Armstrong Louis (1900-71)
Black US jazz trumpet player and singer, also called ‘Satchmo.’ His superb playing, abrasive voice, and irrepressible personality made him one of the best loved entertainers of the century.
Born in New Orleans he learned to play the cornet while confined in a waif’s home at the age thirteen for firing a revolver in the street.
After his released, he did a variety of odd jobs, before playing in the jazz bands of King Oliver and Fletcher Anderson.
In 1925-28 he made about sixty records as the leader of the small group, now known as the Hot Fives and the Hot Sevens.
These records made him the first great solo star in the history of popular music.
During this period he switched from the cornet to the larger brighter sounding trumpet.
From 1931 to 1947 he led various big bands, then formed a small group again, called All Stars.
As well as complete mastery of his instruments, he had an instinctive understanding of harmony, a flamboyant lyricism, and unique sense of phrasing, all of which combined to make him one of the main influences in popular music.
As early as 1932 he toured Europe, eventually –laying in nearly every country in the world.
He had a hit record as late as 1964 (Hello Dolly) and appeared in many films, notably The Birth of the Blues (1941), High Society (1956), and Satchmo the Great (1957).
Armstrong Louis (1900-71)
Friday, October 23, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela must be reckoned as one of the greatest leaders – real and symbolic of the twentieth century.
Mandela came to lead the movement against white supremacy in South Africa.
He spent 27 years in prison for those efforts, becoming a symbol of defiance against injustice.
Upon his release from prison, Mandela helped negotiate South Africa’s transition to democracy.
He won the Nobel Peace Price and became South Africa’s first president to be elected under universal suffrage.
Rolihlahla Mandela was born on July 18, 198, to an elite family in the Transkei region of South Africa.
He attended a Christian mission school and later the College of Fort Hare. He was given the name Nelson, after the British admiral, by a primary school teacher who had trouble pronouncing his given name.
Mandela eventually chose to become a lawyer and opened a law practice with Oliver Tambo another important anti-apartheid leader.
Mandela joined the Youth League of the African National Congress (AN) in 1944 and soon rose to the top leadership of the ANC.
The ANC which advocated “non-racialism”, was the main anti-apartheid organization South Africa, although it did not engage in mass politics or movement activities before 1949.
Mandela led the nonviolent Defiance Campaign of 1952 and helped coordinate the multiracial Congress Alliance that brought together black, white and South Asian opponents of apartheid.
The Alliance issued the “Freedom Charter” in 1955, which declared that “South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white, and ...no government can justly claim authority unless it is based on the will of all the people.”
The government arrested 156 members of the Alliance, charging them with treason. The subsequent Treason Trial concluded in 1961 with the acquittal of all the defendants against the whom the government had not already dropped its charges, including Mandela.
Mandela and other leading anti-apartheid activist were arrested in 1962 and 1963; many more fled into exile. In June 1964, Mandela and seven others were convicted of various charges and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Mandela would spend most of his 27 years in prison at Robben Island, a prison off Cape Town that became home – and a kind of university or think tank – for many black political prisoners.
During his yeas in prison, Mandela became internationally recognized symbol of defiance to apartheid.
Secret talks with exiled ANC officials and eventually with Mandela were begun, especially after F. W de Klerk became president.
De Klerk began to release ANC activists from prison. Finally, on February 11, 1990, Mandela himself was released, an event broadcast live around the world.
Over the next several years and despite many obstacles and setbacks, Mandela helped negotiate South Africa’s transition to democracy.
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela must be reckoned as one of the greatest leaders – real and symbolic of the twentieth century.
Mandela came to lead the movement against white supremacy in South Africa.
He spent 27 years in prison for those efforts, becoming a symbol of defiance against injustice.
Upon his release from prison, Mandela helped negotiate South Africa’s transition to democracy.
He won the Nobel Peace Price and became South Africa’s first president to be elected under universal suffrage.
Rolihlahla Mandela was born on July 18, 198, to an elite family in the Transkei region of South Africa.
He attended a Christian mission school and later the College of Fort Hare. He was given the name Nelson, after the British admiral, by a primary school teacher who had trouble pronouncing his given name.
Mandela eventually chose to become a lawyer and opened a law practice with Oliver Tambo another important anti-apartheid leader.
Mandela joined the Youth League of the African National Congress (AN) in 1944 and soon rose to the top leadership of the ANC.
The ANC which advocated “non-racialism”, was the main anti-apartheid organization South Africa, although it did not engage in mass politics or movement activities before 1949.
Mandela led the nonviolent Defiance Campaign of 1952 and helped coordinate the multiracial Congress Alliance that brought together black, white and South Asian opponents of apartheid.
The Alliance issued the “Freedom Charter” in 1955, which declared that “South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white, and ...no government can justly claim authority unless it is based on the will of all the people.”
The government arrested 156 members of the Alliance, charging them with treason. The subsequent Treason Trial concluded in 1961 with the acquittal of all the defendants against the whom the government had not already dropped its charges, including Mandela.
Mandela and other leading anti-apartheid activist were arrested in 1962 and 1963; many more fled into exile. In June 1964, Mandela and seven others were convicted of various charges and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Mandela would spend most of his 27 years in prison at Robben Island, a prison off Cape Town that became home – and a kind of university or think tank – for many black political prisoners.
During his yeas in prison, Mandela became internationally recognized symbol of defiance to apartheid.
Secret talks with exiled ANC officials and eventually with Mandela were begun, especially after F. W de Klerk became president.
De Klerk began to release ANC activists from prison. Finally, on February 11, 1990, Mandela himself was released, an event broadcast live around the world.
Over the next several years and despite many obstacles and setbacks, Mandela helped negotiate South Africa’s transition to democracy.
Nelson Mandela
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Mary Gordon
Mary Gordon
Mary Catherine Gordon (born December 8, 1949) is an American writer and Macintosh Professor of English at Barnard College.
Born on Long Island, New York in the US, Mary Catherine Gordon attended Barnard College (BA 1971) and Syracuse University (MA 1973) and has taught at Poughkeepsie and Amherst colleges.
Writing fiction which often reflects he Catholicism and interest in feminism, her first novel, Final Payments (1978), is about a young girl’s attempt to remake her life after caring for her terminally ill father for eleven years and her sense of self-sacrifice.
The Company of Women (1980) studies a conservative priest’s influence on the lives of several women, while Men and Angels (1985) concerns the relationships forged between women and men.
Novels
Final Payments (1978)
The Company of Women (1980)
Men and Angels (1985)
The Other Side (1989)
Spending (1998)
Pearl (2005)
Non Fiction
The Shadow Man: A daughter’s Search For Her Father (1996)
Seeing Through Places: Reflections on Geography and Identity (2000)
Circling My Mother: A Memoir (2007)
Biography
Joan of Arc (2000)
Mary Gordon
Mary Catherine Gordon (born December 8, 1949) is an American writer and Macintosh Professor of English at Barnard College.
Born on Long Island, New York in the US, Mary Catherine Gordon attended Barnard College (BA 1971) and Syracuse University (MA 1973) and has taught at Poughkeepsie and Amherst colleges.
Writing fiction which often reflects he Catholicism and interest in feminism, her first novel, Final Payments (1978), is about a young girl’s attempt to remake her life after caring for her terminally ill father for eleven years and her sense of self-sacrifice.
The Company of Women (1980) studies a conservative priest’s influence on the lives of several women, while Men and Angels (1985) concerns the relationships forged between women and men.
Novels
Final Payments (1978)
The Company of Women (1980)
Men and Angels (1985)
The Other Side (1989)
Spending (1998)
Pearl (2005)
Non Fiction
The Shadow Man: A daughter’s Search For Her Father (1996)
Seeing Through Places: Reflections on Geography and Identity (2000)
Circling My Mother: A Memoir (2007)
Biography
Joan of Arc (2000)
Mary Gordon
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