Bobby Robinson, the owner of iconic Bobby’s Happy House, passed away at the age of 93. Bobby’s Happy House was one of Harlem’s first black owned businesses on 125th Street as well as one of the neighborhood’s last standing record shops until it was forced to close in 2008. You can read more about Bobby […]
Category Archives: Profiles
New York Insider: Harlem Writer Stacy Parker Aab
New York Insider: Harlem Writer Stacy Parker Aab shares her reasons for living in and loving Harlem. Find out more about Stacy by visiting her website.
Remember: Percy Sutton
Via AP and ACJ Percy Sutton, attorney to Malcolm X and a pioneering media mogul, has died in New York. He was 89. Marissa Shorenstein, a spokeswoman for Gov. David Paterson, confirmed Sutton’s death Saturday. The son of a slave, Sutton became a fixture in Harlem after moving to New York City following his military […]
The Hope Diamond of Harlem: Sugar Ray Robinson
The New York Times recently published a piece on Sugar Ray Robinson and his glory days in Harlem. We thought it might be cool to look back over some Sugar Ray’s favorite places to hang out in Harlem. Here is an excerpt from The Times piece. Recognize any of the addresses? There he was, cruising […]
Roy DeCarava, 89; Celebrated N.Y. photographer
Photographer acclaimed for haunting Harlem images Roy DeCarava, 89, whose intimate, often melancholy black-and-white images of Harlem life made him one of the most respected photographers of his century, died Oct. 27 in New York. His family declined to provide the cause of death. Mr. DeCarava spent most of his career working near his birthplace […]
42 year old Harlem woman delivers miracle baby
This story is a testament to not only the single ladies who have lost hope, but to anyone who has a challenge to overcome. Sharon Nelson, a 42 year old breast cancer survivor was able to conceive and deliver a bouncing baby boy after receiving chemo to treat her stage one cancer. In addition to […]
Meet Billy Mitchell aka Mr. Apollo
AGE: 59 JOB: Tour director, greeter and historian TIME ON THE JOB: 44 years There’ll be a huge cluster of stars out tomorrow when the Apollo Theater celebrates its 75th birthday with a night of music, comedy and heartfelt tributes. But though he’s never performed onstage, Billy Mitchell — the Apollo’s longtime historian, tour guide […]
Harlem’s IS 195 Renamed in Honor of Terence Tolbert
Mayor Bloomberg announced at a packed funeral service held at IS 195 in Harlem that the school would now be known as the Terence D. Tolbert Education Complex in honor of the lobbying chief. Tolbert attended IS 195 before moving on to the Bronx High School of Science. Mr. Tolbert’s résumé listed over 20 campaigns […]
The World is Mine: Dawanna Williams
Dawanna Williams, 38, is the Founder and Principal of Dabar Development Properties. She left a promising career in law to become a developer in what she defines as “signature neighborhoods.” These neighborhoods include Harlem, Fort Greene, and Bushwick. While still working as a lawyer, she started buying up townhouses in her own Clinton Hill neighborhood, […]
A Tribute to Dr. John Henrik Clarke
By Dolores Cox Harlem, N.Y. Published Jul 26, 2008 3:15 PM Dr. John Henrik Clarke This past July 13 the African Education at the Crossroads: 10th Annual Tribute to Dr. John Henrik Clarke program was presented before a packed auditorium at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. The program was sponsored by the […]
Harlem Lens
Over the past three decades, Alix Dejean, 63, has become an unofficial neighborhood photographer, chronicling the famous, the infamous and the anonymous of Harlem. Though he was born in Haiti and has lived in Brooklyn since 1965, Harlem is where he chooses to photograph. Read the full article in The New York Times
Uberchic: Angie of E:Harlem
The other week I received a random email from Kennedy at AskaNewYorker. While I’d never heard of the site before, I was curious to see what they are all about. The site is basically an expanded version of what we do in our “What’s Up” section here on U.F. AskaNewYorker also features various New York […]
Uptown Darling: Eartha Kitt
I had my first brush with greatness in the late 1970s. My mother and her friend Claudette gathered all the girls together, dressed us in our Sunday dresses complete with ankle socks and patent leather shoes, and off we went to the theater to see Timbuktu starring the legendary diva, Eartha Kitt. After the show […]
Uptown Artist Spotlight: The Art of Being Eliza B
Dynamically Talented. Refreshing. Fiercely Honest. Passionate. These are just a few words to describe the multi-faceted artist, Eliza B. Written by: Tiffany Y’vonne Standing at a statuesque 6’2 and built like a supermodel, Eliza B. automatically commands all eyes on her; but do not let that blind you to the power within this soulful spirit. […]
Harlem’s Next Idol
The next generation of rap could soon be lead by a 22 year old Harlemite who practically learned to rap before he learned to talk. Jelani Day, son of clothier Dapper Dan, is part of a newer breed of rappers in the spirit of Sean (P.Diddy) Combs and Kanye West: Rappers whose lives were not defined by the constraints of poverty or […]
IMPACT Repertory Theatre of Harlem Graces the “Oscars”
Ever the devoted cinephile, I found myself going to an oscar viewing get-together at a friend’s house. I had personally made it a point to watch the majority of films so that I could be ready. The night came with the requisite bashing on celebrities’ choices of wardrobe or on the strength of Jon Stuart’s […]
Harlem Doctor Teaches Through Hip-Hop
Dr. Olajide Williams (NYSun) Dr. Olajide Williams, a Nigerian-born, neurology physician and director of the stroke center at Harlem Hospital has taken a novel approach to teaching young kids about strokes or “brain-attacks” as he refers to them. He uses the universal language of hip-hop music. Bouncing to the beat through the aisles of the […]
Who Would I Be?
If Dee is a has-been, the news certainly hasn’t traveled to Harlem, where she’s treated like royalty. When she saunters into the dining room of the soul-food eatery Sylvia’s, the patrons erupt into a squealing, standing ovation and huddle in for photos. It’s the perfect place for Dee to reflect on her life and career. […]
The American Gangster vs. Mr. Untouchable
VS …anyone else see a striking similarity in these posters? This weekend the silver screen will pit Harlem Drug Kingpin Frank Lucas against Harlem Drug Kingpin Nicky Barnes. “American Gangster”, a Ridley Scott film starring two titans of Hollywood in Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe, will open theatres nationwide this weekend. In the film Denzel […]
In Memoriam: Sekou Sundiata
Big Blood’s Block
The Flawed Hero of 125th [NYT]
Roscoe Lee Browne Succumbs to Cancer
Actor Roscoe Lee Browne, whose rich voice and dignified bearing brought him an Emmy Award and a Tony nomination, has died. He was 81. Browne died early Wednesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center following a long battle with cancer, said Alan Nierob, a spokesman for the family. Browne had a decades-long career that ranged from classic […]
Jazz Lives in Langston’s House
On the middle floor of a Harlem brownstone that once was home to Langston Hughes, the pianist Marc Cary holes up in a studio crowded with computers, keyboards, partly depleted bottles of red wine, and other flotsam of the creative process. In the next room, his collaborator in business and music , Shon “Chance” Miller, […]
Bole to Harlem
Photography by: Tesfaye Tessema Chef Marcus Samuelson, a Harlem resident, is the feature of this month’s Tadia magazine. He speaks about his heritage, culture, African cuisine and his new cookbook The Soul of a New Cuisine. Read the article here.
Profiling: Arthur French
I’ve had the pleasure of working with his wonderfully talented and extremely humble man in the past. I was excited to see that he is finally receiving mainstream recognition for his mastery of the art of acting. Below is a piece that recently appeared in Playbill about this Harlem native and incredible stage actor Arthur […]
Profiling: Denzel Washington
Give me any excuse to post a picture of Denzel Washington and I will take full advantage of it. Mr. Washington has earned his way into history as not only one of the best black actors in our era but one of the best actors – period. He has been profiled in a new book […]
Profiling: Damon Dash
GROWING UP in Harlem, N.Y., he told his friends he’d make it big one day. And he did just that.Damon Dash, the son of a single mother who died when he was just 15, became the CEO and co-founder (with Jay-Z and Kareem Burke) of Roc-A-Fella Records and the founder of Rocawear clothing. He owns […]
Profiling: The Urban Agenda
Vital Stats: Brett Wright, 37, of Nu America Agency Company: New York City advertising,marketing and promotion agency focusing on the urban market 2006 Projected Sales: $7 million Life-Changing Leap: The decision to leave his comfortable job as a music industry exec to start his own business was a heavy one for Wright, who at the […]
Harlem Profile: Shemekia Copeland
I found this nice article on Harlemite Shemeka Copeland and wanted to share it. Below is an excerpt: November 23, 2006 Growing up in Harlem in the late ’80s and early ’90s, Shemekia Copeland heard hip-hop up and down the block. Her friends were digging Kool Moe Dee and LL Cool J. But the latest […]
Cool Brew
A sax-playing Harlem brewer who named her beer after “Take the A Train” gets ready to expand By Michael Tedder mtedder@nyu.edu Celeste Beatty traveled the world and studied beer like a scholar before she made her first brew. It was sour. Somehow, the brewing equipment she crammed into the kitchen of her studio apartment got […]
Harlem Designer Add New Spin To Toile
Designer Sheila Bridges, Changing The Face of Toile By Liz Seymour Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, November 9, 2006; H01 It doesn’t get any more traditional than toile. First lavished on bedding and draperies in 18th-century France on the brink of revolution, the printed fabric is known for pastoral scenes of shepherds and shepherdesses on […]
Harlem Vet Honored
BY XANA O’NEILL DAILY NEWS WWII veteran Fred Churchill Seared into 84-year-old Fred Churchill’s memory is the day his platoon wandered into a German trap during World War II – and how the G.I.s heroically helped each other scramble to safety amid a flurry of bombs. Yesterday, surrounded by family members at his […]
Harlem Continues to Speak
Harlem Speaks Honors Lonnie Youngblood Lonnie Youngblood, Saxophonist, September 28, 2006 Buster Williams, Bassist, October 12, 2006 Arlene Talley, Vocalist, October 26, 2006 6:30pm-8:00pm Tenor saxophonist Lonnie Youngblood has been a staple performer in Harlem for decades, so it’s fitting that he will be honored by the Jazz Museum in Harlem’s Harlem Speaks program on […]
The Sweet Smell of Success
Editor’s Note: This feature was published in Howard University’s student paper The Hilltop under the title: “Hobbyist Builds Beauty ‘Empire’” By: Stacy Anderson Lisa Price filed for bankruptcy at the tender age of 28 years old. Over a decade later, Price reportedly makes more than $2 million annually—all because she chose to follow her heart. […]
Rev. James Forbes to Leave Riverside
Heralded as one of the “most effective preachers in the English-speaking world” by Newsweek magazine, Reverend James Forbes the Senior Pastor of Riverside Church has announced that he will be stepping down from the pulpit next year. The Rev. Dr. James Alexander Forbes, Jr. became the first African-American to serve as Senior Minister of one […]
Robert Earl Jones, Harlem Acting Legend, Dies at 96
Actor Robert Earl Jones, father of James Earl Jones, peacefully passed away two weeks ago at the age of 96. Most of us are familiar with his famous son, known as the voice of Verizon, but Robert Earl Jones was a famous actor in his own right long before his son’s successful career in the […]
Harlem Loses Favorite Community Cop
A Harlem institution was laid to rest at the age of 79. Oswald “Ozzie” Thompson, affectionately known as Harlem’s favorite “Community Cop,” acted as a liaison between the police and the Harlem community which he protected. In the wake of a recent shooting of a teen in Harlem, Ozzie was a needed figure in the […]
Celeb Sighting: “It’s Uptown” with George Benson
This past Sunday George Benson paid a visit to the American Legion Post at 132nd and Frederick Douglas where he played a jazz and blues set to the delight of the crowd. Jason Campbell, an Australian turned Harlemite and protege of Benson’s since the age of 16, was thrilled to get the chance to play […]
Former Lakers Champ’s New Nabes Cry Foul
Former Los Angeles Lakers star player, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has returned home to Harlem with the purchase of a brownstone. One might think that residents would be thrilled to have a basketball great like Jabbar in the neighborhood, but it appears that he has gotten on the wrong side of fence with his new neighbors. Jabbar […]
Harlem’s Own Keith David Celebrates Home
The Harlem-born Keith David, actor, singer, poet and award-winning voice-over artist, celebrates Harlem, in a week-long series of events that will take place on August 22nd through August 27th, at various venues in Harlem. Tuesday, August 22nd, the actor will be celebrating the diversity of Harlem in the program, Keith David Welcomes the Caribbean to […]
