* Today in Black History - October 30 *
1831 - Nat Turner is remembered for his role in the slave
revolt that took place in Southampton county,
Virginia on August 21.
1916 - Leon Day is born in Alexandria, Virginia. He will become
a professional baseball pitcher who will spend the
majority of his career in the Negro leagues. Recognized
as one of the most versatile athletes in the league
during his prime, he will play every position, with the
exception of catcher, and often will be the starting
second baseman or center fielder when he is not on the
mound. A right-handed pitcher with a trademark no wind-
up delivery, he will excel at striking batters out,
especially with his high-speed fastball. At the same
time, he will be an above-average contact hitter, which,
combined with his effectiveness as a baserunner and his
tenacious fielding, will help cement him as one of the
most dynamic players of the era. Debuting in the Negro
leagues in 1934, he will play with the Baltimore Black
Sox, Newark Eagles, and Baltimore Elite Giants during
his career. In 1937, he will have the best season of
his career as a member of the Eagles, finishing with a
perfect record of 13–0 and a batting average over .300.
He will also play Puerto Rican winter ball in the
offseasons. He will hold both the Negro and Puerto
Rican league records for strikeouts in a game, and will
appear in the most East–West All-Star Games. Because of
his soft-spoken demeanor, his accomplishments were not
immediately recognized as opposed to other elite
pitchers of the league like Satchel Paige. Nonetheless,
he will be considered one of the best pitchers of the
Negro leagues, equaling and sometimes surpassing the
abilities of his rivals. In 1995, he will be elected
into the Baseball Hall of Fame, just six days before he
joins the ancestors on March 13, 1995 at 78 years old.
1922 - Jane White is born in New York City. She will become an
actress. She will attend Smith College and The New School.
In 1945, she will make her Broadway debut in Strange Fruit.
This performance will be followed by roles in Razzle
Dazzle, The Insect Comedy, The Climate of Eden, Take a
Giant Step, Jane Eyre, and The Power and The Glory. In
1959, she will open the acclaimed musical Once Upon a
Mattress, originating the role of Queen Aggravain
alongside Carol Burnett and Joseph Bova. She will win an
Obie Award in 1971 for sustained achievement. She will
continue to work steadily in theatre and occasionally in
television and movies from the 1970s through the 2000s.
Her theatrical work will span summer stock, off-Broadway
and on-Broadway shows. Much of her work will be in
classical dramas, with particular focus on Shakespeare;
she will win an Obie Award for her roles in the 1965-66
New York Shakespeare Festival as Volumnia in Coriolanus
and the Princess of France in Love's Labour's Lost. She
will win the 1988-89 Los Angeles Critics Circle Award for
her role as the Mother in Federico Garcia Lorca's Blood
Wedding. She will additionally play roles in such dramas
as Euripides' Iphigenia at Aulis and Henrik Ibsen's
Ghosts; comedies such as Paul Rudnick's I Hate Hamlet;
and musicals such as Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night
Music and the 2001 production of Sondheim's Follies, to
name a small selection. In addition to the productions of
Once Upon a Mattress, her television work will include a
1979 stint on the soap operas The Edge of Night, A World
Apart, and Search for Tomorrow. She will be one of the
first African American actresses to play a role under
contract on soap operas when she originates the role of
Lyndia Holliday, R. N. on The Edge of Night. In 1998, she
will play the schoolteacher Lady Jones in the movie
version of Toni Morrison's Beloved. From 1979-80, she
will star in a self-written, one-woman cabaret show
entitled Jane White, Who?, which will intersperse
autobiographical anecdotes and personal reminiscence with
songs. As recently as 2006, she will continue to perform
occasionally in cabaret theater. She will join the
ancestors on July 24, 2011.
1930 - Clifford Benjamin Brown is born in Wilmington, Delaware. He
will become a jazz trumpeter. He will join the ancestors
on June 26, 1956 at the age of 25 in a car accident,
leaving behind four years' worth of recordings. He will
also be a composer of note: his compositions "Sandu," "Joy
Spring," and "Daahoud" have become jazz standards. He will
win the Down Beat critics' poll for New Star of the Year
in 1954; he will be inducted into the DownBeat Jazz Hall
of Fame in 1972 in the critics' poll. He will influence
later jazz trumpeters such as Booker Little, Freddie
Hubbard, and Lee Morgan.
1939 - Eddie Holland is born in Detroit, Michigan. He will become
one-third of an amazing songwriting and production trio,
Holland-Dozier-Holland. Eddie Holland will not be as
successful on his own as when teamed with brother Brian
Holland and Lamont Dozier. Eddie Holland will score his
biggest hit as a solo artist back in 1962, with "Jamie"
reaching number six on the R&B charts and peaking at #30
Pop. He recorded three more songs for Motown in the mid-
'60s, but none of them were hits, and he then concentrated
on songwriting and production. The Holland-Dozier-Holland
trio will write numerous hits for Motown acts through the
'60s before departing in 1968. They will form their own
label in 1970, Hot Wax/Invictus, and will have success for
a while with such acts as The Chairmen Of The Board, Laura
Lee, and the Honey Cone. Some of the songs written by the
trio are "Where Did Our Love Go", "Baby Love", "Stop! In
the Name of Love", "I Hear a Symphony", "You Keep Me Hangin'
On", "Reach Out", and "I'll Be There." Holland-Dozier-Holland
will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
1941 - Otis Miles, Jr. is born in Texarkana, Arkansas. He will
become a rhythm and blues singer known as Otis Williams
and will be one of the original members of the Motown
group, The Temptations. Some of their hits will be "I
Can't Get Next to You", "Cloud Nine", "Runaway Child",
"Running Wild", "Just My Imagination", "Papa was a
Rolling Stone", and "Masquerade." The Temptations will
eventually became the most successful act in music over the
course of its nearly five-decade existence, over which time
notable singers such as David Ruffin, Dennis Edwards,
former Distant Richard Street, Damon Harris, Ron Tyson,
Ali-Ollie Woodson, Theo Peoples, Ray Davis and former
Spinners singer G.C. Cameron have all been members. In fact,
the group's lineup changes were so frequent, stressful and
troublesome that he and Melvin Franklin promised each
other they would never quit the group. Franklin will remain
in the group until 1994, when he became physically
incapable of continuing. Franklin will join the ancestors
on February 23, 1995, leaving Otis Williams, then 53, as
the last surviving original member of the Temptations
quintet. He will be the co-author, with Patricia Romanowski,
of "Temptations," a 1988 book that will serve as both his
autobiography and a history of the group. Ten years later,
the book will be adapted into a NBC television miniseries
"The Temptations." He will be portrayed by actor Charles
Malik Whitfield. Although he will serve the longest tenure in
the Temptations, he will rarely sing lead, focusing instead
on his role as the group's leader and organizer, and as the
background "baritone in the middle". The Smokey Robinson and
Eddie Kendrick written track "Don't Send Me Away" from the LP
"The Temptations with a Lot o' Soul" (1967), the intro on
early group song "Check Yourself" (1961) and the Norman
Whitfield-penned tune "I Ain't Got Nothing" from 1972's "All
Directions" will be extremely rare showcases for his singing
lead. He will provide non-singing (spoken word) contributions
to some Temptation songs, including "I'm Gonna Make You Love
Me" (1968, a hit duet with Diana Ross and Eddie Kendricks
sharing the lead vocals), and during the opening verse of
"Masterpiece" (1973). In 1989, he will be inducted into The
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Temptations. He
will receive an honorary doctorate from Stillman College in
May 2006.
1950 - Philip "Phil" Chenier is born in Berkeley, California. He will
become a professional basketball player and will be best known
as a member of the Washington Bullets team. He will be selected
fourth in the 1971 NBA Hardship Draft by the Baltimore Bullets,
and will play for them for eight seasons, from 1971 to 1979.
The franchise will move from Baltimore to Washington in 1973,
after his second season. He will be one the better shooting
guards in the NBA for the first six seasons in his career, but
will suffer a back injury early in the 1977-78 season and have
season-ending surgery. The Bullets will go on to win the NBA
title with Kevin Grevey as the shooting guard. He will never be
the same player after that; he will come back from his surgery
late the next season, but will never crack the Bullets' starting
lineup again. He will be released by the Bullets after the
1978-79 season, and play briefly for the Indiana Pacers and Golden
State Warriors and will retire after the 1980-81 season. He will
be a 1972 NBA All-Rookie Team selection, average 17.2 points per
game for his career, and be named to three NBA All-Star teams.
After retiring, he will become a television sportscaster for the
Washington Wizards.
1954 - The Defense Department announces that all units in the armed forces
are now integrated. The announcement comes six years after President
Harry S. Truman issued Executive Order 9981.
1963 - Michael Anthony Beach is born in Roxbury, Massachusetts. He will
become an actor. He will appear in films Lean on Me (1989), One
False Move (1992), Short Cuts (1993), Waiting to Exhale (1995),
A Family Thing (1996), and Soul Food (1997). On television, he
will star as Monte Parker in the NBC drama series Third Watch
from 1999 to 2005. His big screen debut will be in End of the
Line in 1987, and he will go on to appear opposite Morgan
Freeman and Beverly Todd in Lean on Me (1989). He will also
co-star in films including Internal Affairs, Cadence (both 1990),
One False Move (1992) with Cynda Williams, Short Cuts and True
Romance (both 1993). His big break will come in 1995, playing
Angela Bassett's unfaithful husband in the comedy-drama film
Waiting to Exhale. In 1997, he will play Vanessa L. Williams's
unfaithful husband in the comedy-drama film Soul Food. On
television, he will play a recurring role as Al Boulet, the ex-
husband of physician assistant Jeanie Boulet (Gloria Reuben) in
the NBC medical drama ER from 1995 to 1997. From 1999 to 2005,
he will be a regular cast member in the NBC drama series Third
Watch, playing FDNY paramedic Monte 'Doc' Parker. He will have
guest starring roles on Law & Order, Law & Order: Special Victims
Unit, Brothers & Sisters, Criminal Minds, Grey's Anatomy, The
Closer and The Blacklist. He will also be a regular on the short-
lived NBC series Crisis in 2014, and will have recurring roles on
Stargate Atlantis, Sons of Anarchy, The Client List, The Game,
Secrets and Lies and The 100.
1966 - Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, students at Oakland City College in
Oakland, California, create the Black Panther Party for Self Defense.
1970 - William "Billy" Brown is born in Inglewood, California. He will
become an actor. In 2014, he will begin starring as Detective
Nate Lahey in the Shonda Rhimes drama series, How to Get Away
with Murder. He will also be known for his roles in the
television series Lights Out, Dexter, Sons of Anarchy, and
Hostages. In 2017, he will be cast in his first film leading
role in the Screen Gems' thriller Proud Mary opposite Taraji
P. Henson. He will also voice recruiting commercials for the
United States Marine Corps.
1970 - Nia Talita Long is born in Brooklyn, New York. She will become
an actress. She will be known for her roles in the television
series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Third Watch and Empire,
and the films Boyz n the Hood, Friday, Love Jones, Soul Food,
In Too Deep, The Best Man, Big Momma's House and Are We There
Yet?. Her acting coach will be Betty Bridges, better known as
the mother of Diff'rent Strokes star Todd Bridges. Her earliest
role will be in the Disney television movie, The B.R.A.T.
Patrol alongside Sean Astin, Tim Thomerson and Brian Keith. Her
first notable role on television will be a three-year contract
role as Kathryn "Kat" Speakes on the soap opera Guiding Light.
She will portray Kat from 1991 to 1994. She will play Brandi
in Boyz n the Hood. The film will excite her, who was doing her
"first real movie role". It will help her build her confidence
as an actress. "It will introduce me to the world in a way that
it was okay for me to be who I am and still find success," she
will add. "I didn’t have to conform to anything." From 1994 –
1995, she will play Will Smith's girlfriend and fiancée Beulah
"Lisa" Wilkes on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Jada Pinkett
Smith was originally supposed to play Lisa, but was too short
for the role (opposite a 6'2" Will Smith), thus leaving Nia to
take the part. In 2000, she will be offered the role of Alex
Munday in Charlie's Angels, but she will turn it down, and the
role will be eventually given to Lucy Liu. In 2003, she will
join the cast of the drama Third Watch, where she will play
NYPD Officer Sasha Monroe, continuing until the series finale
in 2005. In 2005 and 2006, she will appear on Everwood, and
will appear on Boston Legal during its 2006–2007 season. She
will also star in Big Shots from 2007–2008 alongside Michael
Vartan and Dylan McDermott. In 2016, she will be cast in a
recurring role for the TV series Empire. She will acquire the
role of Giuliana, a Las Vegas club owner. She will appear in
supporting roles in a number of movies such as Friday and
Made in America. She will play a leading role, or a member of
the primary ensemble, in several films, including Soul Food,
Love Jones, Boiler Room, Big Momma's House, Are We There Yet?,
and The Best Man. Ice Cube will star with her in four films,
while (fellow Westchester High alum) Regina King will star
with her in two. She will star alongside Michael Beach in Soul
Food and in the TV series Third Watch.
1976 - Joseph H. Evans is elected president of the United Church
of Christ, the first African American to hold the post
in this predominantly white denomination.
1978 - Esther Rolle wins an Emmy Award for her role in "Summer
of my German Soldier."
1979 - Richard Arrington is the first African American to be
elected mayor of Birmingham, Alabama.
1989 - Frank Mingo, CEO of the Mingo Group, joins the ancestors
in New York City. He, along with D. Parke Gibson,
Barbara Proctor of Proctor and Gardner, and Tom Burrell
of Burrell Advertising was one of the pioneering
advertising executives who specialized in targeting
African American consumers.
1991 - Led by President Robert L. Johnson, BET Holdings, Inc.,
the parent company of Black Entertainment Television,
sells 4.2 million shares of stock in an initial public
offering on the New York Stock Exchange. BET is the first
African American company listed on the "Big Board."
1992 - Tequan Richmond is born in Burlington, North Carolina.
He will be known in his music career as T-Rich. He will
become an actor and rapper. He will be best known for his
character, Drew Rock, on the UPN/CW sitcom Everybody
Hates Chris. He will play Ray Charles, Jr. (son of singer/
musician Ray Charles) in the motion picture Ray, and in
the soap opera General Hospital on the ABC he will
portray T.J. Ashford.
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