Deborah “Debbie” Kaye Allen is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, producer, and song writer. She is best known for her role as Lydia Grant in the television series Fame. Ms. Allen later began working as director and producer. She produced and directed… Continue Reading
Julius “Nipsey” Russell was an African American comedian, poet, and dancer. Mr. Russell has appeared on several games shows, such as Match Game, Hollywood Squares, and Pyramid, in the 1960s – 1990s. He was born in Atlanta, GA and attended Booker… Continue Reading
Lanny Smoot is a theatrical technology creator, inventor, scientist, researcher, and electrical engineer for over forty years. Mr. Smoot is currently a Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development Imagineer and Disney Research Fellow. He received his 100th career patent in August 2011 from the… Continue Reading
Louise Beavers (1902-1962) was an African American film and television actress. She appeared in several films and television shows from the 1920s until 1960, most often cast in the role of a maid, slave, or servant. Ms. Beavers was cast as Delia… Continue Reading
Jonathan Michael Batiste is an African-American musician, bandleader, and television personality. He has recorded and performed with several artists such as Stevie Wonder, Prince, Willie Nelson, and Lenny Kravitz, released his own recordings, and performed in more than 40 countries.… Continue Reading
Kemp Powers is an African-American screen writer, playwright, and co-director, who graduated from Howard University. In 2013, he scripted the play, One Night in Miami. In 2018, he co-wrote the script for Pixar’s Soul with Mike Jones and Pete Docter. … Continue Reading
Ms. Sonya Carey is one of the few black women animators in a male dominated industry. About 20 percent of the animation workforce is women and that includes animation producers/directors, animation writers, designers, and general animators. Ms. Carey has 25… Continue Reading
Ron Husband is an African-American animator who began working at Walt Disney Feature Animation in 1975. He was one of the first African-American animators in his field. Here is a list of some of Mr. Husband’s animated works: The Fox… Continue Reading
Jenifer Lewis voiced the blind, 197-year-old voodoo priestess, Mama Odie in Disney’s The Princess and the Frog. She began her career appearing in Broadway musicals and worked as a back-up singer for Bette Midler before appearing in films Beaches and… Continue Reading
Bruce W. Smith was the supervising animator for Disney’s The Princess and the Frog. Mr. Smith referred to Dr. Facilier as the “lovechild” of his two favorite Disney Villains, Captain Hook and Cruella de Vil. He was nominated for the… Continue Reading