Langston Hughes
1 February 1901 – 22 May 1967
Langston Hughes was an American poet, novelist, playwright, and social activist who became a leading figure of the Harlem Renaissance. A pioneer of jazz poetry, he celebrated Black American life and culture in works such as the poem 'The Negro Speaks of Rivers' and the collection 'The Weary Blues'.
Lived at the same time
Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Langston Hughes.
- A. Philip Randolph (1889–1979) Overlapped 66 years →
- Alice Paul (1885–1977) Overlapped 66 years →
- Buckminster Fuller (1895–1983) Overlapped 66 years →
- C. V. Raman (1888–1970) Overlapped 66 years →
- Clement Attlee (1883–1967) Overlapped 66 years →
- Igor Sikorsky (1889–1972) Overlapped 66 years →
Life events
Born James Mercer Langston Hughes.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgThe poem appeared in The Crisis magazine and became one of his signature works.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgHis first poetry collection helped define the Harlem Renaissance.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgHe completed his bachelor's degree at the historically Black university in Pennsylvania.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgThe novel won the Harmon Gold Medal for Literature.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgHis 'Simple' columns in the Chicago Defender created a beloved everyman character.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgThe book-length poem sequence drew on jazz and bebop rhythms.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgHe died of complications following abdominal surgery at age 66.
Source: en.wikipedia.org