Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American singer, actress, dancer and civil rights activist. Horne’s career spanned more than seventy years and covered film, television and theatre.
A major hurdle for Horne in the early 1950s was being blacklisted in Hollywood and television due to her political views and association with leftist groups and figures like Paul Robeson. This significantly curtailed her film and TV appearances.
Despite the blacklist, Horne continued to thrive as a live performer. She became one of the premier nightclub entertainers of the post-war era, headlining at prestigious venues across the U.S., Canada, and Europe, including the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas and the Waldorf Astoria in New York. These live appearances were crucial for her career during this period.
Horne also maintained a successful recording career. Her live album, Lena Horne at the Waldorf-Astoria (1957), became the biggest-selling record by a female artist in the history of the RCA Victor label at that time. Other notable recordings from this decade include the album Stormy Weather and the duet album Porgy & Bess with Harry Belafonte (1959). Her 1955 single “Love Me or Leave Me” was also a hit.
In 1957, Horne achieved significant acclaim for her performance in the Broadway musical Jamaica, which ran for 558 performances. She became the first African-American woman to be nominated for a Tony Award for “Best Actress in a Musical” for this role in 1958.
As the blacklist eased by the mid-1950s, Horne began making appearances on television variety shows, such as The Ed Sullivan Show and The Perry Como Show. She also made a film appearance in Meet Me in Las Vegas (1956), though she primarily sang in these roles rather than having substantial acting parts.
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