Ever since Caged Bird Sings, Angelou continued to write and break new boundaries -artistically, educationally and socially. She became the first African American woman to ever have her screenplay produced when she wrote her drama Georgia, Georgia in 1972. She then went on to receive a Tony nomination for her role in the play Look Away (1973), and an Emmy nomination for her work on the television mini series, Roots (1977).
Angelou continued on to write several autobiographies such as All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes (1986) and A Song Flung Up to Heaven (2002) however, none of them managed to outmatched the success and popularity of her 1969 memoir I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings which is regarded as her best autobiographical work. She
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Kennedy's inauguration in 1961. It was so popular, that the audio version went on to win a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album.
By 1995, Angelou was still being praised for remaining on The New York Times' paperback nonfiction best-seller list for two years- breaking history as the longest running record in the chart's history.
Maya Angelou was an author, actress, civil rights activist, dancer, director, poet and screenwriter. Multi-talented barely seems to cover the depth of her accomplishments. She was an inspiration to all and has received praise from people such as Oprah, Martin Luther King, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and many more. Angelou proved time and time again that anyone can dream and make that dream a reality. She continues to serve as an integral part in American history not only for her numerous accolades for her books, poetry, acting and essays over the years, but because she was able to overcome a difficult childhood, racial prejudice, loss of loved ones which made her become one of the most influential people in history. Maya Angelou never lost hope and that is why the caged bird
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She landed roles in several productions such as Porgy and Bess (her first role), and the off-Broadway Calypso Heat Wave (1957). In the same year, she also managed to release her first album, Miss Calypso. As a Guild and civil rights activist, Angelou organised and starred in the musical revue Cabaret for Freedom as a benefit for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which she also served as the SCLC's northern coordinator at Dr Martin Luther King's request.
After starring in the off-Broadway production of Jean Genet's The Blacks in 1961, she moved on to further pursue her career as an actress and singer. She spent most of the 1960s abroad, living in Egypt and then Ghana, working as an editor and freelance writer.
Once she retired to the United States, she was encouraged by her friend and fellow writer James Baldwin to write about her life experiences. This led to her gaining enormous success from her 1969 memoir about her childhood and young adult life, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. It made literary history by being the first nonfiction bestseller by a black woman which lead to Angelou becoming an international