Washington Informer
Entertainment Archive (444)
In his autobiography, “The Truth You Can’t BeTray,†Tray Chaney, 28, talks about his career as an actor and his experiences as a youth growing up in Prince George’s County, Md. Courtesy PhotoFive seasons and 60 episodes later, “The Wire†ended in March 2008. Like David Simon, the show’s creator, Chaney also had a story to share about his true-life experiences growing up in Prince George’s County, Md.
Chaney, 28, describes the character that he portrayed on screen as having certain character traits that he exhibited as a teenager and young adult. In his recently released book, “The Truth You Can’t BeTray,†the actor-turned-author shares his experiences as a young performer at the legendary Apollo Theater in New York, the devastation of losing a child and how a successful acting career has changed his life.
“God Ain’t Blind†by Mary Monroe c.2009, Kensington $24.00 / $29.45 Canada 296 pages Courtesy PhotoHave you ever said those words while standing with your beloved in front of your friends and family?
If you did, you undoubtedly meant them with all your heart, intending to love and be faithful to your beloved forever. But forever is a long time and some days, “worse†overtakes “better†and you feel poorer for what you promised.
So what do you do? In the new book “God Ain’t Blind†by Mary Monroe, a woman takes matters into her own hands, much to everyone’s regret.
Haile Gerima, writer, director and editor, and his wife Shirikiana take questions after the screening of “Teza†at the Avalon Theater in Northwest on Fri., Sept. 18. Photo by Roy Lewis
Anberber, played by Aaron Arefe, left Ethiopia to train as a doctor in 1970s’ Germany, witnessing the military overthrow of Ethiopia’s legendary Emperor Haile Selassie, whose 44-year rule left the country impoverished. As an idealistic young student abroad, Anberber and friends Tesfaye, played by Abeye Tedla, and Abdul, plot their roles as socialist activists in the new Ethiopia. Warned by his Afro-German girlfriend Cassandra (Araba Evelyn Johnson-Arthur), Anberber finds that as a Black man, there is no home for him in Germany and his obligation is to redeem his European education by returning to Ethiopia to support the socialist regime.
Tonya Pinkins as Pearl with Erika Rolfsrud as Susannah in the Ford’s Theatre production of “Black Pearl Sings!†directed by Jennifer L. Nelson. Photo by T. Charles EricksonThe play features Tony Award winner Tonya Pinkins in the title role and Erika Rolfsrud as a White musicologist who offers the prison-bound Pearl a chance at freedom in exchange for her African ancestors’ songs. The production features stellar acting and directing that will keep theater goers delighted.
Mayor Adrian Fenty shows off his painting skills at the opening of "Windows into D.C.," a new, temporary, art exhibit that has given the Walter E. Washington Convention Center a face-lift Photos by Ben KoconisArtists, art enthusiasts, politicians and passersby surrounded the streets near the Washington Convention Center in Northwest Tue., Sept. 29, for the grand opening of “Windows into D.C.,†a new art installation that brightens 14 of the massive structure’s windows.
The temporary exhibit, on display until March 2010, is composed of mixed media created by 14 local artists commissioned by the District to give Ward 2 a colorful make-over.
“This thing is really funky,†said Steven Bracey, a 24-year-old art lover. “I love anything that is expressive.â€
Artists spent weeks reviewing digital prints, designing collages and painting murals that have attracted the public to the glass canvases since its unveiling.
Bracey said that he works near the Convention Center. But, this is the first time that he has really stopped to look at the building.
“I’ve been around here for four years and I’ve never seen anything like it… I think people are really taking notice.â€
TV One founder Cathy Hughes Courtesy PhotoAfter a stint as a lecturer at Howard University’s School of Communications in Washington, D.C., she became sales director at WHUR-FM in Washington, D.C. By 1975, she was named the radio station's general manager, and four years after that, she and her husband, Dewey Hughes, purchased a small radio station, WOL, thus creating Radio One.
To celebrate September as Black Reading Month, the Talking Drum Collective and staff from the Washington Informer Newspaper have comprised a list of African American books that range from fiction, autobiographies, poetry, and nonfiction. Feel free to read one or all of the books listed below, then send an e-mail to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
to tell us what you thought about the book or books you selected. Happy reading!
"Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today." – Malcolm X
"Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today." – Malcolm X
CAPTION GOES HERE Courtesy Photo“I watched my aunt cry while walking through a fake sharecropper’s house and examining the birthing kit of a woman who delivered babies of poor, Black women in the South. The exhibit was living and breathing. I could touch it and try to wrap my mind around what it was like in the 1950s to have to have a baby on the dirt floor. It was amazing,†Walters said.
A scholar, an activist–actress and a teen were honored during the Leon H. Sullivan Foundation Honors held last week at the Kennedy Center in Northwest.
Harvard University Professor Dr. Henry Louis Gates, J., actress Mia Farrow, and 14-year-old Winston Duncan were honored for their advocacy, humanitarian efforts and contributions to helping the poor and disadvantaged worldwide, particularly in Africa.
Founded by African American humanitarian Rev. Dr. Leon H. Sullivan, the D.C-based Sullivan Foundation promotes the political, entrepreneurial and intellectual leadership of the African Diaspora and Friends of Africa, while also advocating on behalf of Africa.
The organization’s work is guided by the principles that Sullivan, a minister and corporate board member, championed: self-help, social responsibility, economic empowerment and human rights.
Harvard University Professor Dr. Henry Louis Gates, J., actress Mia Farrow, and 14-year-old Winston Duncan were honored for their advocacy, humanitarian efforts and contributions to helping the poor and disadvantaged worldwide, particularly in Africa.
Founded by African American humanitarian Rev. Dr. Leon H. Sullivan, the D.C-based Sullivan Foundation promotes the political, entrepreneurial and intellectual leadership of the African Diaspora and Friends of Africa, while also advocating on behalf of Africa.
The organization’s work is guided by the principles that Sullivan, a minister and corporate board member, championed: self-help, social responsibility, economic empowerment and human rights.
A six-year-old girl getting a relaxer in Atlanta, Ga. is interviewed by actor and comedian Chris Rock for the film “Good Hair.†Girls as young as 18-months have reportedly been given the caustic chemical solution to straighten their tightly curled hair into straight, “good hair.†Courtesy PhotoDespite the informative value of certain aspects of the production, “Good Hair†is anything but a documentary. In fact, with few exceptions, the film offers little more than a moving comedy sketch, such as the film “Borat,†in which the regulars of Black barbershops, nail salons and beauty supply shops, play bit parts.
Featured Poll
ADVERTISMENT
ADVERTISMENT
ADVERTISMENT