Search Results for: American Film Institute

MEDICAL DOCTORS

Dr. Benjamin Carson Cuba Gooding as Dr. Carson and the real Dr. Ben Carson  Dr. Keith L. Black Sidney Poitier, Dr. Black and Quincy Jones *** Legends *** By Yussuf J. Simmonds Managing Editor MEDICAL DOCTORS Society is dependent on doctors to enhance the quality of human life on a daily basis. They serve the people, through caring, conducting research to produce medicines, combating diseases, and teaching, giving and sending others to continue their work extending the quality and the quantity of the human life. “Legends” is re-running the stories of Dr. Benjamin Carson and Dr. Keith Black; they are

Lionel Hampton and Quincy Jones

Lionel Hampton Quincy Jones Legends by Yussuf J. Simmonds Some Big Band LeadersLIONEL HAMPTON and QUINCY JONES (the Lion and ‘Q’) Part Two LIONEL HAMPTON “Hamp, the Lion of Jazz” When the history of jazz is written, Lionel Hampton is listed among the great jazz musicians of all time. Born in Louisville, Kentucky, in April 1908, Hampton ranks among the who’s-who of jazz musicians along with Charlie Parker, Ramsey Lewis, Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Wynton Marsalis and a host of jazz greats – individuals and band leaders. He was a vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. After his

Historic Big Band Leaders

Edward K. “Duke” Ellington William “Count” Basie*** Legends ***by Yussuf J. SimmondsSome Big Band Leaders Duke Ellington and Count Basie…”(A Duke and a Count)Part One DUKE ELLINGTON “A Musical Genius of the Big-Band Era” When Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington was born in 1899 in the nation’s capital, it had the largest Black population of any major American city, and Black people were relegated to densely populated neighborhoods in urban areas.  As a result, they developed their own clubs, cultural organizations, commerce and especially churches.  Ellington’s parents played the piano and his mother projected a refined manner that taught him how

Same Men of Song and Music

Nat “King ” Cole James Brown and Michael Jackson Stevie Wonder LegendsBy Yussuf J. Simmonds Some men of song and music “Nat King Cole, James Brown, Michael Jackson & Stevie Wonder” NAT KING COLE “His voice coined the phrase silky smooth while his singing made music” Born Nathaniel Adams Coles in March, 1919 in Montgomery, Alabama, young Coles and his family moved to Chicago, Illinois where his mother taught him to play the organ at his father’s church. At 12, he began taking formal lessons in jazz, gospel and classical music, while listening to such artists as Louis Armstrong, Jimmie

Sister and Brother

“Born of the same parents, some went separate ways” Grace Jones and Bishop Noel Jones are sister and brother. GRACE JONES/NOEL JONES Grace Jones, born in Jamaica on May 19, 1948, is a well-known actress, singer, lyricist, dancer and supermodel; she relocated to New York with her family in 1965 and studied theatre at Syracuse University. Her movie career began with a minor role as a drug courier in “Gordon’s War” in 1973, but her real breakthrough came in 1984 as Zula in “Conan, the Destroyer” starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. This led to another big role as May Day in the

U.S. Congressional Hearing Blasts Comcast

(Left to right) Rep. Steve Cohen, Rep Maxine Waters, Chairman John Conyers, a staff assistant, Rep. Louie Gohmert and Rep. Judy Chu The Committee on the Judiciary conducted a four-hour hearing to hear from the people the pros and cons about the pending Comcast/NBC-Universal merger By Yussuf J. SimmondsSentinel Managing Editor It was a field hearing of the Congressional Committee on the Judiciary, which was chaired by Representative John Conyers (MI-14) along with Representatives Judy Chu (CA-32), Steve Cohen (TN-9), Louie Gohmert (TX-1) and Maxine Waters (CA-35). Its specific purpose was to solicit input from the community and members of

NAACP Names Cicely Tyson 95th Spingarn Medalist

NAACP Names Cicely Tyson 95th Spingarn Medalist   CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST AND EMMY AWARD WINNING ACTRESS TO RECEIVE ASSOCIATION’S HIGHEST HONOR The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People National Board of Directors announced that actress Cicely Tyson will be honored with the Association’s Spingarn Medal, the NAACP’s highest honor. Tyson will become the 95th recipient of the award, and will be honored during the NAACP National Convention in Kansas City July 15 at the annual Spingarn Dinner. The Spingarn Medal, instituted in 1914 by then-NAACP Chairman Joel E. Spingarn, is awarded for outstanding and noble achievement by an

Jason Maddox Opens State-of-the-Art Photo Studio in Downtown Los Angeles

Jason Maddox Studio Jason Maddox Jason Maddox Opens State-of-the-Art Photo Studio in Downtown Los Angeles His photographs have a unique quality. Some are reminiscent of paintings by the old masters. His fashion shots are swathed in simple beauty, yet futuristic in many instances. Guided from birth by a family mantra stressing excellence in all endeavors, Jason Maddox, a 29-year-old photographer is just that, a young man who strives to be the best in all that he pursues. A part of the fourth generation of one of California’s pioneer African American business families, the Albert (Ethel) Maddox family, Jason is the

Henri Christophe

General Henri Christophe King Christophe The Citadel In Memory of the King Legends By Yussuf J. Simmonds HENRI CHRISTOPHE “One of the architects of the Haitian Revolution” Henri Christophe (pronounced “Or-ree/Ah-ree Kris-tof”), whose date and place of birth have not been historically established to a certainty, played a prominent role in the war against the French during the Haitian Revolution and eventually rose to become the leader of Haiti. He was one of the triumvirates–along with Toussaint L’Ouverture and Jean Jacques Dessalines–that led to the independence of Haiti at the beginning of the 19th century. The achievements of many historical