Artists and Authors

Maya Angelou (Marguerite Johnson) 1928-   Author, dancer, actress, poet

Maya Angelou became the first African American streetcar conductor in San Francisco, was a dancer, an actress and a screenwriter, however she is most famous for her poems. She read her poetry at the 1993 inauguration of President Clinton.
 
Langston Hughes 1902-1967 Writer

Considered the "Poet Laureate of Harlem," Hughes wrote poems, short stories, children's books, novels, plays and other works. He was inspired by the rhythm of black musicians and church sermons. In his writing, he celebrated ordinary African American people doing ordinary everyday things.
 
Toni Morrison 1931-  Novelist and Editor

Morrison was the first African American woman to win the Nobel Prize in literature.
 
Entertainers

Denzel Washington 1954-   Actor

An Oscar-winning actor, Washington has portrayed many African American heroes on screen, such as Stephen Biko, the South African political activist, in Cry Freedom, and Malcolm X in Spike Lee's movie of the same name. He also had starring roles on TV shows and series. He is a big supporter of the Boys and Girls Clubs, which helped him develop confidence and self-reliance when he was a child.
 
Bill Cosby 1937-  Comedian and best-selling author

Cosby created a children's cartoon based on himself and his best friends titled Fat Albert. He was a successful stand-up comedian as well as a well-known spokesperson for Jell-O products. He went on to create a long-running television series, The Cosby Show, depicting a prominent, successful black family. He wrote the best-selling book Fatherhood and hosted numerous family specials on TV.
 
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee 19570  Movie Director and Producer

Spike Lee is known as the most successful African American film director today, creating such hits as Do the Right Thing.
 
Dorothy Dandridge 1922-1965 Singer, dancer, actress

She was a singer in a band called The Dandridge Sisters, and became on of the first black leading ladies of Hollywood. She became the first African American woman to be featured on the cover of Life magazine in 1954.
 
Oprah Winfrey 1954-   Television Host, Actress, Producer

She is the host of one of the most successful talk shows in the history of television, Oprah. An avid reader as a child, she started a national book club through her TV show which got the whole country reading and launched many unknown writers to stardom. She was nominated for an Oscar for her performance in The Color Purple, and began her own production company, Harpo Productions, which is "Oprah" spelled backwards.
 
Will Smith 1968- Musician and actor

Smith began his career as a rap artist called The Fresh Prince, singing the song "Parents Just Don't Understand" with fellow singer DJ Jazzy Jeff. A three-time Grammy winning rap singer, he went on to star in his own TV show The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, and then star in numerous high grossing action/adventure movies like Men in Black.