December 31, 1930 Odetta Holmes, singer, actress, songwriter, and human rights activist, was born in Birmingham, Alabama. Odetta’s first professional experience was in musical theater in 1944 and in 1949 she joined the “Finian’s Rainbow” touring company. She began her solo career in 1956 with “Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues” and followed with “At the […]
Archive | December RSS feed for this section
December 31st in African American History – Roberto Clemente Walker
December 31, 1972 Roberto Clemente Walker, hall of fame baseball player and humanitarian, died in an airplane crash while delivering aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua. Clemente was born August 18, 1934 in Carolina, Puerto Rico. He was drafted by the Pittsburg Pirates in 1954 and played 18 seasons with the team. During his career, […]
December 30th in African American History – Eldrick Tont “Tiger” Woods
December 30, 1975 Eldrick Tont “Tiger” Woods, one of the most successful golfers of all time, was born in Cypress, California. Woods was a prodigy who began to play golf at the age of two, shot a 48 over nine holes at the age of three, and at the age of five appeared in Golf […]
December 30th in African American History – Samuel Milton Nabrit
December 30, 2003 Samuel Milton Nabrit, biologist, educator, and college president, died. Nabrit was born February 21, 1905 in Macon, Georgia. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Morehouse College in 1925 and his Master of Science degree and Ph. D. from Brown University in 1928 and 1932, respectively. He was the […]
December 29th in African American History – Miles Vandahurst Lynk
December 29, 1957 Miles Vandahurst Lynk, pioneering physician, died. Lynk was born June 3, 1871 in Brownsville, Tennessee. In 1888 at the age of 17, he took a job teaching in Black rural schools to earn money to further his education. In 1891, he earned a medical degree from Meharry Medical College and in 1892 […]
December 29th in African American History – Frederick Dewayne “Freddie” Hubbard
December 29, 2008 Frederick Dewayne “Freddie” Hubbard, jazz trumpeter, died. Hubbard was born April 7, 1938 in Indianapolis, Indiana. He began playing the trumpet in his school band at the Jordan Conservatory. In 1958, he moved to New York City and began playing with some of the best jazz players of the era. In 1960, […]
December 28th in African American History – Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr.
December 28, 1954 Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr., actor, director, and film producer, was born in Mount Vernon, New York. Washington earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in drama and journalism from Fordham University in 1977 and made his professional acting debut in the television movie “Wilma” (1977). His big break came when he starred from […]