Lorriane+Hansberry+bio

Lorraine Hansberry Biography

Childhood Lorraine Hansberry was born on May 19, 1930. She was the youngest of four children. Lorraine attended Betsy Ross Elementary school as child, and then moved on to University of Wisconsin, the Art Institution of Chicago, and Roosevelt University New School, for Social Research. When Lorraine was only eight years old, her white neighbors threw bricks through her window and one of them almost hit Lorraine in the head. This led to a civil rights suit, which the Hansberry family won.

Family and Husband Her parent’s names were Carl and Nannie Hansberry. Lorraine’s father was a successful businessman and also ran for Congress. Carl Hansberry was also very active in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Her mother, a former schoolteacher, was a committeewoman. Lorraine’s uncle was a well-noted professor at Howard University. Her siblings were older than her by at least seven years, so she normally played alone. Her father’s influence also separated her and her peers.

In June of 1952, Lorraine met a man named Robert Nemiroff while they were both protesting segregated sports teams at New York University. Nemiroff was the son of Russian-Jewish immigrants who owned a downtown restaurant. On June 20, 1953, Hansberry and Nemiroff were married in Chicago.

Her Work and Accomplishments In her books, Lorraine Hansberry often portrayed individuals who defend their own and others' dignity. Some of the books Lorraine Hansberry wrote are //A Raisin in the Sun, What Use are Flowers?, Les Blancs,// and //The Sign in Sidney Brunstein' Window.//

Lorraine Hansberry's first play was //A Raisin In The Sun//. It was staged at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on Broadway. It won the New York Drama Critics's Circle award, and the film version of 1961 received a special award at the Cannes Festival. Her next play was //The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window//, a drama of political questioning set in Greenwich Village, New York City, where her home had been. This play had a modest run on Broadway in 1964. In 1969, a selection of her writings were adapted by her husband Robert Nemiroff, and it was produced on Broadway as //To Be Young, Gifted, and Black// and was published in book form in 1970.

media type="youtube" key="CRqWB_tdPs0" width="425" height="350" align="center"

In 1965, Lorraine Hansberry died at the age of 34 after a struggle with pancreatic cancer.

Bibliography: []

http://www.gradesaver.com/author/lorraine-hansberry/

http://www.biography.com/people/lorraine-hansberry-9327823