By Carol Tannenhauser
Tonight at 6 p.m., Lincoln Center is hosting a public celebration of the life and legacy of Harry Belafonte. All are invited to the Revson Fountain at 63rd Street and Broadway to honor and sing with the IMPACT Children’s Chorus; the Gathering for Justice, the social justice foundation Belafonte founded; and fellow New Yorkers.
He was a good man. I treated one of his groundskeepers from his home in Jamaica. Bellafonte paid for his care and came to his visits with him. One time he called my home and left a message on our answering machine. My wife would not let me delete it until we finally had to replace the machine. On another note, I believe he was the one who introduced Nana Mouskouri, the Greek folk singer to the US.
My Aunt Grace would play his music when I was a little girl, and that’s how we learned to dance to his calypso music Matilda and Day O, just to name a few . He touched the souls of everyone from near and far may he be welcomed by all his family and friends. well done good and faithful servant. Rest in peace, day light come and you can go home now.
Alberta Morris
I bumped into the wonderful man at Zebars upstairs at the cake counter once..
I wondered if he might live in the neighborhood.
Bellafonte was key figure in the Civil Rights movement, paying for bail of many civil rights workers, funding SCLC, SNCC and partially funding the March on Washington. The man walked his talk and represented what John Lewis from SNCC constantly advocated: “Make good trouble.” Aside from that he was an incredible singer and entertainer and stage presence with a playfully infectious sense of humor. Back in the day, you could find him at a back table at the old Russian Tea Room restaurant hanging out with this friend and collaborator, Sidney Poitier. Now both of them are gone and we need to tell stories to the younger folks about how important they were, and what they stood for.
Love this.
Harry Belafonte was a wonderful man and humane, human being. Not only was he a magnificent singer but he fought for worthy causes. I’m so glad they’re doing a community sing but I wish these events would take place while people being honored are still alive because I’m sure it would have touched his soul.
Also, what a story about the prejudice of his landlord trying to evict him because of his race. I felt such a surge of satisfaction when he turned it around and bought the whole building! Way to go!
This event is going to be so intensely emotional.
I will miss Harry Belafonte. He was a loving and brilliant being for all of us!!
I had the pleasure of representing Mr. Belafonte for the acquisition and construction of his recording studio’s in Manhattan.
I lived down the block from Mr Belafonte for 30 years on the entire second floor of 313 West 74, prior to the building being turned into a single residence.
I met Mr. Belafonte at his home on the NW corner of West End & 74th street.
At that time Harvey Schmidt who authored the Broadway show the Fantasticks lived on the 3rd floor of 313 West 74.
Harry was one of the performers/speakers at the Memorial for Pete & Toshi Seeger at Lincoln Center Out of Doors, where the Walkabout Clearwater Chorus , a group Pete Seeger started, also performed! “Turn The World Around” is part of our repertoire!
He touched the hearts of people of all ages!! He will be missed!
Thank you for posting about this event. I attended, and it was very uplifting and moving.
A true long distance runner for justice! He fully dedicated his life to art and to racial justice and human rights…
I was very privileged to have met him at a memorial for Walter Sisulu at which we both spoke some twenty years ago: a memory I will always treasure.
May his memory be a blessing and a continued inspiration!