Remembering a Pioneer in Entertainment

Two years ago this month, on April 25, 2023, the entertainer and activist Harry Belafonte died. New York City was his home for most of his 96 years. Belafonte is associated with several firsts.

In 1956, Belafonte’s third album, Calypso, debuted. The lilt of the opening song, variously known as “Day-O” and “Banana Boat Song,” carried the album to the top of the charts, where it remained for weeks. Calypso was the first long-playing record album to sell one million copies.

Had the Grammy Awards existed at the time, perhaps Calypso or “Day-O” would have been a winner. Belafonte did receive several Grammy Awards: for Swing That Hammer in 1960 and for An Evening with Belafonte/Makeba in 1965. He also received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy in 2000.

Before he became famous as a singer, Belafonte’s outstanding acting ability earned him a Tony Award in 1954 for his performance in John Murray Anderson’s Almanac. He was the first Black actor to receive a Tony.

He also was the first African-American man to receive an Emmy Award. It was for his 1959 television special “Tonight with Belafonte.”

Harry Belafonte is one of an elite group of 27 EGOT holders, figures in the entertainment industry honored with the four major awards: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. His Oscar, bestowed in 2014, was the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, which, although noncompetitive, still merits recognition for EGOT status.