
JUNE 20, 1960

Renowned singer and actor Harry Belafonte was awarded an Emmy Award for his television special, Tonight with Harry Belafonte. Mr. Belafonte was the first Black American to win the prestigious industry award. He had already won a Tony Award in 1954 as a supporting actor in John Murray Anderson’s Almanac. He decided to forego making a fortune, saying, “I chose to be a civil rights warrior instead.” He died in 2023 of congestive heart failure at age 96.