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Maya Angelou was born in Saint Louis, Missouri to Bailey and Vivian Johnson. She had an older brother Bailey Jr.
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Angelou attends George Washington High School in San Francisco. She studies dance and drama at the California Labor School.
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She worked as the first black female streetcar conductor in San Francisco.
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Angelou's son, Clyde Johnson, was born. He later changed his name to Guy.
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At the age of 24, Angelou married her first husband, Tosh Angler, who was a Greek sailor. The marriage did not last due to Angler’s atheism and Maya’s spiritualism.
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Angelou toured across 4 continents with the opera Porgy and Bess. She played the small role of the character Ruby.
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Angelou recorded her first album "Miss Calypso." She sang in New York nightclubs performing her songs.
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Maya lived in Egypt and Ghana for two years. She joined a community of “Revolutionist Returnees” who fought for pan-Africanism. She also became close with Malcolm X, a human rights activist.
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This novel is the first of a six-volume series. It is an autobiography surrounding her early years of dealing with racism and becoming a mother at a young age.
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Maya’s poem, “Just Give me a Cool Drink of Water,” earned her a Pulitzer Prize nomination. She was 44 at the time of this nomination, however, she did not receive the award.
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At the age of 44, Maya married her second husband, Paul de Feu, who was a British carpenter. They moved to California together, but later divorced in 1980.
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Angelou recited “On the Pulse of Morning,” at the inauguration of Bill Clinton. She wrote and recited this poem specifically for this inauguration.
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Maya received a Grammy for her poem, “A Song Flung Up to Heaven,” published in 2002. Her Grammy was awarded for “Best Spoken Word Album.”
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Angelou was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by the 44th President Barack Obama. Obama praised her ability to “inspire others” and “hold on to her humanity.”
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Maya Angelou died at the age of 86 of old age in Winton-Salem, North Carolina.