Lena Horne Tribute Double Feature: CABIN IN THE SKY & THE WIZ July 7, 2010

Singer, dancer, actress and activist Lena Horne left behind a rich legacy of groundbreaking films, TV appearances, and recordings. After breaking into the business as a teenager at the infamous Cotton Club, Horne went to Hollywood and appeared in a series of seminal films before being sidelined during the blacklist. She returned to the stage and the recording studio and continued entertaining audiences for decades.

Lena Horne Tribute Double Feature: CABIN IN THE SKY, 1943, Warner Bros., 98 min. Lena Horne is luminescent in director Vincente Minnelli’s debut feature. Eddie “Rochester” Anderson is the married man tempted by Lena and the devil himself to turn his back on his wife (Ethel Waters) in favor of vice and moral ruin. Louis Armstrong and the Duke Ellington Orchestra appear as well!
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THE WIZ, 1978, Universal, 134 min. Dir. Sidney Lumet. "Can you feel a brand-new day?" sing Diana Ross and Michael Jackson as Dorothy and the Scarecrow in this African-American version of "The Wizard of Oz.” With Richard Pryor, Lena Horne and Nipsey Russell.
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