Lena Horne: racism and resilience in the Golden Age of Hollywood
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What early influences shaped Lena Horne's life and career?
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Hello and welcome to You're Dead to Me, the Radio 4 comedy podcast that takes history seriously. My name is Greg Jenner. I'm a public historian, author and broadcaster. And today we are donning our glad rags and finding our spotlight as we learn all about the legendary singer and Hollywood actress Lena Horne. And to help us, we have two very special fellow performers in History Corner. They're Associate Professor in Popular Music and Director of Black Studies at the University of Nottingham. They're an expert on musical theatre and especially race and gender identity in popular culture. You'll remember them from our episode on the history of Broadway. It's Dr Hannah Tericium Robbins. Welcome back, Hannah.
Thanks for having me back. Delighted to have you back. And in Comedy Corner, an introduction feels completely redundant for such a stalwart of your dead to me. She's a comedian, actor and writer. You've seen her all over the TV on Taskmaster, Frankie Boyle's New World Order, QI, Too Hot to Handle. Maybe you've seen her incredible new stand-up show, The Golden Roth. And you'll know her from so many episodes of this very podcast, including recent highlights, Sojourner Truth and the history of Broadway. Not one episode. What an episode that would be. Yes, we're getting the band back together. It's Desiree Birch. Welcome back, Desiree.
Thanks so much for having me back, Greg. It's so nice to be back and find out what the heck happened before.
That's the alternative name of the show. What the heck happened before? Desiree, we have covered several performers before. We have Diane Josephine Baker together, Paul Robeson, P.T. Barnum to an extent.
Yeah, true. Yes, he performed Being a Human just about.
Just about. So if I come to you and I say the name Lena Horne, what comes to mind?
So what comes to mind is Glinda the Good Witch from The Wiz. Because I grew up, that was the Black Wizard of Oz that we grew up on in the 80s. And so that sort of, I think, was my introduction to her. And also seeing her perform on The Cosby Show, R.I.P. Were my... I'm just saying. But those were my interactions with her. And she kind of, I think, in my head, occupies a similar sort of like Harry Belafonte status of being a performer and an activist as well. Yeah.
This is good knowledge. OK.
How did Lena Horne's experiences at the Cotton Club impact her career?
Yeah. Yeah. That's that's spot on. Yeah. Yeah. It's quite the life. I mean, I didn't know half of this stuff and I'm really excited. So we better crack on. So what do you know? This is the So What Do You Know? This is where I have a go at guessing what you, our lovely listener, might know about today's subject. And I'm guessing there's a lot of people who've heard the name Lena Horne, but maybe don't quite know who she is. Maybe it's the Desiree thing of The Wiz. If you're a fan of classic Hollywood movies, maybe you've seen her in Cabin in the Sky or Stormy Weather. Or you watched her star turn, as Desiree did, as Glinda, in The Wizard of Oz adaptation The Wiz. Music lovers might recognise the song Stormy Weather, which is how I know about Lena Horne, or know her incredible voice from her dozens of albums.
And of course, if you were a kid or a grown-up, you maybe grew up watching Sesame Street and the Muppets and saw Lena Horne there. But what about Lena Horne's life story? How did she become the star of stage and screen? And what colour exactly is light Egyptian? Let's find out. Right. Professor Hannah, starting at the beginning. When was Lena Horne born and what was her family background? We're 20th century, right?
Yeah, absolutely. So she was born on June the 30th, 1917, to what was a middle class black family. Her father, Edwin, was kind of a Renaissance man. He spoke six languages. He owned a restaurant and a hotel, but eventually he got caught up in gambling and Her mother, Edna, was an actress.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What early influences shaped Lena Horne's life and career?
0:00–2:50
2
How did Lena Horne's experiences at the Cotton Club impact her career?
2:50–5:26
3
What challenges did Lena Horne face in the Hollywood film industry?
5:26–10:35
4
How did Lena Horne contribute to the civil rights movement?
10:35–16:50
5
What were the significant milestones in Lena Horne's musical career?
16:50–22:38
6
How did Lena Horne navigate her personal relationships amidst her career?
22:38–29:57
7
What legacy did Lena Horne leave in the entertainment industry?
29:57–37:58
8
How did Lena Horne's life reflect the broader struggles of Black artists?
37:58–1:02:42
Speakers
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