Maya Angelou

poet, writer, composer, actress
Born: 4/4/1928
Birthplace: St. Louis, Missouri

GrammyAward-winning poet, writer, composer and actress who has appeared in several Off-Broadway productions, includingJean Genet'sThe Blacks(1960). She wroteI Know Why the Caged Bird Sings(1970), a humorous autobiography about growing up in segregated Arkansas and completed her autobiography with 2002'sA Song Flung Up to Heaven. In 1981 she was appointed to a lifetime position as the first Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University. She read her poem ?On the Pulse of Morning? atPresident Clinton's 1993 inauguration.