* Today in Black History - November 16 *
1873 - William Christopher Handy is born in Florence, Alabama.
He will be best known as a composer and blues musician
and earn the nickname "Father of the Blues." Among
his most noteworthy compositions will be "Memphis
Blues," "St. Louis Blues," and "Beale Street Blues."
He will also form a music publishing company with
Harry Pace and become one of the most important
influences in African American music. His 1941
autobiography, "Father of the Blues," will be a
sourcebook and reference on this uniquely African
American musical style. He will join the ancestors on
March 28, 1958 in New York City, the same year "The St.
Louis Blues", an biographical movie of his life debuts.
1873 - Richard T. Greener, who was the first African American
graduate of Harvard University, is named professor of
metaphysics at the University of South Carolina.
1873 - African Americans win three state offices in the
Mississippi election: Alexander K. Davis, Lieutenant
governor; James Hill, secretary of state; T.W. Cardozo,
superintendent of education. African Americans win 55
of the 115 seats in the house and 9 out of 37 seats in
the senate, 42 per cent of the total number.
1930 - Albert Chinualumogu Achebe is born in Ogidi, Nigeria
Protectorate. He will become an internationally acclaimed
author known as Chinua Achebe. His first novel, "Things
Fall Apart" (1958) will be considered his magnum opus, and
will be the most widely read book in modern African
literature. His later novels will include "No Longer at
Ease" (1960), "Arrow of God" (1964), "A Man of the People"
(1966), and "Anthills of the Savannah" (1987). He will
write his novels in English and defend the use of English,
a "language of colonisers", in African literature. In 1975,
his lecture "An Image of Africa: Racism" in Conrad's 'Heart
of Darkness' will feature a famous criticism of Joseph
Conrad as "a thoroughgoing racist". It will be later
published in The Massachusetts Review amid some controversy.
A titled Igbo chieftain, his novels will focus on the
traditions of Igbo society, the effect of Christian
influences, and the clash of Western and traditional African
values during and after the colonial era. His style will rely
heavily on the Igbo oral tradition, and combine straight-
forward narration with representations of folk stories,
proverbs, and oratory. He will also publish a number of short
stories, children's books, and essay collections. From 2009
until 2013, he will serve as David and Marianna Fisher
University Professor and Professor of Africana Studies at
Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. He will join the
ancestors on March 21, 2013.
1931 - Hubert Charles Sumlin is born on a farm near Greenwood,
Mississippi. He will leave home at seventeen to tour clubs and
taverns throughout the South with his childhood friend James
Cotton. The Jimmy Cotton band will record for the Sun label in
Memphis from 1950 to 1953. In 1954, he will join the Howlin'
Wolf band and move to Chicago. It will be Howlin' Wolf who will
mentor him, prodding and encouraging him to find his own style
and develop as a performer. He will perform with Howlin' Wolf
for twenty five years. He will be best known for his "wrenched,
shattering bursts of notes, sudden cliff-hanger silences and
daring rhythmic suspensions". He will be listed as number 43 in
the Rolling Stone 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. He will
join the ancestors on December 4, 2011.
1962 - Wilt Chamberlain of the NBA San Francisco Warriors scores 73
points against the New York Knicks.
1963 - Zina Lynna Garrison is born in Houston, Texas. She will become a
professional tennis player. During her career, she will be a
women's singles runner-up at Wimbledon in 1990, a three-time
Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, a women's doubles gold
medalist and women's single bronze medalist at the 1988 Olympic
Games. After retiring from the tour, she will work as a television
commentator and maintain active roles in the community and in
tennis. She will found the Zina Garrison Foundation for the
Homeless in 1988, and the Zina Garrison All-Court Tennis Program,
which will support inner-city tennis in Houston, in 1992. She will
also serve as a member of the United States President's Council on
Physical Fitness and Sports. She will maintain a presence on the
professional tennis scene, and be the captain for the United States
Federation Cup team until 2008. This role involves coaching the
team and giving on-court advice. She will also lead the U.S. women's
team at the 2008 Beijing Games tennis event where team members Venus
and Serena Williams will win a doubles gold medal.
1964 - Dwight Eugene "Doc" Gooden is born in Tampa, Florida. He will become
a professional baseball pitcher for the New York Mets (1984–1994),
the New York Yankees (1996–1997), the Cleveland Indians (1998–1999),
the Houston Astros (2000), the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2000) and the
New York Yankees (2000). "The Doctor" will set the record for most
strikeouts in a rookie season and become Rookie of the Year in 1984.
He will receive the Cy Young Award in 1985, becoming the youngest to
win that award.
1967 - A one-man showing of 48 paintings by Henry O. Tanner is presented at
the Grand Central Galleries in New York City. The presentation of
the canvases, not in the best of condition, is criticized by The New
York Times as an "injustice to a proud man."
1967 - Lisa Michele Bonet is born in San Francisco, California. She will
become an actress and be actress. She will be best known for her role
as Denise Huxtable–Kendall on the NBC sitcom, "The Cosby Show"
(1984–92) and originally starring in its spinoff comedy, "A Different
World" for its first season (1987–88). After The Cosby Show, she will
begin to accept jobs on straight-to-video releases and made-for-TV
movies. In 1998, she will have a supporting role in "Enemy of the State"
with Will Smith. In 2000, she will appear in the movie "High Fidelity."
In 2003, she will play the role of Queenie in "Biker Boyz," which will
reunite her with former co-star Kadeem Hardison of "A Different World."
She will also co-star in the 2006 film "Whitepaddy" alongside Sherilyn
Fenn, Hill Harper, Debra Wilson, Karen Black, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Two years later, she will appear in the US adaptation of the British
television series, "Life on Mars."
1972 - The Louisiana National Guard mobilizes after police officers kill two
students during demonstrations at Southern University.
1975 - Walter Payton of the Chicago Bears rushes for 105 yards in a game against
the San Francisco '49ers. It will be Payton's first game of 100 plus
yards. He will repeat this feat over 50 times throughout his career
and add two 200-yard games.
1989 - South African President F.W. de Klerk announces the scrapping of the
Separate Amenities Act, opening up the country's beaches to all races.
1996 - Texaco agrees to pay $176.9 million dollars to settle a two-year old race
discrimination class action suit.
1998 - The Supreme Court rules that union members can file discrimination
lawsuits against employers even when labor contracts require arbitration.
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