Josephine Baker

For other people named Josephine Baker, see Josephine Baker (disambiguation).

Josephine Baker
Baker in 1940
Born
Freda Josephine McDonald

(1906-06-03)June 3, 1906
St. Louis, Missouri, US
DiedApril 12, 1975(1975-04-12) (aged 68)
Paris, France
Resting placeMonaco Cemetery
NationalityAmerican (renounced)
French (1937–1975)
Occupation(s)Vedette, singer, dancer, actress, civil rights activist, French Resistance agent
Years active1921–1975
Spouses
Willie Wells
​
​
(m. 1919; div. 1919)​
William Baker
​
​
(m. 1921; div. 1925)​
Jean Lion
​
​
(m. 1937; div. 1940)​
​
​
(m. 1947; div. 1961)​
Partner(s)Robert Brady
(1973–1975)
Children12; Jean-Claude Baker presented himself as her foster son (contested by the Baker children[1][2])
Musical career
Genres
InstrumentVocals
Labels
Signature

Freda Josephine Baker (née McDonald; June 3, 1906 – April 12, 1975), naturalized as Joséphine Baker, was an American-born French dancer, singer, and actress. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in France. She was the first black woman to star in a major motion picture, the 1927 French silent film Siren of the Tropics, directed by Mario Nalpas and Henri Étiévant.[3]

During her early career, Baker was among the most celebrated performers to headline the revues of the Folies Bergère in Paris. Her performance in its 1927 revue Un vent de folie caused a sensation in the city. Her costume, consisting only of a short skirt of artificial bananas and a beaded necklace, became an iconic image and a symbol both of the Jazz Age and the Roaring Twenties. Baker was celebrated by artists and intellectuals of the era, who variously dubbed her the "Black Venus", the "Black Pearl", the "Bronze Venus", and the "Creole Goddess".[4] Born in St. Louis, Missouri, she renounced her U.S. citizenship and became a French national after her marriage to French industrialist Jean Lion in 1937.[5] She raised her children in France.

Baker aided the French Resistance during World War II.[6] After the war, she was awarded the Resistance Medal by the French Committee of National Liberation, the Croix de Guerre by the French military, and was named a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour by General Charles de Gaulle.[7] Baker sang: "I have two loves: my country and Paris."[8] On November 30, 2021, Baker was inducted into the Panthéon in Paris, the first black woman to receive one of the highest honors in France.[9] As her resting place remains in Monaco Cemetery, a cenotaph was installed in vault 13 of the crypt in the Panthéon.[10]

Baker, who refused to perform for segregated audiences in the United States, is also noted for her contributions to the civil rights movement. In 1968, she was offered unofficial leadership in the movement in the United States by Coretta Scott King, following Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination. After thinking it over, Baker declined the offer out of concern for the welfare of her children.[11][12][13]

  1. ^ "Jean-Claude Rouzaud s'est éteint, pas Jean-Claude Bouillon-Baker". Le bien public. January 22, 2015. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
  2. ^ Dumas, Thierry (March 24, 2012). "'Je lui dois bien plus que ça'". Sud ouest. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
  3. ^ Atwood, Kathryn (2011). Women Heroes of World War II. Chicago Review Press. p. 77. ISBN 978-1-55652-961-0.
  4. ^ Anderson, Victoria Clarice. "Highlighting Black + LGBT Pioneers: Josephine Baker". Believe Out Loud. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  5. ^ Kelleher, Katy (March 26, 2010). "She'll Always Have Paris". Jezebel. Archived from the original on October 18, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference QR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Roberts, Kimberly (April 8, 2011). "Remembering Josephine Baker". Philadelphia Tribune.
  8. ^ "Josephine Baker: The life of an artist and activist". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on June 3, 2017. Retrieved June 3, 2017.
  9. ^ Chrisafis, Angelique (November 30, 2021). "Josephine Baker, music hall star and civil rights activist, enters Panthéon". The Guardian. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  10. ^ "Joséphine Baker au Panthéon : retrouvez l'intégralité de la cérémonie" [Joséphine Baker at the Pantheon: transcript of the entire ceremony]. Le Monde (in French). November 30, 2021. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  11. ^ Baker, Jean-Claude (1993). Josephine: The Hungry Heart (1st ed.). Random House. ISBN 978-0-679-40915-1.
  12. ^ Bouillon, Joe (1977). Josephine (1st ed.). Harper & Row. ISBN 978-0-06-010212-8.
  13. ^ "sur France Culture, radio), in french". Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.