Photo: York College ISLGP, CC BY 2.0

Maya Angelou

1928 – 2014 · died at about 86^[1][2]

Literature

Fun Facts About Maya Angelou

• Maya Angelou began as a calypso singer and dancer in San Francisco nightclubs, and in 1957 she recorded her first album, Miss Calypso.^[1]
• At 16, Angelou became the first Black female streetcar conductor in San Francisco. Her mother called it her dream job.^[1]
• Angelou was born Marguerite Annie Johnson. Maya Angelou was a stage name, combining her nickname and her former married surname, adopted at her managers' urging.^[1]
• Angelou wrote in hotel rooms stripped of pictures, lying on the bed with only a bottle of sherry, a deck of cards, Roget's Thesaurus, and the Bible.^[1]
• Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on Angelou's 40th birthday. Her friend James Baldwin helped her out of her depression, and the next year she published I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.^{[1][3][4][5][6]}
• Angelou never earned a university degree, yet she held a lifetime professorship at Wake Forest University and preferred to be called Dr. Angelou.^[1]
• Maya Angelou was alive at the same time as Beyoncé — their lives overlapped for 33 years (1981–2014).^[1][2][7][8]
• Maya Angelou shares a birthday with Heath Ledger: both were born on April 4.^{[1][2][9][10]}

Maya Angelou was an American memoirist, essayist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou's series of seven autobiographies focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her international recognition and acclaim.^[1]

Contemporaries

Stan Lee

86 yr overlap

B.B. King

86 yr overlap

Fidel Castro

86 yr overlap

Gabriel García Márquez

86 yr overlap

James Watson

86 yr overlap

Vera Rubin

86 yr overlap

Noam Chomsky

86 yr overlap

Elizabeth II

86 yr overlap

Pope Benedict XVI

86 yr overlap

Jimmy Carter

86 yr overlap

George H. W. Bush

86 yr overlap

Nelson Mandela

85 yr overlap

Their World

Questions About Maya Angelou

When was Maya Angelou born?

Maya Angelou was born on April 4, 1928, and died on May 28, 2014.

How old was Maya Angelou at death?

Maya Angelou was born on April 4, 1928, and died on May 28, 2014, at age 86.

What was Maya Angelou known for?

Maya Angelou was known for: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Maya Angelou was an American memoirist, essayist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou's series of seven autobiographies focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her international recognition and acclaim.

Who was alive at the same time as Maya Angelou?

Maya Angelou's closest contemporary was Stan Lee. Their lives overlapped for 86 years.