(John Lee Williamson)blues singer, harmonica playerBorn: 3/30/1914Birthplace: Jackson, Tennessee One of the founding members of the post-War Chicago blues scene, Sonny Boy Williamson did more to…
blues singer, guitaristBorn: 5/5/1911Birthplace: Hazelhurst, Mississippi Robert Johnson may well have been the most influential blues musician of all time. Although he only recorded 29 songs,…
jazz and pop singer, dancer, and actressBorn: 6/30/1917Birthplace: Brooklyn, N.Y. She began performing at age six, and by 16 was singing and dancing at Harlem's Cotton Club, where she became an…
(Riley B. King)legendary blues musicianBorn: 9/16/1925Birthplace: Indianola, Miss. One of the most influential guitarists of all time, King remains an icon and a model for Eric Clapton, David…
singer, dancer, and actress Born: 1/17/1927Birthplace: North, S.C. Kitt is best known for the holiday hit "Santa Baby." She started her entertainment career in the early 1950s as a dancer with the…
one of jazz's most influential female singersBorn: 3/27/1924Birthplace: Newark, N.J. Best known for her operatic range, Vaughan was a pioneer in the use of bebop phrasing in popular songs. She…
(Irving Rhames)film, television, and stage actorBorn: 5/12/1959Birthplace: New York City Rhames is best known for playing seedy, often villainous, characters, such as Marsellus Wallace in Pulp…
record company founder and executiveBorn: 11/28/1929Birthplace: Detroit Gordy pursued a career as a boxer and served in the U.S. Army before returning to Detroit where he opened his own record…
singer and actressBorn: 1895Birthplace: Wichita, Kansas McDaniel began her career as a teen, performing for traveling black minstrel shows in the West, and later sang in theaters and clubs. She…
actressBorn: 1962Birthplace: York, England An acclaimed British stage actress, McTeer made her big-screen debut in 1986's Half Moon Street. Although she appeared in several other films, including…
