and predicted that a change in leadership would not jeopardize the NAACP’s stability: “We’ve been through some little stormy periods before. I think we’ll overcome it.”

Hooks served as a distinguished adjunct professor for the Political Science department of the University of Memphis. In 1996, the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change was established at the University of Memphis. The Hooks Institute is a public policy research center supporting the urban research mission of the University of Memphis, and honoring Hooks’ many years of leadership in the American Civil Rights Movement. The Institute works to advance understanding of the legacy of the American Civil Rights Movement – and of other movements for social justice – through teaching, research and community programs that emphasize social movements, race relations, strong communities, public education, effective public participation, and social and economic justice.

Hooks also resumed preaching at the Greater Middle Baptist Church in Memphis where he had begun preaching in 1956.

On March 24, 2001, Benjamin Hooks and Frances Hooks renewed their wedding vows for the third time, after nearly 50 years of marriage. The ceremony was held in the Greater Middle Baptist Church in Memphis . Hooks died on April 15th 2010 at 85 years old.

[edit] Professional memberships
American Bar Association
National Bar Association
Tennessee Bar Association
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Tennessee Council on Human Relations
Hooks died when he was 85 years old.

[edit] Honors and awards
Hooks was awarded the Spingarn Medal from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, 1986.
In 1988, Hooks received an honorary doctorate at Central Connecticut State University.
NAACP created the Benjamin L. Hooks Distinguished Service Award, which is awarded to persons for efforts in implementing policies and programs which promote equal opportunity.
University of Memphis created the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change. The Hooks Institute is committed to bringing scholars together to advance the goals of the civil rights movement, to promote human rights and democratic government worldwide, and to honor the lifetime of work of Hooks.
Hooks received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush in November 2007.
Was inducted in the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site on January 12, 2008[5]
The Memphis Library's main Branch Is named in his honor.

[edit] Footnotes
1.^ Obituary New York Times, April 16, 2010; page A19.
2.^ Obituary Los Angeles Times, April 16, 2010; page AA5.
3.^ Obituary Washington Post, April 16, 2010.
4.^ "NAACP Convention Pushes For More Black Self-Help; Wilder Gets Spingarn Medal". Jet: p. 4. July 30, 1990. http://books.google.com/books?id=0a8DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA4&dq=%22No+longer+can+we+proffer+polite,+explicable,+reasons%22#PPA5,M1. Retrieved June 8, 2009.
5.^ International Civil Rights Walk of Fame Inductees
[edit] External links
Benjamin Hooks' oral history video excerpts at The National Visionary Leadership Project
[edit] References
David T. Beito and Linda Royster Beito, T.R.M. Howard: Pragmatism over Strict Integrationist Ideology in the Mississippi Delta, 1942-1954 in Glenn Feldman, ed., Before Brown: Civil Rights and White Backlash in the Modern South (2004 book), 68-95.
Biography — University of Memphis
Biography — The History Makers
Biography — AfricanAmericans.com
Biography — The Museum of Broadcast Communications
[hide]v • d • eNational Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Leaders Presidents/CEOs
(executive secretaries 1910-1977;
executive directors 1977-1996) Frances Blascoer (1910-1911) · Mary White Ovington (1911-1912) · Mary Childs Nerney (1912-1916) · Mary White Ovington (1916) · Royall Freeman Nash (1916-1917) · James Weldon Johnson (1917-1918) · John R. Shillady (1918-1920) · James Weldon Johnson (1920-1931) · Walter Francis White (1931-1955) · Roy Wilkins (1955-1977) · Benjamin Hooks (1977-1992) · Benjamin Chavis Muhammad (1993-1994) · Earl Shinhoster (1994-1996) · Kweisi Mfume (1996-2004) · Dennis Courtland Hayes (2005) · Bruce S. Gordon (2005-2007) · Dennis Courtland Hayes (2007-2008) · Benjamin Jealous (2007-present)

Elected presidents
(1909-1996, abolished) Moorfield Storey (1909-1929) · Joel Elias Spingarn (1930-1939) · Arthur B. Spingarn (1940-1965) · Kivie Kaplan (1966-1975) · William Montague Cobb (1976-1982) · James Kemp (1983) · Enolia McMillan (1984-1990) · Hazel N. Dukes (1990-1992) · Rupert Richardson (1992-1996)

Chairpersons William English Walling (1910-1911) · Oswald Garrison Villard (1911 – 1914) · Joel Elias Spingarn (1914 – 1919) · Mary White Ovington (1919 – 1934) · Louis T. Wright (1934 – 1953) · Channing Heggie Tobias (1953 – 1960) · Robert C. Weaver (1960 – 1961) · Stephen Gill Spottswood (1961 – 1975) · Margaret Bush Wilson (1975-1983) · Kelly Alexander (1983-1984) · William Gibson (1985-1995) · Myrlie Evers-Williams (1995-1998) · Julian Bond (1998-2010) · Roslyn Brock (2010-present)

See also NAACP Theatre Awards · NAACP Image Awards · NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund · NAACP Youth Council · Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics · Spingarn Medal · Niagara Movement · National Negro Committee · The Crisis

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Hooks"
Categories: 1925 births | 2010 deaths | African Americans' rights activists | African American people | Howard University alumni | National Association for the Advancement of Colored People | Spingarn Medal winners
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