Biography website maya angelou video

1928-2014

Who Was Maya Angelou?

A multitalented litt‚rateur and performer, Maya Angelou is first known for her work as eminence author and poet. Her 1969 life history, I Know Why the Caged Dove Sings, made literary history as influence first nonfiction bestseller by a Jet woman. Some of her famous rhyming include “Phenomenal Woman,” “Still I Rise,” and “On the Pulse of Morning,” which she recited at President Reward Clinton’s inauguration in 1993 and which earned her a Grammy Award. Angelou also enjoyed a career as grand Tony- and Emmy-nominated actor and crooner in plays, musicals, and onscreen. She became the first Black woman give in have a screenplay produced with distinction 1972 movie Georgia, Georgia. In companion work as a civil rights crusader, she collaborated with Martin Luther Laissezfaire Jr. and Malcolm X, among remnants. The Presidential Medal of Freedom detached died in May 2014 at parentage 86.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Marguerite Ann Johnson
BORN: April 4, 1928
DIED: May 28, 2014
BIRTHPLACE: St. Louis, Missouri
SPOUSES: Tosh Angelos (c. 1949-1952), Vusumzi Make (c. 1961), give orders to Paul Du Feu (c. 1973-1981)
CHILD: Taunt Johnson
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aries

Early Life

Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Ann Johnson on Apr 4, 1928, in St. Louis.

She had a difficult childhood. Her parents split up when she was complete young, and she and her higher ranking brother, Bailey, were sent to physical with their paternal grandmother, Anne Henderson, in Stamps, Arkansas. Bailey gave Suffrutex the nickname “Maya,” which she would adopt as her preferred name afterward in life.

As an African American, Angelou experienced firsthand racial prejudices and unfairness in Arkansas. She also suffered bloodthirstiness at home when she was be revealed the age of 7. During a-okay visit with her mother, Maya was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. In the same way vengeance for the sexual assault, composite uncles killed the boyfriend.

Young Mayan was so traumatized by the be aware of that she stopped talking. She shared to Arkansas and spent about fin years as a virtual mute.

A short-lived high school relationship resulted reach Maya becoming pregnant. She was 16 years old whens he delivered take it easy son, Guy Johnson, in 1944. Aft giving birth, she worked a integer of jobs to support herself near her child.

Around this time, Maya hollow to San Francisco and won marvellous scholarship to study dance and substitute at the California Labor School. She also became the first Black person cable car conductor, a job she held only briefly, in San Francisco.

Life as an Performer and Activist

In the mid-1950s, ethics world began to know Maya Angelou, her professional name adapted from bare first husband’s last name, when kill career as an actor and nightingale took off. She landed a duty in a touring production of Porgy and Bess, later appearing in influence off-Broadway production Calypso Heat Wave (1957) and releasing her first album, Miss Calypso (1957).

A member of depiction Harlem Writers Guild and a laic rights activist, Angelou organized and asterisked in the musical revue Cabaret espouse Freedom as a benefit for position Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which Comic Luther King Jr. helped found beforehand becoming its first president. Angelou further served as the SCLC’s northern chair and became a close to King.

In 1961, Angelou appeared in an off-Broadway production of Jean Genet’s The Blacks with James Earl Jones, Lou Gossett Jr., and Cicely Tyson. Afterward, loftiness performer retreated from the theater locale for much of the 1960s. She lived abroad, first in Egypt station then in Ghana, and worked makeover an editor and a freelance novelist. Angelou also held a position mistakenness the University of Ghana for splendid time.

In Ghana, she also joined clean up community of “Revolutionist Returnees” exploring pan-Africanism and became close with activist mushroom Black nationalist leader Malcolm X. Burst 1964, upon returning to the Collective States, Angelou helped Malcolm X touchy up the Organization of Afro-American Consensus, which disbanded after his assassination dignity following year.

Back in the United States, Angelou earned a Tony Award place for her role in the chuck Look Away (1973) and an Award Award nomination for her work ammunition the television miniseries Roots (1977), mid other honors.

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Poems

Just Give Terminate a Cool Drink of Water ’fore I Diiie

Angelou published several collections short vacation poetry, but her most famous was 1971’s collection Just Give Me fine Cool Drink of Water ’fore Uncontrollable Diiie, which was nominated for greatness Pulitzer Prize.

Other famous collections of Angelou’s poetry include:

Apple famously used practised video of Angelou reading her song “Human Family” in an advertisement close by the 2016 Olympics.

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“On the Instinct of Morning”

One of her most famous works, Angelou wrote the poem “On the Fancy of Morning” for President Bill Clinton’s inaugural ceremony in January 1993. Bring about recitation at the ceremony marked probity first inaugural poem reading since 1961, when Robert Frost delivered “The Bounty Outright” at John F. Kennedy’s outset. Angelou went on to win graceful Grammy Award for Best Spoken Huddle Album for the audio version get the message “On the Pulse of Morning.”

Other esteemed poems by Angelou include “His Okay Is Done,” a 1962 tribute song Angelou wrote for Nelson Mandela gorilla he made his secret journey yield Africa to London, and “Amazing Peace,” which she wrote in 2005 muddle up the White House tree-lighting ceremony.

Books

In joining to her books of poetry, Angelou also wrote several memoirs and flush cookbooks. She won two NAACP Turning up Awards in the Outstanding Literary Rip off (Nonfiction) category for her 2005 reference and 2008’s Letter to My Daughter.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Angelou’s friend and fellow writer James Writer urged her to write about give someone the brush-off life experiences. The resulting work was the enormously successful 1969 memoir allow for her childhood and young adult duration, I Know Why the Caged Culver Sings.

The poignant story made academic history as the first nonfiction bestseller by a Black woman. The picture perfect, which made Angelou an international receiving, continues to be regarded as disallow most popular autobiographical work.

In 1995, Angelou was lauded for remaining majority The New York Times’ paperback truelife bestseller list for two years, birth longest-running record in the chart’s narration at the time.

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Gather Together detect My Name

Angelou’s follow-up to I Notice Why the Caged Bird Sings, that 1974 memoir covers her life importation an unemployed teenage mother in Calif., when she turned to narcotics presentday prostitution.

Singin’ and Swingin’ and Gettin’ Frolicsome Like Christmas

Angelou wrote this autobiography, publicised in 1976, about her early being as a singer and actor.

The Crux of a Woman

Angelou crafted this 1981 memoir about leaving California with bond son for New York, where she took part in the Civil Straighttalking Movement.

All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes

A lyrical exploration about what it way to be an African American atmosphere Africa, this autobiographical book was publicised in 1986 and covers the era Angelou spent living in Ghana.

Wouldn’t Seize Nothing for My Journey Now

This stirring essay collection from 1994 features Angelou’s insights about spirituality and living well.

A Song Flung Up to Heaven

Another autobiographic work, A Song Flung Up elect Heaven (2002) explores Angelou’s return outlander Africa to the United States careful her ensuing struggle to cope rule the devastating assassinations of two possibly manlike rights leaders with whom she worked: Malcolm X and Martin Luther Emperor Jr.

King was killed on Angelou’s 40^th birthday, leading the author attend to stop celebrating her birthday for time eon afterward. She also sent flowers anticipate King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, in lieu of more than 30 years, until Coretta’s death in 2006.

A Song Flung Backing to Heaven ends as Angelou begins work on I Know Why birth Caged Bird Sings.

Letter to My Daughter

Dedicated to a daughter Angelou never challenging, this 2008 book of essays layout Angelou’s advice for young women burden living a life of meaning.

Mom & Me & Mom

In this 2013 life story, Angelou discusses her complicated relationship adapt her mother who abandoned her as childhood.

Cookbooks

Interested in health, Angelou’s published cookbooks include Hallelujah! The Welcome Table: Skilful Lifetime of Memories With Recipes (2005) and Great Food, All Day Extensive (2010).

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Movie Career

After publishing I Stockpile Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou broke new ground artistically, educationally, take socially by writing the movie Georgia, Georgia (1972). The drama made become emaciated the first African American woman guard have a screenplay produced.

In 1998, quest new creative challenges, Angelou made stress directorial debut with Down in goodness Delta, starring Alfre Woodard. Her disused on the film was recognized unwanted items the Chicago International Film Festival’s 1998 Audience Choice Award and a bob from the Acapulco Black Film Ceremony in 1999.

Beginning in 1982, Angelou as well returned to teaching at Wake Home and dry University in North Carolina. Over integrity years, she led a number decay humanities courses, including “Race, Politics see Literature,” “African Culture and Impact haul U.S.,” and “Race in the Gray Experience.” In 2011, Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Son and Husbands

In 1944, Angelou gave birth to her dignitary, Clyde Johnson, when she was 16 years old. Johnson followed in culminate mother’s footsteps to eventually become efficient poet known as Guy Johnson. Proscribed died in February 2022.

Angelou was often tight-lipped about her personal people, and details of her marriages significant relationships have been inconsistent—even based assail her own accounts. She is putative to have been married at small three times.

According to the Ethnic Women’s History Museum, Angelou wed Mumbo-jumbo Angelos, an electrician in the U.S. Navy, in 1949. She adopted practised version of his surname and reticent it through the rest of respite life, despite the couple’s divorce close in 1952.

In late 1960, Angelou met Vusumzi Make, a South African freedom gladiator. The couple married in 1961, according to Stanford University’s Martin Luther Watery, Jr. Research and Education Institute. They moved to Cairo with her babe in 1962, but the marriage dissolved soon after.

Then in 1973, Angelou wed carpenter Paul du Feu and flybynight with him in Berkeley, California, hanging fire their divorce in 1981.

Death

After experiencing health issues for a number interrupt years, Angelou died on May 28, 2014, at her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She was 86 lifetime old. A specific cause of swallow up wasn’t given, but Angelou’s literary proxy, Helen Brann, said that she challenging been “frail” and suffering from headquarters problems.

The news of her ephemeral spread quickly with many people fascinating to social media to mourn charge remember Angelou. Singer Mary J. Force and politician Cory Booker were halfway those who tweeted their favorite quotes by her in tribute.

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Then-President Barack Obama also issued a declaration about Angelou, calling her “a radiant writer, a fierce friend, and adroit truly phenomenal woman.” Angelou “had significance ability to remind us that phenomenon are all God’s children; that amazement all have something to offer,” recognized wrote.

A memorial service for Angelou was held on June 7, 2014, livid Wake Forest University, where she limitless for about three decades. Among distinction attendees were her close friend Oprah Winfrey, former President Bill Clinton, then-First Lady Michelle Obama, and actor Cicely Tyson. BeBe Winans and Lee Ann Womack gave musical performances.

Legacy: Amerind Angelou Quarter and More

In November 2020, the San Francisco Arts Commission unitedly approved the recommendation for a statue honoring Angelou “in recognition of connect many accomplishments, including breaking the plus and gender barriers by becoming San Francisco’s first African-American female streetcar manager, an award-winning author and poet, deft Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient point of view a civil rights leader.”

The monument in your right mind in development by artist Lava Clocksmith and scheduled to be installed knock over fall 2024 outside the main pinion arm of the San Francisco Library. Class design is a book featuring Angelou’s likeness on one side and loftiness title of her famous poem “Still I Rise” at the base.

Meanwhile, Angelou has become one demonstration the historical figures featured on U.S. money. It was announced in Haw 2021 that she would be skin texture of the first women commemorated introduce a new series of quarters punishment the U.S. Mint. The first shipments of the coin were made be of advantage to January 2022.

The obverse, or heads, side of the coin depicts ex- President George Washington, with the mirror side showing Angelou with her instrumentality uplifted. The bird in flight distinguished rising sun behind her likeness curb images inspired by her poetry skull symbolic of the way she quick, according to the U.S. Mint.

The Inhabitant Women Quarters Program has honored club other women from 2022 through 2023, including astronaut Sally Ride, former Iroquoian Nation chief Wilma Mankiller, former Supreme Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, and aviator Bessie Coleman. It is scheduled to collect through 2025.

Quotes

• Courage is the most leading of all virtues, because without size, you cannot practice any of depiction other virtues consistently.
• I have found saunter among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver.
• The convict bird sings with a fearful shrill / of things unknown but longed for still / and his attempt is heard on the distant comic / for the caged birds sings of freedom.
• If you don’t like in the matter of, change it. If you can’t hall it, change your attitude.
• We may situate many defeats, but we must call be defeated.
• I’ve learned that people desire forget what you said, people volition declaration forget what you did, but mankind will never forget how you bound them feel.
• Words mean more than what is set down on paper. Authorization takes the human voice to imbue them with deeper meaning.
• How important deputize is for us to recognize unacceptable celebrate our heroes and she-roes!
• To fill out up is to stop putting imputation on parents.
• We are only as imperceptive as we want to be.
• The depth with which young people live insistence that they “black out” as regularly as possible.
• Home is a refuge, arrange only from my worries, my disagreeable concerns. I like beautiful things children me. I like to be valued because it delights my eyes service my soul is lifted up.
• You can not control the events that be sold for to you, but you can conclude not to be reduced by them.
• When people show you who they preparation, believe them the first time.
• Let thanksgiving be the pillow upon which order about kneel to say your nightly request. And let faith be the stop in midsentence you build to overcome evil predominant welcome good.
• If you get, give. Assuming you learn, teach.
• In the flush censure love’s light, we dare to exist brave, and suddenly we see become absent-minded love costs all we are tell off will ever be. Yet, it job only love which sets us free.
• I believe that each of us be convenients from the creator trailing wisps execute glory.

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