People, Locations, Episodes

Noel Da Costa, Composer and Violinist born.

*Noel Da Costa was born on this date in 1929. He was a Black Nigerian-Jamaican composer, jazz violinist, and choral conductor. Noel G. Da Costa was born in Lagos, Nigeria, to parents from Kingston, Jamaica, who were Salvation Army missionaries. After returning to Jamaica while Da Costa was young, they emigrated to Harlem, New York. […]

Frederick Tillis, Composer, Collegiate Educator, born

*Frederick Tillis was born on this date in 1930. He was a Black composer, jazz saxophonist, poet, and collegiate music educator. Born in Galveston, Texas, Frederick Charles Tillis was raised by his mother, Zelma Bernice Gardner Tillis, his stepfather, General Gardner, and his maternal grandparents, Willie Tillis and Jessie Tillis-Hubbard. His mother played piano and […]

Geoffrey Holder, Actor, and Choreographer born

*Geoffrey Holder was born on this date in 1930.  He was a Black Trinidadian American actor, voice actor, dancer, choreographer, singer, director, and painter. Born in Port of Spain, Trinidad, Geoffrey Lamont Holder was one of four children to parents of Bajan and Trinidadian descent.  He was educated at Tranquility School and Queen’s Royal College in Port of Spain. At seven, he performed in his […]

Alvin Ailey, Modern Dance Leader born

Alvin Ailey was born on this date in 1931. He was an African American dancer and choreographer, and founding director of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Carol Millard, Singer and Actress born

*Carol Maillard was born on this date in 1951. She is a Black vocalist and actress. Maillard is from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and originally attended the Catholic University of America on scholarship as a Violin Performance major. She began writing music and performing with the Drama Department and eventually changed her major to Theater. This passion […]

Carmen de Lavallade, Actress and Dance Teacher born.

*Carmen de Lavallade was born on this date in 1931. She is a Black actress, choreographer, dancer, and teacher. De Lavallade was born in Los Angeles, California, to Creole parents from New Orleans, Louisiana. She was raised by her aunt, Adele, who owned one of Central Avenue’s first African American history bookshops. De Lavallade’s cousin, […]

Shirley Verrett, Opera Singer born

Shirley Verrett was born on this date in 1931. She is an African American opera singer and one of the leading sopranos in the world.

She was born New Orleans to Leon Solomon, a building contractor, and Elvira Harris Verrett; she had four brothers and a sister. She had and her parents were passionate members of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, an affiliation that would play a role in the development of Verrett’s career. When Verrett was five, the family moved to Oxnard, CA, where her father established the Verrett Construction Company.

David Driskell, Artist, and Art Educator born

*David C. Driskell was born on this date in 1931. He was a Black artist, scholar, professor, and curator recognized for establishing African American Art as a distinct field of study. David Clyde Driskell was born in Eatonton, Georgia, the son of George Washington Driskell, a Baptist minister, and Mary Cloud Driskell, a homemaker. William […]

Philippa Schuyler, Composer, and Writer born

On this date, Philippa D. Schuyler was born in 1931. She was an African American concert pianist.

Thomas Carey, Vocalist born

*Thomas Carey was born on this date in 1931. He was a Black operatic baritone vocalist born in Bennettsville, South Carolina, and served in the United States military during the Korean War.   After leaving the service, he studied singing at the Henry Street Settlement and City College of New York. In 1970, he performed […]

Nichelle Nichols, TV, Actress born

*Nichelle Nichols was born on this date in 1932. She was a Black actress, singer, and dancer. Grace Dell Nichols was the third of six children born in Robbins, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Her father was Samuel Earl Nichols, a factory worker who was elected both town mayor and chief magistrate of Robbins in […]

Eugene E. White, Artist born

*Eugene E. White was born on this date in 1933. He is an African American artist.

Benjamin Matthews, Classic Vocalist, and Opera Administrator.

*Benjamin Matthews was born on this date in 1933. He was a Black classical (bass-baritone) singer and opera administrator. Benjamin Matthews was born in Prichard, Alabama. After moving to Chicago for high school, he enlisted in the Army, where he won second place in an all-Army singing contest. After the military, he joined the Chicago […]

Sam Gilliam, Artist born

*Sam Gilliam was born on this date in 1933. He was a Black color field painter and lyrical abstractionist artist. Sam Gilliam was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, and the seventh of eight children was born to Sam and Estery Gilliam. The Gilliams moved to Louisville, Kentucky, shortly after he was born. His father worked on […]

Kenneth Young, Artist born

*Kenneth Young was born on this date in 1933. He was a Black artist, educator, and designer. Kenneth Victor Young was born in Louisville, Kentucky. In the 1950s, Young served in the United States Navy. He attended the University of Louisville to study design and physics, followed by additional studies at Indiana University and the […]