Harry Belafonte Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Folk singer, actor and activist Harry Belafonte has died at the age of 96, his spokesman has confirmed.

Born in Harlem on March 1, 1927, he was raised in Jamaica before returning to the Big Apple only to drop out of high school and enlist in the US Navy. Following his two-year stint, he was honorably discharged and went back to Manhattan.It wasn’t until later that his love for the arts shone through, and his frequent trips to a Harlem community theater enthralled him.

Uptown Saturday Night, Island in the Sun, Odds Against Tomorrow, Carmen Jones, The World, theFlesh and the Devil, White Man's Burden, and most recently, Spike Lee’s 2018 film, BlacKkKlansman.In childhood, Belafonte lived somewhat nomadically, traveling between the Caribbean and New York City, where he was born on March 1, 1940. The son of Jamaican immigrants, Belafonte spent his pre-teen years living in Jamaica with his grandmother before moving back to Harlem, New York, where he attended high school.After joining the Navy during World War I, Belafonte returned to the Big Apple to find work.

Harry Belafonte, the civil rights and entertainment giant who began as a groundbreaking actor and singer and became an activist, humanitarian and conscience of the world, has passed away. He was 96.

Harry Belafonte, the legendary singer known for hits including “Banana Boat (Day-O)” and “Jump in the Line,” has died. He was 96.According to a statement from Belafonte’s team, the singer died of congestive heart failure, at his home.

Carmel Dagan Singer, actor, producer and activist Harry Belafonte, who spawned a calypso craze in the U.S. with his music and blazed new trails for African-American performers, has died at his Manhattan home, according to the New York Times. He was 96.An award-winning Broadway performer and a versatile recording and concert star of the ’50s, the lithe, handsome Belafonte became one of the first black leading men in Hollywood. He later branched into production work on theatrical films and telepics. As his career stretched into the new millennium, his commitment to social causes never took a back seat to his professional work.An intimate of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., he was an important voice in the ’60s civil rights movement, and he later embarked on charitable activities on behalf of underdeveloped African nations. He was an outspoken opponent of South Africa’s apartheid policies.

EXCLUSIVE: The Grey’s Anatomy star is joining the cast of 20th/Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building in the recurring role of a documentarian with a particular interest in the case that Selena Gomez’s Mabel Mora, Steve Martin’s Charles Haden-Savage and Martin Short’s Oliver Putnam are working on.

“Fuck you. I’m going to Paris,” the unflinching words spoken by screen legend Harry Belafonte, is just one of the many telling soundbites in Elvis Mitchell’s directorial debut “Is That Black Enough For You?!?” Mitchell, a film critic by trade, is entering the filmmaking space to bring a fascinating documentary that blends his personal filmgoing memories with the game-changing history of Blaxploitation cinema for an astute survey of the latter’s form and function.

For over two decades, Elvis Mitchell, a film critic for LA Weekly and The New York Times, has wanted to put Blaxploitation in its proper historical place. While the results of his desire would prototypically arrive from Mitchell in the form of a book, sadly, those plans went for naught.

The gifts from this birthday party 60 years ago just keep on coming.Marilyn Monroe’s sultry rendition of “Happy Birthday” during a gala celebrating President John F. Kennedy’s 45th birthday at Madison Square Garden on May 19, 1962, was followed by an exclusive afterparty at the East 69th Street townhouse of then-Democratic National Committee co-chairman Arthur Krim and his wife, Dr.

who passed away at 94 in January — was already at death’s door.“I was not expected to live,” says Poitier in the new documentary “Sidney,” which premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday. “I was born two months premature.”The film traces Poitier’s remarkable journey from his father tucking him into a shoebox as a sickly infant to growing into a screen icon and the first black man to win the Best Actor Oscar, with “Lilies of the Field” in 1964.“I remember thinking, ‘If he could do that, I wonder what I can do,’ ” says Oprah Winfrey, who produced the documentary, about how Poitier’s groundbreaking career inspired her.“It was the first time I’d seen a black man assert his power,” says Halle Berry — who became the first African-American woman to win the Best Actress Oscar in 2002 — of Poitier’s impact on her.

Addie Morfoot Contributor In 2018, Network Entertainment founder Derik Murray met with Sidney Poitier to discuss making a documentary about the star’s life and career. Over the next two years, Murray established a foundation of trust with Poitier and his family, who all eventually agreed to the film. The result is “Sidney,” an Apple TV+ doc that examines the legacy of Poitier, who died earlier this year at 94. Directed by Reginald Hudlin (“The Black Godfather”), the doc was produced by Oprah Winfrey. One of the most acclaimed and recognizable movie stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood, and the first Black man to receive the best actor award, Poitier was also a director and an activist in the Civil Rights Movement. The film includes interviews with Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Robert Redford, Lenny Kravitz, Barbra Streisand and Spike Lee as well as an audio-recorded interview with Poitier’s longtime friend and colleague Harry Belafonte.

Regeneration: Black Cinema 1898-1971 is not to be missed. Not only does the exhibition celebrate Black representation in film, it serves as an important reminder and lesson about the contributions of Black filmmakers and stars to the world of cinema.Opening Aug. 21, seven galleries make up the exhibit exploring Oscar Micheaux’s low-budget dramas in the silent-film era to the works of Melvin Van Peebles.The exhibition also introduces audiences to stars largely unknown to mainstream moviegoers — Ralph Cooper, Clarence Brooks and Francine Everett — alongside iconic screen legends Paul Robeson, Josephine Baker, Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poitier and Lena Horne.

Jon Burlingame editorThe Emmy lineup might have looked like this: Kanye West nominated for music supervision. Keith Urban, Miranda Lambert, Mary J.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentVeteran Hollywood multi-hyphenate George Gallo (“Bad Boys,” “The Comeback Trail”) is attached to direct “Gambino,” a high-end biopic about organized crime boss Carlo Gambino that Gallo is co-writing with two-time Oscar winner Nick Vallelonga (“Green Book”).The ambitious project, announced in Cannes, is being lead produced by Julius R. Nasso, also a Hollywood veteran, best known for his production partnership with Steven Seagal that went sour.

When it came to creating original period-style songs for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s fourth season, composers-songwriters Tom Mizer and Curtis Moore say the thoroughly music-savvy creator Amy Sherman-Palladino frequently throws them challenging curveballs.

(CNN)Well, hello Dolly.The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 2022 inductees were announced Wednesday, and despite initially opting to "respectfully bow out" of the nomination process, Dolly Parton is part of this year's diverse class. Some of the other inductees include Pat Benatar, Lionel Richie, Eminem, Carly Simon, Harry Belafonte, Duran Duran, Eurythmics and Judas Priest.The following is the full list of this year's inductees.

Dolly Parton is officially a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame! The country music icon -- who appeared on the ballot for the first time in February -- will join this year’s class of inductees.«I am honored and humbled by the fact that I have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,» Parton tweeted of the honor. «Of course I will accept it gracefully. Thanks to everyone that voted for me and to everyone at the @rockhall.

Dolly Parton was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on Wednesday despite the country music icon’s last-minute plea to "respectfully bow out." The 2022 class includes Eminem, who was inducted in his first year of eligibility, as well as Duran Duran, Pat Benatar, Lionel Richie, Carly Simon and Eurythmics. Benatar, 69, has been eligible for induction since 2004 but didn’t receive her first nomination until 2020. As for Simon, 76, she’s been eligible since 1997.

Dolly Parton, who said last week she would gracefully accept an induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame if it were offered, will have to do just that: The country music superstar was among the nominees selected for a spot in the hall today.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticWell, Dolly Parton didn’t get her wish, although she’s likely to be happy anyway. The country superstar will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in November — a possibility she said last week she’d come to terms with and would “graciously” accept, after initially trying to get herself nixed  — along with Duran Duran, Pat Benatar, Eminem, Lionel Richie, Eurythmics and Carly Simon.Those are the seven performers that the Hall’s thousand-plus voters chose.

Group C is making their debut on The Masked Singer!

Rita Moreno recently received the Stanley Kramer Award during the 33rd Producers Guild of America Awards. According to the trade association representing television producers, film producers, and New Media producers in the United States, the Stanley Kramer Award “honors a production, producer, or other individuals whose achievement or contribution illuminates and raises public awareness of important social issues.” During Moreno’s acceptance speech, the 90-year-old EGOT winner recalled the time she witnessed live when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Rita Moreno appeared at Saturday Night’s PGA Awards, accepting the Stanley Kramer Award from the Producers Guild of America.

In accepting the Stanley Kramer Award at the PGAs tonight, EGOT winner and West Side Story actress Rita Moreno, reflected on the time she first heard Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. deliver his 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech near the Lincoln monument in Washington D.C. She was invited to the event by Harry Belafonte.

Wilson Chapman editorLin-Manuel Miranda will receive the 2022 Changemaker Award from the Greenwich International Film Festival, the festival announced Thursday. The Pulitzer Prize-winning “Hamilton” creator has been selected for the Changemaker award for his work with the Miranda Family Fund, which supports causes such as education, the arts and social justice, and has been particularly focused on rebuilding efforts in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria in 2017.

When daylight comes and he wants to go home, Harry Belafonte, has a sweet family of four to return to. The  ‘King of Calypso’, 94, has four children, two with ex-wife Marguerite Byrd and two with second ex-wife Julie Robinson. Harry is currently married to his third wife, Pamela Frank. Each of Harry’s grown children has made their own path in life, all while staying close with their dad. Meet each of his four kids below.

Sidney Poitier has been revealed, with Los Angeles County coroners reporting it to be due to a mix of heart failure, Alzheimer’s and prostate cancer. The death certificate from the LA County Department of Public Health was published by TMZ on Tuesday.

A pained observation: The only intriguing stories on Hollywood this week consisted of obits – all kinds of obits. There were obits reminding us of the remarkable lives of Sidney Poitier, Peter Bogdanovich and Betty White. Also speculative obits about the Golden Globes, sentimental obits about the extinct 20th Century Fox and even speculative obits about MGM and ICM.

Hollywood and the nation are mourning a Hollywood pioneer today. Click on the photo above to launch a photo gallery on the career of Oscar winner Sidney Poitier, who has died at 94.

Former President Barack Obama paid tribute to Sidney Poitier today, calling him a singular talent” who “epitomized dignity and grace.”

Sidney Poitier, the pioneering actor and director who became the first bankable Black leading man in Hollywood, has died at age 94, according to the Bahamian Minister of Foreign Affairs.Poitier, who was born in the U.S. but grew up in the Bahamas, broke multiple racial barriers in his decades-long career, including when he became the first Black actor to win the Academy Award, for his role in 1963’s “Lilies of the Field.”From his first film performance, playing a doctor who treats a bigoted white man in 1950’s “No Way Out,” he blazed a trail by refusing to play roles that traded on racial stereotypes.

Antonio Ferme editorJay-Z, Tiffany Haddish, Usher, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Charlamagne Tha God, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Susan Sarandon and Pete Buttigieg are the latest guests announced to appear at “The Gathering of Harry,” a surprise virtual party for Harry Belafonte’s 94th birthday. The event will air live on Feb.

EXCLUSIVE: Theorem Media is putting the spotlight on legendary singer, songwriter, actor and human rights activist Harry Belafonte with Disrupting Injustice: A Belafonte Remix. The educational entertainment company has set a six-part docuseries inspired by and featuring the titular icon.

EBONY, she got her big break by starring in the Harry Belafonte film Odds Against Tomorrow. In her rich 65-year career, Tyson was recognised as a powerhouse actress with the ability to move audiences to tears through her emotional portrayals.