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Maya Angelou ( / ˈændʒəloʊ / ⓘ AN-jə-loh; [ 1][ 2] born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning ...
- Poetry of Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou studied and began writing poetry at a young...
- List of Honors Received by Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou reciting her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" at...
- On The Pulse of Morning
Angelou reciting "On the Pulse of Morning" at the first...
- List of Maya Angelou Works
Maya Angelou Angelou's autobiographies are distinct in style...
- I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a 1969 autobiography...
- View History
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- Stamps, Arkansas
A post office has been in operation in Stamps since 1887....
- Mom & Me & Mom
Maya Angelou, in the prologue to Mom & Me & Mom Angelou's...
- Robert Frost
Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an...
- Phenomenal Woman: Four Poems Celebrating Women
Phenomenal Woman: Four Poems Celebrating Women is a book of...
- Poetry of Maya Angelou
Jul 30, 2024 · Maya Angelou (born April 4, 1928, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.—died May 28, 2014, Winston-Salem, North Carolina) was an American poet, memoirist, and actress whose several volumes of autobiography explore the themes of economic, racial, and sexual oppression.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Maya Angelou was an American poet, memoirist, and actress whose several volumes of autobiography explore the themes of economic, racial, and sexual...
- Maya Angelou’s first autobiographical work, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), gained critical acclaim and a National Book Award nomination. H...
- In addition to writing, Maya Angelou was a dancer who studied with Martha Graham and Pearl Primus. She acted onstage, in films, and on television i...
- Maya Angelou was awarded the National Medal of Arts (2000) and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2010). She won three Grammy Awards for her spoken...
- Literature
- Early life
- Fictional character biography
- Writing
- Military service
- Other activities
- Music
- Acting career
- Awards and honors
- Death and legacy
Poet, dancer, singer, activist, and scholar, Maya Angelou is a world-famous author. She is best known for her unique and pioneering autobiographical writing style.
On April 4, 1928, Marguerite Annie Johnson, known to the world as Maya Angelou, was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Due to her parents tumultuous marriage and subsequent divorce, Angelou went to live with her paternal grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas from an early age. Her older brother, Bailey, gave Angelou her nickname Maya.
Returning to her mothers care briefly at the age of seven, Angelou was raped by her mothers boyfriend. He was later jailed and then killed when released from jail. Believing that her confession of the trauma had a hand in the mans death, Angelou became mute for 6 years. During her mutism and into her teens, she again lived with her grandmother in A...
Angelous interest in the written word and the English language was evident from an early age. Throughout her childhood, she wrote essays, poetry, and kept a journal. When she returned to Arkansas, she took an interest in poetry and memorized works by Shakespeare and Poe.
When war broke out, Angelou applied to join the Womens Army Corps. However, her application was rejected because of her involvement in the California Labor School, which was said to have Communist ties. Determined to gain employment, despite only being 15 years old, she decided to apply for the position of street car conductor. Many men had left th...
After graduation, Angelou undertook many civil rights activities. She was northern coordinator of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. This organization, which was created in 1957 by Martin Luther King Jr. and originally known as the Southern Leadership Conference, advocates for the rights of African Americans in the United States.
Angelou is also noted for her many and varied singing and dancing styles, including her calypso music performances. She has written numerous poetry volumes, such as her first book of poetry, entitled Just Give me a Drink of Water fore I Diiie. She has also recorded spoken albums of her poetry, including On the Pulse of the Morning, which she won th...
Angelou also carried out a wide variety of activities on stage and screen as writer, director, and producer. In 1972, she became the first African American woman to have her screen play turned into a film with the production of Georgia, Georgia. The supporting parts that she played in the films, Look Away in 1973 and Roots in 1977, garnered her Ton...
She has been recognized by many universities both nationally and internationally for her contributions to literature. In 1981, Wake Forest University offered Angelou the position of the Reynolds Professorship of American Studies. She has also given many commencement speeches and she has been awarded numerous honorary degrees.
Angelou died on May 28, 2014. Several memorials were held in her honor including ones at Wake Forest University and Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco. To honor her legacy, the US Postal Service issued a stamp with her likeness on it in 2015. There was some controversy surrounding the stamp, because it erroneously credited her with the quote th...
Jan 16, 2024 · Maya Angelou was a poet and author known for her 1969 memoir, ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.’ Read about her poems, books, quotes, quarter, and more facts.
- Maya Angelou was the first Black woman to conduct a cable car in San Francisco. As a teenager, Angelou earned a scholarship to study dance and drama at the California Labor School, but she briefly dropped out when she was 16 to become a cable car conductor in San Francisco.
- Porgy and Bess took Maya Angelou to Europe in the 1950s. After actors spotted her singing in a nightclub and asked if she could dance, Angelou got her foot in the door to join a touring company for Porgy and Bess.
- Maya Angelou spoke six languages. Angelou’s time in Europe also gave her the chance to hear other languages, and she paid very close attention. Ultimately, she learned to speak French, Spanish, Hebrew, Italian, and Fante (a dialect of Akan native to Ghana).
- Maya Angelou didn’t speak for five years in her youth. When she was just a child, Angelou was sexually assaulted by her mother’s boyfriend. She told her brother about the incident, and was later called to testify against the man in court, which led to his conviction.
Jan 20, 2024 · Maya Angelou. From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository. Maya Angelou. American poet, author, and civil rights activist (1928–2014) Upload media. Wikipedia. Wikiquote.
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May 28, 2014 · American poet, memoirist, and actress Maya Angelou wrote several volumes of autobiography that explore the themes of economic, racial, and sexual oppression. She is perhaps best known for her autobiographical work "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" (1969).