Lena Horne...

Sorry I haven't posted in like ever have been ill.


What can I say about Lena Horne that hasn't been said?


In a way, I grew up on her too.


I saw her for the first time on Sesame Street with Kermit.

I didn't discover her earlier film career (I'd only seen her in The Wiz, I think.), until my quest to find black actresses from the Classic/Old School Hollywood cinema began...Thanks to my paternal grandmother, I found out about Dorothy Dandridge, Nina Mae McKinney and a host of others. Without them, we wouldn't have a Zoe Saldana, Gabrielle Union, or a Halle Berry to name a few. I never saw Stormy Weather. I did see Cabin in the Sky. I wanted to post a still from that, but can't find one at present...It's funny...I hadn't thought about this for a long time, but I had a little picture of her from that movie and I kept it in the corner of my bedroom mirror with my mom's picture...Her picture was up there and Billie Holliday, and Dorothy Dandridge...

I also remember the episode of A Different World, when everybody at Hillman was preparing to honor Lena Horne with a tribute. It was definitely one of my favorite episodes.

If they were to make a biopic, who do I see playing her? Probably Alicia Keyes or Paula Patton. I always felt badly that Lena Horne ruled Janet Jackson out for playing her because of the wardrobe malfunction [to this day, I still say that wasn't her fault. I don't think it was staged either...but getting back on topic...]. I always felt Janet favored Dorothy Dandridge more, it's kind of a shame Halle beat her to it...Halle did a spectacular job as Dorothy Dandridge though.

I'm embarassed to admit, it's been a while since I read about Ms. Horne, so I can't remember much about her work in the Civil Rights movement. I was also more interested in her time Hollywood, so more of that stuck...Maybe I should see if I can find the book I read again and reread it...

I also didn't know about her and U Street...She's another performer/person that really makes me wish time travel were possible.

One thing I do know, she too will be greatly missed.

ETA: Just sent Bing a note a few hours ago...They had a photo of Dorothy Dandridge mixed in with their photos of Lena Horne...I guess we all look alike to them, eh? ;) Sometimes you just have to laugh.