Bambara, Toni Cade (1939–1995)
Bambara, Toni Cade (1939–1995)
African-American novelist, short-story writer and filmmaker. Born Miltona Mirkin Cade, Mar 25, 1939, in Harlem, NY; died from colon cancer, Dec 9, 1995, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; dau. of Helen Cade; Queens College, BA, 1959; City College (CCNY), MA, 1964.
Taught at City College New York, Livingstone College, and Spelman College; traveled extensively (1970s); came to prominence as a short-story writer with Gorilla, My Love (1972); won American Book Award for 1st novel, The Salt Eaters (1980); other books include 2 edited works, The Black Woman (1970) and Tales and Stories for Black Folks (1971), as well as the short-story collection, The Sea Birds Are Still Alive (1977); also made 2 documentary films: The Bombing of Osage Avenue (1986), for which she won an Academy Award for Best Documentary, and W.E.B. Du Bois: A Biography in Four Voices (1995). Deep Sightings and Rescue Missions (1996) and Those Bones Are Not My Child (1999) were published posthumously.