Editing Harry Belafonte

{{short description|American singer and actor (1927–2023)}}
{{redirect|Belafonte|his album|Belafonte (album){{!}}''Belafonte'' (album)|other uses}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Harry Belafonte
| image              = Harry Belafonte 1970 (cropped).tif
| caption            = Belafonte in 1970
| birth_name         = Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|1927|3|1}}
| birth_place        = New York City,<!-- DO NOT LINK this, see [[MOS:OVERLINK]]. --> U.S.
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|2023|4|25|1927|3|1}}
| death_place        = New York City,<!-- DO NOT LINK this, see [[MOS:OVERLINK]]. --> U.S.
| other_names        = {{plainlist|
* Harold George Belafonte Jr.
* Harry Bellanfanti Jr.
* "King of Calypso"
}}
| years_active       = 1948–2023
| occupation         = {{hlist|Singer|actor|activist}}
| works              = [[Harry Belafonte discography|Discography]]
| party              = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| spouse             = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|Marguerite Byrd|1948|1957|end=divorced}}
* {{marriage|[[Julie Robinson Belafonte|Julie Robinson]]|1957|2004|end=divorced}}
* {{marriage|Pamela Frank|2008}}
}}
| children           = 4, including [[Shari Belafonte|Shari]] and [[Gina Belafonte|Gina]]
| module             = {{Infobox musical artist|embed=yes
| associated_acts    =
| genre              = {{hlist|[[Calypso music|Calypso]]|[[mento]]||[[pop music|pop]]|[[Folk music|folk]]|[[World music|world]]}}
| instrument         = Vocals
}}
}}

'''Harry Belafonte''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|b|ɛ|l|ə|ˈ|f|ɒ|n|t|i}} {{respell|BEL|ə|FON|tee}}; born '''Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.'''; March 1, 1927&nbsp;– April 25, 2023) was an American singer, actor, and [[civil rights activist]] who popularized [[calypso music]] with international audiences in the 1950s and 1960s. Belafonte's career breakthrough album ''[[Calypso (album)|Calypso]]'' (1956) was the first million-selling [[LP album|LP]] by a single artist.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.allmusic.com/album/calypso-mw0000313800 |title= Harry Belafonte – Calypso |website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=December 10, 2013}}</ref>

Belafonte was best known for his recordings of "[[Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)]]", "[[Jump in the Line (Shake, Senora)]]", "[[Jamaica Farewell]]", and "[[Mary's Boy Child]]". He recorded and performed in many genres, including [[blues]], [[folk music|folk]], [[gospel music|gospel]], [[show tune]]s, and [[Great American Songbook|American standards]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Finkle  |first=Dave |date=July 25, 1970 |title=Milt Okun On: Compiling the Great Songs of the Sixties |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Record-World-IDX/IDX/70s/70/RW-1970-07-25-OCR-Page-0028.pdf#search=%22paul%20stookey%22 |journal=Record World}}</ref> He also starred in films such as ''[[Carmen Jones (film)|Carmen Jones]]'' (1954), ''[[Island in the Sun (film)|Island in the Sun]]'' (1957), ''[[Odds Against Tomorrow]]'' (1959), ''[[Buck and the Preacher]]'' (1972), and ''[[Uptown Saturday Night]]'' (1974). He made his final feature film appearance in [[Spike Lee]]'s ''[[BlacKkKlansman]]'' (2018).

Belafonte considered the actor, singer, and activist [[Paul Robeson]] to be a mentor. Belafonte was also a close confidant of [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] during the [[civil rights movement]] of the 1950s and 1960s and acted as the [[American Civil Liberties Union]] celebrity ambassador for [[American juvenile justice system|juvenile justice]] issues.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.aclu.org/ambassadors |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150123222647/https://www.aclu.org/ambassadors |archive-date=2015-01-23 |title=ACLU Ambassadors – Harry Belafonte |publisher=[[American Civil Liberties Union]] |access-date=May 13, 2023}}</ref> He was also a vocal critic of the policies of the [[Presidency of George W. Bush|George W. Bush]] and [[First presidency of Donald Trump|Donald Trump]] administrations.

Belafonte won three [[Grammy Awards]], including a [[Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award]], an [[Primetime Emmy Awards|Primetime Emmy Award]],<ref name="emmys.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.emmys.com/awards/nominations/award-search?search_api_views_fulltext=Harry+Belafonte&submit=Search&search_api_views_fulltext_1=&search_api_views_fulltext_3=&search_api_views_fulltext_2=&search_api_views_fulltext_4=&field_nominations_year=1949-01-01+00%3A00%3A00&field_nominations_year_1=2013-01-01+00%3A00%3A00&field_nomination_category=All |title=Awards search for Harry Belafonte |publisher=[[Emmys]] |access-date=December 10, 2013 |archive-date=December 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213090953/http://www.emmys.com/awards/nominations/award-search?search_api_views_fulltext=Harry+Belafonte&submit=Search&search_api_views_fulltext_1=&search_api_views_fulltext_3=&search_api_views_fulltext_2=&search_api_views_fulltext_4=&field_nominations_year=1949-01-01+00%3A00%3A00&field_nominations_year_1=2013-01-01+00%3A00%3A00&field_nomination_category=All |url-status=dead }}</ref> and a [[Tony Awards|Tony Award]]. In 1989, he received the [[Kennedy Center Honors]]. He was awarded the [[National Medal of Arts]] in 1994. In 2014, he received the [[Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award]] at the academy's [[Governors Awards#6th Annual Governors Awards|6th Annual Governors Awards]]<ref name="reuters.com">{{cite news |last=Sinha-Roy |first=Piya |url=http://in.reuters.com/article/us-film-governorsawards-idINKBN0GS2G820140828 |title=Belafonte, Miyazaki to receive Academy's Governors Awards |publisher=Reuters |date=August 28, 2014 |access-date=August 28, 2014 |archive-date=June 5, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150605110926/http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/08/28/us-film-governorsawards-idINKBN0GS2G820140828 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and in 2022 was inducted into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] in the Early Influence category.<ref name="auto3">{{cite web |url=https://www.wkyc.com/article/entertainment/music/rock-hall/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-2022-inductees-induction-class-dolly-parton-pat-benatar-eminem-duran-duran-eurythmics-judas-priest-carly-simon/95-780d297f-76c2-4105-a73d-58bedbe693b4#longform_chapter_1|title=Artist: Harry Belafonte: Early Influence Award|author=<!--Not stated--> |date=2022 |publisher=[[WKYC]] |access-date=May 4, 2022}}</ref> He is one of the few performers to have [[EGOT#Harry Belafonte|received an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony (EGOT)]], although he won [[the Oscar]] in a non-competitive category.

==Early life==
Belafonte was born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.<ref name=Belafontemovie>{{cite web|title=Life in Harlem|url=http://singyoursongthemovie.com/life-in-harlem/|work=Sing Your Song|publisher=S2BN Belafonte Productions|access-date=February 20, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014005929/http://singyoursongthemovie.com/life-in-harlem/|archive-date=October 14, 2016}}</ref> on March 1, 1927, at Lying-in Hospital in [[Harlem]], New York City, the son of Jamaican-born parents Harold George Bellanfanti Sr. (1900–1990), who worked as a chef, and Melvine Love (1906–1988), a housekeeper.<ref>{{cite book |title=Harry Belafonte |first=Genia |last=Fogelson |publisher=Holloway House Publishing |year=1996 |page=13 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Oadlz5gMG9UC&pg=PA13 |isbn=0-87067-772-1}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last1 = Hardy | first1 = Phil |first2=Dave |last2=Laing | title = The Faber Companion to Twentieth Century Music | publisher = Faber | year = 1990 | page = 54 | isbn = 0-571-16848-5 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/62/Harry-Belafonte.html |title=Harry Belafonte Biography (1927–) |publisher=Film Reference |access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref> There are disputed claims of his father's place of birth, which is also stated as [[Martinique]].<ref name = Keepnews/>

His mother was the child of a [[Scottish Jamaican]] mother and an [[Afro-Jamaican]] father, and his father was the child of an Afro-Jamaican mother and a [[History of the Jews in the Netherlands|Dutch-Jewish]] father of [[Sephardic Jews|Sephardic Jewish]] descent. Harry Jr. was raised [[Catholic]] and attended parochial school at [[St. Charles Borromeo Church (New York City)|St. Charles Borromeo]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Keillor|first=Garrison|date=October 21, 2011|title=The Radical Entertainment of Harry Belafonte (Published 2011)|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/books/review/my-song-by-harry-belafonte-with-michael-shnayerson-book-review.html|access-date=March 1, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

From 1932 to 1940, Belafonte lived with one of his grandmothers in her native country of Jamaica, where he attended [[Wolmer's Boys' School|Wolmer's Schools]]. Upon returning to New York City, he had a brief, unsuccessful stay at [[George Washington High School (Manhattan)|George Washington High School]].<ref>Arenson, Karen W. (June 2, 2000), [https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E07EFDA103CF931A35755C0A9669C8B63 "Commencements; Belafonte Lauds Diversity Of Baruch College Class"], ''[[The New York Times]]''. Retrieved April 16, 2008. "He said that he had not gotten past the first year at George Washington High School, and that the only college degrees he had were honorary ones."</ref> It was later reported that undiagnosed [[dyslexia]] and blindness in one eye contributed to his academic difficulties.<ref>{{cite news |last=Betts |first=Reginald Dwayne |title=Harry Belafonte Used Fame to Fight for Freedom |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/12/22/magazine/harry-belafonte-death.html |date=22 December 2023 |series=The Lives They Lived}}</ref> After dropping out of high school, he joined the [[U.S. Navy]] and served during [[World War II]].<ref name="autogenerated4">The African American Registry [http://www.aaregistry.org/historic_events/view/harry-belafonte-entertainer-truth Harry Belafonte, an entertainer of truth] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716110440/http://www.aaregistry.org/historic_events/view/harry-belafonte-entertainer-truth|date=July 16, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher=WUNC|url=https://www.wunc.org/2023-04-25/harry-belafonte-singer-actor-and-activist-has-died-at-age-96|date=April 25, 2023|access-date=April 30, 2023|title=Harry Belafonte, singer, actor and activist, has died at age 96|last=Blair|first=Elizabeth}}</ref> In the 1940s, he worked as a janitor's assistant, during which a tenant gave him, as a gratuity, two tickets to see the [[American Negro Theater]]. He fell in love with the art form and befriended [[Sidney Poitier]], who was also financially struggling. They regularly purchased a single seat to local plays, trading places in between acts, after informing the other about the progression of the play.<ref>{{cite web|last=Belafonte |first=Harry |url=https://www.npr.org/2011/10/12/141243628/harry-belafonte-out-of-struggle-a-beautiful-voice |title=Harry Belafonte: Out Of Struggle, A Beautiful Voice |publisher=NPR |date=October 12, 2011 |access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref>

At the end of the 1940s, Belafonte took classes in acting at the [[Dramatic Workshop]] of [[The New School]] in New York City with German director [[Erwin Piscator]] alongside [[Marlon Brando]], [[Tony Curtis]], [[Walter Matthau]], [[Bea Arthur]], and Poitier, while performing with the American Negro Theater.<ref name="vn-25apr2023">{{cite magazine |last1=Susman |first1=Gary |title=Harry Belafonte – Singer, Actor, and Activist – Has Died at 96 |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/04/harry-belafonte-obituary |access-date=April 25, 2023 |magazine=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |date=April 25, 2023}}</ref> He subsequently received a [[Tony Award]] for his participation in the Broadway revue ''[[John Murray Anderson's Almanac]]'' (1954).<ref name="guard-25apr2023">{{cite news |last1=Beaumont-Thomas |first1=Ben |title=Harry Belafonte, singer, actor and tireless activist, dies aged 96 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/apr/25/harry-belafonte-singer-dies-actor-singer-activist |access-date=April 25, 2023 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
He also starred in the 1955 Broadway revue ''[[3 for Tonight]]'' with [[Gower Champion]].<ref name="play-25apr2023">{{cite magazine |last1=Hall |first1=Margaret |title=Tony Winner Harry Belafonte Passes Away at 96 |url=https://www.playbill.com/article/tony-winner-harry-belafonte-passes-away-at-96 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |magazine=[[Playbill (magazine)|Playbill]] |date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>

==Musical career==
[[File:Harry Belafonte and Nat King Cole 1957.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.9|Belafonte with [[Nat King Cole]] in 1957]]

=== Early years (1949–1955) ===
Belafonte started his career in music as a club singer in New York to pay for his acting classes.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chad |date=October 25, 2019 |title=Harry Belafonte |url=https://walkoffame.com/harry-belafonte/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Hollywood Walk of Fame |language=en-US}}</ref> The first time he appeared in front of an audience, he was backed by the Charlie Parker band, which included [[Charlie Parker]], [[Max Roach]], and [[Miles Davis]], among others.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Myers |first=Marc |date=February 15, 2017 |title=Jazz news: Harry Belafonte: 1949 |url=https://www.allaboutjazz.com/news/harry-belafonte-1949/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=[[All About Jazz]] |language=en}}</ref> He launched his recording career as a pop singer on the Roost label in 1949, but quickly developed a keen interest in [[folk music]], learning material through the [[Library of Congress]]' American folk songs archives. Along with guitarist and friend Millard Thomas, Belafonte soon made his debut at the jazz club [[The Village Vanguard]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Iconic Voices of Black History – Harry Belafonte |website=VocaliD |url=https://vocalid.ai/iconic-voices-of-black-history-harry-belafonte/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |language=en-US}}</ref> In 1953, he signed a contract with [[RCA Victor]], recording exclusively for the label until 1974.<ref name="nbc-25apr2023">{{Cite news |last1=Johnson |first1=Alex |last2=Dasrath |first2=Diana |title=Harry Belafonte, calypso star and civil rights champion, dies at 96 |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/harry-belafonte-calypso-star-civil-rights-champion-dies-96-rcna42389 | date=April 25, 2023 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |work=[[NBC News]] |language=en}}</ref> Belafonte also performed during the [[Rat Pack]] era in [[Las Vegas]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Singer-activist Harry Belafonte dies at 96 due to heart failure |url=https://www.freepressjournal.in/entertainment/hollywood/singer-activist-harry-belafonte-dies-at-96-due-to-heart-failure|date=April 25, 2023 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Free Press Journal |language=en}}</ref> Belafonte's first widely [[art release|released]] single, which went on to become his "signature" audience participation song in virtually all his live performances, was "[[Matilda (calypso song)|Matilda]]", recorded April 27, 1953.<ref name="nbc-25apr2023" /> Between 1953 and 1954, he was a cast member of the [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] [[Revue|musical revue]] and [[sketch comedy]] show ''[[John Murray Anderson's Almanac]]'' where he sang "[[Mark Twain and Other Folk Favorites|Mark Twain]]",<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://playbill.com/production/john-murray-andersons-almanac-imperial-theatre-vault-0000006060|title=John Murray Anderson's Almanac (Broadway, Imperial Theatre, 1953) |magazine=[[Playbill (magazine)|Playbill]]}}</ref> of which he was also the songwriter.{{Cn|date=August 2024}}

=== Rise to fame (1956–1958) ===
[[File:Harry_Belafonte_Almanac_1954_b.jpg|thumb|Harry Belafonte in ''John Murray Anderson's Almanac'' on Broadway, photographed by [[Carl Van Vechten]], 1954]]
Following his success in the film ''[[Carmen Jones (film)|Carmen Jones]]'' (1954), Belafonte had his breakthrough album with ''[[Calypso (album)|Calypso]]'' (1956), which became the first [[LP album|LP]] in the world to sell more than one million copies in a year.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte, singer, actor, activist, dies at 96 |url=https://www.wcpo.com/harry-belafonte-singer-actor-activist-dies-at-96 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=WCPO 9 Cincinnati |language=en}}</ref> He stated that it was the first million-selling album ever in England.{{cn|date=March 2025}} The album is number four on ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''{{'}}s "Top 100 Album" list for having spent 31 weeks at number 1, 58 weeks in the top ten, and 99 weeks on the U.S. chart.<ref>{{Cite web |title='Calypso' – Harry Belafonte (1956)|first=Judith E.|last=Smith |url=https://www.loc.gov/static/programs/national-recording-preservation-board/documents/calypso.pdf |website=Library of Congress|date=2017}}</ref> The album introduced American audiences to [[calypso music]], which had originated in [[Trinidad and Tobago]] in the early 19th century, and Belafonte was dubbed the "[[Honorific nicknames in popular music#C|King of Calypso]]", a title he wore with reservations since he had no claims to any [[Calypso Monarch]] titles.<ref name="USATodayDeath">{{Cite web |last=Puente |first=Maria |title=Harry Belafonte, trailblazing singer, actor and activist, dies at 96 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2023/04/25/harry-belafonte-dies-actor-singer-activist-king-of-calypso/2750984001/ |date=April 25, 2023|access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=USA Today |language=en-US}}</ref>

One of the songs included in the album is "[[Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)|Banana Boat Song]]", listed as "Day-O" on the ''Calypso'' LP, which reached number five on the pop chart and featured its signature lyric "Day-O".<ref name=pc18>{{cite web |url=https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19768/m1/ |title=Show 18 – Blowin' in the Wind: Pop discovers folk music. &#91;Part 1&#93; : UNT Digital Library |year=1969 |last=Gilliland |first=John |author-link=John Gilliland |website=[[Pop Chronicles]]|access-date=November 4, 2013 }}</ref>

Many of the compositions recorded for ''Calypso'', including "Banana Boat Song" and "[[Jamaica Farewell]]", gave songwriting credit to [[Irving Burgie]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kennedy |first=Mark |title=Irving Burgie, songwriter of calypso hit 'Day-O,' dies at 95 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2019/12/01/irving-burgie-day-o-songwriter-dies-95/4345996002/ |date=December 1, 2019|access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=USA Today |language=en-US}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom, "Banana Boat Song" was released in March 1957 and spent ten weeks in the top 10 of the [[UK singles chart]], reaching a peak of number two, and in August, "[[Island in the Sun (Harry Belafonte song)|Island in the Sun]]" reached number three, spending 14 weeks in the top 10. In November, "[[Mary's Boy Child]]" reached [[List of UK singles chart number ones of the 1950s|number one in the UK]], where it spent seven weeks.<ref>{{cite web |title=Harry Belafonte|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/4366/Harry-Belafonte/|website=Officialcharts.com |access-date=April 28, 2024}}</ref>

=== Middle career (1959–1970) ===
[[File:Julie Andrews Harry Belafonte 1969.jpg|thumb|With [[Julie Andrews]] on the NBC special ''An Evening with Julie Andrews and Harry Belafonte'' (1969)]]
While primarily known for calypso, Belafonte recorded in many different genres, including [[blues]], [[folk music|folk]], [[gospel music|gospel]], [[show tune]]s, and [[Great American Songbook|American standards]]. His second-most popular hit, which came immediately after "The Banana Boat Song", was the comedic tune "[[Mama Look at Bubu]]", also known as "Mama Look a Boo-Boo", originally recorded by [[Lord Melody]] in 1955,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Boo Boo Man (Mama Look a Boo Boo) by Caribbean Allstars, Lord Melody – Track Info {{!}} AllMusic |website=[[AllMusic]] |url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/boo-boo-man-mama-look-a-boo-boo-mt0047616089 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> in which he sings humorously about misbehaving and disrespectful children. It reached number 11 on the pop chart.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Whitburn |first1=Joel |title=Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 1955–2018. |date=2019 |location=Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin |publisher=Record Research Inc. |isbn=978-0-89820-233-5 |page=72}}</ref>

In 1959, Belafonte starred in ''Tonight With Belafonte'', a nationally televised special that featured [[Odetta]], who sang "[[Waterboy (song)|Water Boy]]" and performed a duet with Belafonte of "[[There's a Hole in My Bucket]]" that hit the national charts in 1961.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.spclarke.com/?page_id=165 |title=Odetta |publisher=WordPress |access-date=December 10, 2013}}</ref> Belafonte was the first Jamaican American to win an [[Emmy]], for ''Revlon Revue: Tonight with Belafonte'' (1959).<ref name="emmys.com"/> Two live albums, both recorded at [[Carnegie Hall]] in 1959 and 1960, enjoyed critical and commercial success. From his 1959 album, "[[Hava Nagila]]" became part of his regular routine and one of his signature songs.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJqXjvlKa2w |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/zJqXjvlKa2w| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Video – What does Hava Nagila mean? |year=2011 |last=Grossman |first=Roberta |author-link=Roberta Grossman |website=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref> He was one of many entertainers recruited by [[Frank Sinatra]] to perform at the [[United States presidential inaugural balls|inaugural gala]] of President [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1961, which included [[Ella Fitzgerald]] and [[Mahalia Jackson]], among others.<ref>{{Cite web |title=President-elect and Mrs. Kennedy arrive at the Inaugural Gala, January 19, 1961 |url=https://www.jfklibrary.org/asset-viewer/president-elect-and-mrs-kennedy-arrive-at-the-inaugural-gala-january-19-1961 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=[[John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum|JFK Library]]}}</ref> Later that year, RCA Victor released another calypso album, ''[[Jump Up Calypso]]'', which went on to become another million seller. During the 1960s he introduced several artists to U.S. audiences, most notably South African singer [[Miriam Makeba]] and Greek singer [[Nana Mouskouri]]. His album ''[[Midnight Special (Harry Belafonte album)|Midnight Special]]'' (1962) included [[Bob Dylan]] as harmonica player.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte, civil rights activist and trailblazing artist, dead at 96 |url=https://news.yahoo.com/harry-belafonte-civil-rights-activist-135200001.html |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Yahoo News |date=April 25, 2023 |language=en-US}}</ref>

As [[the Beatles]] and other stars from Britain began to dominate the U.S. pop charts, Belafonte's commercial success diminished; 1964's ''[[Belafonte at The Greek Theatre]]'' was his last album to appear in ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''{{'}}s Top 40. His last hit single, "A Strange Song", was released in 1967 and peaked at number 5 on the [[adult contemporary music]] charts. Belafonte received [[Grammy Award]]s for the albums ''[[Swing Dat Hammer]]'' (1960) and ''[[An Evening with Belafonte/Makeba]]'' (1965), the latter of which dealt with the political plight of black [[South Africans]] under [[apartheid]]. He earned six [[Gold Record]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url =https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=belafonte#search_section |title=Gold & Platinum |publisher=RIAA |access-date=December 10, 2013}}</ref>

During the 1960s, Belafonte appeared on TV specials alongside artists such as [[Julie Andrews]], [[Petula Clark]], [[Lena Horne]], and [[Nana Mouskouri]]. In 1967, Belafonte was the first non-classical artist to perform at the [[Saratoga Performing Arts Center]] (SPAC) in Upstate New York,<ref name="sl-12jul2018">{{cite web |last1=Levith |first1=Will |title=5 Most Memorable Music Moments In SPAC History |url=https://saratogaliving.com/5-most-memorable-moments-spac-history-saratoga-springs/ |website=Saratoga Living |access-date=April 25, 2023 |date=July 12, 2018}}</ref> soon to be followed by concerts there by [[the Doors]], [[the 5th Dimension]], [[the Who]], and [[Janis Joplin]].

From February 5 to 9, 1968, Belafonte guest hosted ''[[The Tonight Show]]'' substituting for [[Johnny Carson]].<ref name="npr-8sep2020">{{cite news |last1=Bianculli |first1=David |title='The Sit-In' Revisits A Landmark Week With Harry Belafonte As 'Tonight Show' Host |url=https://www.npr.org/2020/09/08/910650652/the-sit-in-revisits-a-landmark-week-with-harry-belafonte-as-tonight-show-host |access-date=April 25, 2023 |work=[[NPR]] |date=September 8, 2020}}</ref> Among his interview guests were [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] and [[Robert F. Kennedy|Senator Robert F. Kennedy]].<ref name="npr-8sep2020" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thekingcenter.org/archive/document/mlk-appears-tonight-show-harry-belafonte |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105143025/http://www.thekingcenter.org/archive/document/mlk-appears-tonight-show-harry-belafonte |archive-date=2013-11-05 |title=MLK Appears on "Tonight" Show with Harry Belafonte |publisher=The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change|date=February 2, 1968 |access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref>

=== Later recordings and subsequent activities (1971–2017) ===
Belafonte's fifth and final calypso album, ''[[Calypso Carnival]]'', was issued by RCA in 1971.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte – Calypso Carnival Album Reviews, Songs & More {{!}} AllMusic |website=[[AllMusic]] |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/calypso-carnival-mw0000946159 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> Belafonte's recording activity slowed down after releasing his final album for RCA in 1974. From the mid-1970s to early 1980s, Belafonte spent most of his time on tour, which included concerts in Japan, Europe, and [[Cuba]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte – Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) (Live) |url=https://www.thetimes-tribune.com/harry-belafonte---day-o-the-banana-boat-song-live/video_43ba7e97-32d4-58c4-a4bb-11fbf18a3e56.html |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Scranton Times-Tribune |date=April 25, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> In 1977, [[Columbia Records]] released the album ''[[Turn the World Around]]'', with a strong focus on [[world music]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte – Turn the World Around Album Reviews, Songs & More {{!}} AllMusic |website=[[AllMusic]] |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/turn-the-world-around-mw0000992547 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |language=en}}</ref>

In 1978, he appeared as a guest star on an episode of ''[[The Muppet Show]]'', on which he performed his signature song "Day-O".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hennes |first=Joe |date=April 25, 2023 |title=RIP Muppet Show Guest Harry Belafonte |url=https://toughpigs.com/harry-belafonte/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=ToughPigs |language=en-US}}</ref> However, the episode is best known for Belafonte's rendition of the spiritual song "Turn the World Around" from the album, which he performed with specially made Muppets that resembled African tribal masks.<ref name=time-25apr2023>{{Cite magazine |date=April 25, 2023 |last=Chow |first=Andrew R. |title=Harry Belafonte, Trailblazing Performer and Fierce Civil Rights Activist, Dies |url=https://time.com/5750832/harry-belafonte-dies/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |language=en}}</ref><ref name="ob-25apr2023">{{cite news |last1=Duquette |first1=Michael |title=Harry Belafonte: The Icon's Life In Music, Movies and TV |url=https://observer.com/2023/04/harry-belafonte-the-icons-life-in-music-movies-and-tv/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |work=[[Observer.com|Observer]] |date=April 25, 2023}}</ref> It became one of the series' most famous performances and was reportedly [[Jim Henson]]'s favorite episode.{{cn|date=March 2025}} After Henson's death in May 1990, Belafonte was asked to perform the song at Henson's memorial service.<ref name="ob-25apr2023" /><ref name="avc-25apr2023">{{cite news |last1=McLevy |first1=Alex |title=R.I.P. Harry Belafonte, actor, singer, and Civil Rights icon |url=https://www.avclub.com/rip-harry-belafonte-musician-and-civil-rights-activist-1850372680 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |work=[[The A.V. Club]] |date=April 25, 2023}}</ref> "Turn the World Around" was also included in the 2005 official hymnal supplement of the [[Unitarian Universalist Association]], ''Singing the Journey''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uua.org/publications/singingjourney/songinformation/93778.shtml |title=Song Information |publisher=UUA |date=April 9, 2012 |access-date=November 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101012095016/http://www.uua.org/publications/singingjourney/songinformation/93778.shtml |archive-date=October 12, 2010 }}</ref>

From 1979 to 1989, Belafonte served on the [[Royal Winnipeg Ballet]]'s board of directors.<ref>{{cite web|title=Daylight come and we want to go to Winnipeg|date=April 26, 2023 |publisher=Winnipeg Free Press|url=https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/2023/04/26/daylight-come-and-we-want-to-go-to-winnipeg|access-date=April 26, 2023}}</ref>

In December 1984, soon after  [[Band Aid (band)|Band Aid]], a group of British and Irish artists, released "[[Do They Know It's Christmas?]]", Belafonte decided to create an American benefit single for African famine relief. With fundraiser [[Ken Kragen]], he enlisted [[Lionel Richie]], [[Kenny Rogers]], [[Stevie Wonder]], [[Quincy Jones]] and [[Michael Jackson]]. The song they produced and recorded, "[[We Are the World]]", brought together some of the era's best-known American musicians and is the eighth-[[List of best-selling singles worldwide|best-selling single of all time]], with physical sales in excess of 20 million copies.{{cn|date=March 2025}} In 1986 the American Music Awards named "We Are the World" Song of the Year, and honored Belafonte with the Award of Appreciation. [[File:Harry Belafonte 1983.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Belafonte performing in 1983]]
Belafonte released his first album of original material in over a decade, ''[[Paradise in Gazankulu]]'', in 1988, which contained ten protest songs against the South African [[Apartheid]] policy, and was his last studio album.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte – Paradise in Gazankulu Album Reviews, Songs & More {{!}} AllMusic |website=[[AllMusic]] |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/paradise-in-gazankulu-mw0000200433 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> In the same year Belafonte, as [[UNICEF]] Goodwill Ambassador, attended a symposium in [[Harare, Zimbabwe]], to focus attention on child survival and development in Southern African countries. As part of the symposium, he performed a concert for UNICEF. A [[Kodak]] video crew filmed the concert, which was released as a 60-minute concert video titled ''Global Carnival''.<ref name="Harry Belafonte in Concert – Global Carnival">{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jXgTwMhjbU|title=Harry Belafonte in Concert – Global Carnival (1988)|date=March 20, 2021 |access-date=April 25, 2023|via=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>

Following a lengthy recording hiatus, ''[[An Evening with Harry Belafonte and Friends]]'', a soundtrack and video of a televised concert, were released in 1997 by [[Island Records]].<ref name="latimes-heckman">{{Cite web |last=Heckman |first=Don |date=March 1, 1997 |title=Forever the Renaissance Man |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-03-01-ca-33507-story.html |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425215042/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-03-01-ca-33507-story.html |archive-date=April 25, 2023 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> ''The Long Road to Freedom: An Anthology of Black Music'', a multi-artist project recorded by RCA during the 1960s and 1970s, was finally released by the label in 2001. Belafonte went on the ''[[Today (American TV program)|Today Show]]'' to promote the album on September 11, 2001, and was interviewed by [[Katie Couric]] just minutes before the first plane hit the [[World Trade Center (1973–2001)|World Trade Center]].<ref>{{cite web| url=https://archive.org/details/nbc200109110831-0912 | title=NBC Sept. 11, 2001 8:31 am – 9:12 am| date=September 11, 2001|publisher=Internet Archive | access-date=January 10, 2016}}</ref> The album was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Awards for Best Boxed Recording Package, for Best Album Notes, and for Best Historical Album.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Appreciation: Harry Belafonte, dead at 96, championed 'Long Road to Freedom' in his music and his life |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/entertainment/music/story/2023-04-25/appreciation-harry-belafonte-dead-at-96 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=San Diego Union-Tribune |language=en-US|first=George|last=Varga}}</ref>

[[File:Harry Belafonte 1996.jpg|thumb|upright|Belafonte in 1996]]
Belafonte received the [[Kennedy Center Honors]] in 1989.<ref>{{Cite news |date=August 8, 1989 |title=Kennedy Center Announces '89 Awards |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/08/08/arts/kennedy-center-announces-89-awards.html |access-date=April 25, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> He was awarded the [[National Medal of Arts]] in 1994 and he won a [[Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award]] in 2000. He performed sold-out concerts globally through the 1950s to the 2000s.{{cn|date=March 2025}} His last concert was a benefit concert for the [[Atlanta Opera]] on October 25, 2003. In a 2007 interview, he stated that he had since retired from performing.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pr-inside.com/de/besser-als-es-jetzt-ist-kann-r53408.htm |title=kostenloses PR und Pressemitteilungen |publisher=Pr-inside.com |access-date=November 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120708033506/http://www.pr-inside.com/de/besser-als-es-jetzt-ist-kann-r53408.htm |archive-date=July 8, 2012 }}</ref>

On January 29, 2013, Belafonte was the keynote speaker and 2013 honoree for the MLK Celebration Series at the [[Rhode Island School of Design]]. Belafonte used his career and experiences with King to speak on the role of artists as activists.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://events.risd.edu/event/2013_mlk_series_keynote_address_harry_belafonte_artist_as_activist#.VdJh2vlVhBc|title=2013 MLK Series Keynote Address – Harry Belafonte 'Artist as Activist'|date=January 29, 2013|publisher=RISD}}</ref>

Belafonte was inducted as an honorary member of [[Phi Beta Sigma]] fraternity on January 11, 2014.<ref>{{cite news|first=DeNeen L.|last=Brown|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/local/wp/2014/01/12/harry-belafonte-challenges-phi-beta-sigma-to-join-movement-to-stop-oppression-of-women/ |title= Harry Belafonte challenges Phi Beta Sigma to join movement to stop oppression of women|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 12, 2014|access-date=January 14, 2014}}</ref>

In March 2014, Belafonte was awarded an honorary doctorate from [[Berklee College of Music]] in [[Boston]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aclu.org/issues/aclu-ambassador-project|title=ACLU Ambassador Project|website=American Civil Liberties Union|language=en|access-date=July 16, 2019}}</ref>

In 2017, Belafonte released ''When Colors Come Together'', an anthology of some of his earlier recordings, produced by his son David, who wrote lyrics for an updated version of "Island In The Sun", arranged by longtime Belafonte musical director Richard Cummings, and featuring Harry Belafonte's grandchildren Sarafina and Amadeus and a children's choir.<ref name="bet-15feb2017">{{cite web |last1=Robertson |first1=Iyana |title=Harry Belafonte's 'When Colors Come Together' Proves the Truth About Children and Race |url=https://www.bet.com/article/6a1max/when-colors-come-together-tackles-children-and-race |website=[[BET]] |access-date=April 25, 2023 |date=February 15, 2017}}</ref>

==Film career==
=== Early film career (1953–1956) ===
[[File:Harry Belafonte (Berlin Film Festival 2011) cropped.jpg|thumb|Belafonte at the 2011 Berlin Film Festival|224x224px]]
Belafonte starred in numerous films. His first film role was in ''[[Bright Road]]'' (1953), in which he supported female lead [[Dorothy Dandridge]].<ref name="var-25apr2023">{{Cite web |last=Morris |first=Chris |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte, Calypso King Who Worked for African American Rights, Dies at 96 |url=https://variety.com/2023/film/news/harry-belafonte-dead-dies-singer-1235593910/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref> The two subsequently starred in [[Otto Preminger]]'s hit musical ''Carmen Jones'' (1954). Ironically, Belafonte's singing in the film was dubbed by an opera singer, as was Dandridge's, both voices being deemed unsuitable for their roles.<ref name="vn-25apr2023" /><ref name="var-25apr2023" />

=== Rise as an actor (1957–1959) ===
Realizing his own star power, Belafonte was subsequently able to land several (then) controversial film roles. In ''[[Island in the Sun (film)|Island in the Sun]]'' (1957), there are hints of an affair between Belafonte's character and the character played by [[Joan Fontaine]];<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte obituary: A US icon of music, film and civil rights |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-11811290 |access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref> the film also starred [[James Mason]], Dandridge, [[Joan Collins]], [[Michael Rennie]], and [[John Justin]]. In 1959, Belafonte starred in and produced (through his company HarBel Productions) [[Robert Wise]]'s ''[[Odds Against Tomorrow]]'', in which Belafonte plays a bank robber uncomfortably teamed with a racist partner ([[Robert Ryan]]). Belafonte also co-starred with [[Inger Stevens]] in ''[[The World, the Flesh and the Devil (1959 film)|The World, the Flesh and the Devil]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Variety Staff |date=January 1, 1959 |title=The World, the Flesh and the Devil |url=https://variety.com/1958/film/reviews/the-world-the-flesh-and-the-devil-1200419259/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref> Belafonte was offered the role of [[Porgy (novel)|Porgy]] in Preminger's ''[[Porgy and Bess (film)|Porgy and Bess]]'', where he would have once again starred opposite Dandridge, but refused the role because he objected to its [[racial stereotype|racial stereotyping]]; [[Sidney Poitier]] played the role instead.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jnpickens |date=February 25, 2019 |title=Musical Monday: Porgy and Bess (1959) |url=https://cometoverhollywood.com/2019/02/25/musical-monday-porgy-and-bess-1959/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Comet Over Hollywood |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte, the Activist Who Became an Artist, Dies at 96 |url=https://autos.yahoo.com/harry-belafonte-activist-became-artist-135305222.html |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=autos.yahoo.com |date=April 25, 2023 |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Later film and theatre involvement (1972–2018) ===
[[File:Harry Belafonte Viennale2011b (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.9|Belafonte at the 2011 [[Viennale]]]]
Dissatisfied with most of the film roles offered to him during the 1960s, Belafonte concentrated on music. In the early 1970s, Belafonte appeared in more films, among which are two with Poitier: ''[[Buck and the Preacher]]'' (1972) and ''[[Uptown Saturday Night]]'' (1974).<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Obenson |first=Tambay |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte, the Activist Who Became an Artist, Dies at 96 |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2023/04/harry-belafonte-dead-1234639195/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=IndieWire |language=en}}</ref> In 1984, Belafonte produced and scored the musical film ''[[Beat Street]]'', dealing with the rise of [[hip hop|hip-hop]] culture.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte Influenced Hip-Hop – From "Beat Street" To Social Justice In The Genre |url=https://allhiphop.com/features/rip-harry-belafonte-hip-hop-influence-beat-street-activism/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=[[AllHipHop]] |language=en-US}}</ref> Together with [[Arthur Baker (musician)|Arthur Baker]], he produced the gold-certified soundtrack of [[Beat Street (soundtrack)|the same name]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 6, 2019 |title=The Story of How 'Beat Street' Went From a Box Office Failure to One of Hip-Hop's Most Important Movies |url=https://www.okayplayer.com/culture/1984-beat-street-release-story.html,%20https://www.okayplayer.com/culture/1984-beat-street-release-story.html |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Okayplayer.com |language=en-US}}</ref> Four of his songs appeared in the 1988 film ''[[Beetlejuice]],'' including "Day-O" and "[[Jump in the Line (Shake, Senora)]]".

Belafonte next starred in a major film in the mid-1990s, appearing with [[John Travolta]] in the race-reverse drama ''[[White Man's Burden (film)|White Man's Burden]]'' (1995);<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Holmes |first=Martin |title=Harry Belafonte Dies: Singer, Actor & Activist Was 96 |url=https://www.wfmz.com/entertainment/harry-belafonte-dies-singer-actor-activist-was-96/article_37e912ac-2fed-572d-9479-b3bb991dc2d6.html |archive-date=April 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425220833/https://www.wfmz.com/entertainment/harry-belafonte-dies-singer-actor-activist-was-96/article_37e912ac-2fed-572d-9479-b3bb991dc2d6.html|website=WFMZ.com |date=April 25, 2023 |language=en}}</ref> and in [[Robert Altman]]'s [[jazz age]] drama ''[[Kansas City (1996 film)|Kansas City]]'' (1996), the latter of which garnered him the [[New York Film Critics Circle Award]] for Best Supporting Actor.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte, barrier-smashing entertainer and activist, dies at 96 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2023/04/25/harry-belafonte-singer-dies/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |newspaper=Washington Post |first=Adam|last=Bernstein|language=en}}</ref> He also starred as an Associate Justice of the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] in the TV drama ''[[Swing Vote (1999 film)|Swing Vote]]'' (1999).<ref name=":1" /> In 2006, Belafonte appeared in ''[[Bobby (2006 film)|Bobby]]'', [[Emilio Estevez]]'s ensemble drama about the [[assassination of Robert F. Kennedy]]; he played Nelson, a friend of an employee of the Ambassador Hotel ([[Anthony Hopkins]]).<ref name=":2" />

His final film appearance was in [[Spike Lee]]'s Academy Award-winning ''[[BlacKkKlansman]]'' (2018) as an elderly civil rights pioneer.<ref name = Keepnews/>

==Political activism==
[[File:Kung king belafonte.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.9|Belafonte with King [[Gustav VI Adolf]] and [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] in 1966]]
Belafonte is said to have married politics and pop culture.<ref name = people39>{{cite magazine |url= https://people.com/celebrity/tribute-to-black-icons-by-their-family-members/ |title= A Tribute to Black Icons – from Harry Belafonte to Whitney Houston – by the Family Members Who Know Them Best |magazine= [[People (magazine)|People]] |date= February 21, 2022 }}</ref> Belafonte's political beliefs were greatly inspired by the singer, actor, and civil rights activist [[Paul Robeson]], who mentored him.<ref name="aaj-31jul2022">{{cite web |last1=Passarella |first1=Christine |title=Harry Belafonte: Humanitarian, Social Justice Leader and Artist Extraordinaire |url=https://www.allaboutjazz.com/harry-belafonte-humanitarian-social-justice-leader-and-artist-extraordinaire |website=[[All About Jazz]] |access-date=April 25, 2023 |date=July 31, 2022}}</ref> Robeson opposed not only racial prejudice in the United States but also western [[colonialism]] in Africa. Belafonte refused to perform in the American South from 1954 until 1961.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Simmons |first=Charlotte |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Actor, singer, and activist Harry Belafonte dies at 96 |url=https://wegotthiscovered.com/celebrities/actor-singer-and-activist-harry-belafonte-dies-at-96/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=We Got This Covered |language=en-US}}</ref>

Belafonte gave the keynote address at the ACLU of Northern California's annual Bill of Rights Day Celebration In December 2007 and was awarded the Chief Justice [[Earl Warren]] Civil Liberties Award. The 2011 [[Sundance Film Festival]] featured the documentary film ''[[Sing Your Song]]'', a biographical film focusing on Belafonte's contribution to and his leadership in the civil rights movement in America and his endeavors to promote social justice globally.<ref>{{cite news|last=Macdonald |first=Moira |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/movies/2017343454_mr27sing.html?prmid=head_main |title=Movies &#124; 'Sing Your Song' recounts Harry Belafonte's life |newspaper=[[The Seattle Times]] |access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref> In 2011, Belafonte's memoir ''My Song'' was published by [[Knopf Books]].<ref name="wp-25nov2011">{{cite news |last1=Haygood |first1=Wil |title=Book review: 'My Song,' a memoir by Harry Belafonte |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/book-review-my-song-a-memoir-by-harry-belafonte/2011/10/17/gIQA4rjevN_story.html |access-date=April 25, 2023 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=November 25, 2011}}</ref>

===Involvement in the civil rights movement===
[[File:Poitier Belafonte Heston Civil Rights March 1963.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Belafonte (center) at the 1963 [[March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom|Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C.]], with [[Sidney Poitier]] (left) and [[Charlton Heston]]]]
Belafonte supported the [[civil rights movement]] in the 1950s and 1960s and was one of [[Martin Luther King Jr.]]'s confidants.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Trott |first=Bill |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte, who mixed music, acting, and activism, dies at 96 – NY Times |url=https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/harry-belafonte-who-mixed-music-acting-and-activism-dies-at-96-ny-times-0 |website=Nasdaq, Reuters}}</ref> After King had been arrested for his involvement in the [[Montgomery bus boycott]] in 1955, he began traveling to Northern cities to spread awareness and acquire donations for those struggling with social segregation and oppression in the South.<ref name=":03">{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Judith E |title=Becoming Belafonte: Black Artist, Public Radical |publisher=University of Texas Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-292-76733-1 |edition=1st |location=Austin, Texas |pages=110–175 |chapter=Multimedia Stardom and the Struggle for Racial Equality, 1955-1960 }}</ref> The two met at the [[Abyssinian Baptist Church]] in [[Harlem|Harlem, New York]], in March of the following year. This interaction led to years of joint political activism and friendship. Belafonte joined King and his wife, [[Coretta Scott King]], during the 1958 Washington D.C. [[Youth March for Integrated Schools (1958)|Youth March for Integrated Schools]], and in 1963, he backed King in conversations with [[Robert F. Kennedy]], helping to organize the [[March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom|1963 March on Washington]]<ref name="USATodayDeath2">{{Cite web |last=Puente |first=Maria |date=April 25, 2023 |title=Harry Belafonte, trailblazing singer, actor and activist, dies at 96 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2023/04/25/harry-belafonte-dies-actor-singer-activist-king-of-calypso/2750984001/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=USA Today |language=en-US}}</ref>—the site of King's famous "[[I Have a Dream|I Have a Dream" Speech.]]<ref name=":15"/> He provided for King's family since King earned only $8,000 ($80,000 in today's money) a year as a preacher. As with many other civil rights activists, Belafonte was [[Hollywood blacklist|blacklisted]] during the [[McCarthyism|McCarthy era]]. During the 1963 [[Birmingham campaign]], Belafonte bailed King out of the [[Birmingham, Alabama]] jail and raised $50,000<ref>{{cite book |last=King |first=Martin Luther Jr. |url=https://archive.org/details/autobiographyofm00king_0/page/185 |title=The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. |date=2001 |publisher=Grand Central |isbn=978-0-446-67650-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/autobiographyofm00king_0/page/185 185] |url-access=registration}}</ref> to release other civil rights protesters. He contributed to the 1961 [[Freedom Rides]], and supported [[voter registration drive]]s<ref name="USATodayDeath2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Wilson |first1=Tracy |last2=Freeman |first2=WaTeasa |last3=Clark |first3=Alexis |last4=Settle |first4=Jimmy |title=Bigger than music: How Harry Belafonte contributed to Freedom Rides |url=https://www.theleafchronicle.com/story/news/2021/07/06/harry-belafonte-freedom-rides-music-activism-civil-rights/7727321002/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=[[The Leaf-Chronicle|Leaf Chronicle]] |language=en-US}}</ref> He later recalled, "Paul Robeson had been my first great formative influence; you might say he gave me my backbone. Martin King was the second; he nourished my soul."<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Belafonte |first1=Harry |title=My Song: A Memoir |last2=Shnayerson |first2=Michael |publisher=Knopf |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-307-27226-3 |location=New York |pages=297}}</ref> Throughout his career, Belafonte was an advocate for political and humanitarian causes, such as the [[Anti-Apartheid Movement]] and [[USA for Africa]]. From 1987 until his death, he was a [[UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 9, 1987 |title=Unicef Names Belafonte Good-Will Ambassador |work=[[The New York Times]] }}</ref>

During the [[Freedom Summer|Mississippi Freedom Summer]] of 1964, Belafonte bankrolled the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee]], flying to [[Mississippi]] that August with Sidney Poitier and $60,000 in cash and entertaining crowds in [[Greenwood, Mississippi|Greenwood]]. In 1968, Belafonte appeared on a [[Petula Clark]] primetime television special on [[NBC]]. In the middle of a duet of ''On the Path of Glory'', Clark smiled and briefly touched Belafonte's arm,<ref>{{YouTube|gQXVjY1oqRo|title=Harry Belafonte with Petula Clark – On The Path Of Glory}}</ref> which prompted complaints from Doyle Lott, the advertising manager of the show's sponsor, [[Plymouth Motors]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=q2VYAAAAIBAJ&pg=6371%2C1119906 |title=Tempest in TV Tube Is Sparked by Touch |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |agency=AP |date=March 5, 1968 |newspaper=Spokane Daily Chronicle |access-date=July 25, 2016}}</ref> Lott wanted to retape the segment,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7AkeAAAAIBAJ&pg=5727%2C478890 |title=Bellafonte Hollers; Chrysler Says Everything's All Right |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |agency=UPI |date=March 7, 1968 |newspaper=The Dispatch |location=Lexington, North Carolina |access-date=July 25, 2016}}</ref> but Clark, who had ownership of the special, told NBC that the performance would be shown intact or she would not allow it to be aired at all. Newspapers reported the controversy,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6SVIAAAAIBAJ&pg=2374%2C536509 |title=Chrysler Rejects Charges Of Discrimination In Show |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |agency=[[Associated Press|AP]] |date=March 7, 1968 |newspaper=[[Record-Journal|The Morning Record]] |location=Meriden–Wallingford, Connecticut |access-date=July 25, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=meVfAAAAIBAJ&pg=5089%2C1074881 |title=Belafonte says apologies can't change heart, color |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=March 16, 1968 |newspaper=[[Baltimore Afro-American|The Afro American]] |access-date=July 25, 2016}}</ref> Lott was relieved of his responsibilities,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=hz0xAAAAIBAJ&pg=7269%2C3917099 |title=Belafonte Ire Brings Penalty: Chrysler Official Apologizes To Star |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |agency=[[Associated Press|AP]] |date=March 11, 1968 |newspaper=[[The Blade (Toledo, Ohio)|Toledo Blade]] |access-date=July 25, 2016}}</ref> and when the special aired, it attracted high ratings.

Belafonte taped an appearance on an episode of ''[[The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour]]'' to be aired on September 29, 1968, performing a controversial [[Mardi Gras]] number intercut with footage from the [[1968 Democratic National Convention]] riots. [[CBS]] censors deleted the segment. The full unedited content was broadcast in 1993 as part of a complete ''Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'' syndication package.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}

=== Involvement in the Kennedy campaign ===
In the [[1960 election]] between [[John F. Kennedy]] and [[Richard Nixon]], notable Black athlete [[Jackie Robinson]] advocated his support for the Nixon campaign. His reasoning for doing so was his perception of Kennedy's championing of the [[Civil rights movement|Civil Rights movement]] as disingenuous.<ref>{{Cite news |last=New York Times |date=June 6, 2014 |title=Jackie Robinson and Nixon: Life and Death of a Political Friendship |work=New York Times Company |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1712316168 |issn=1553-8095 |id={{ProQuest|1712316168}} }}</ref> Because of Robinson's social impact on Black Americans, the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] was determined to find a comparable Black endorser for Kennedy's campaign.<ref name=":272">{{Cite web |title=Watch Bobby Kennedy for President {{!}} Netflix Official Site |url=https://www.netflix.com/title/80174282 |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=Netflix.com |language=en}}</ref> Fresh off of his win as the first Black man to receive an [[Emmy Awards|Emmy Award]] for his work on ''Tonight with Belafonte'', Belafonte was Kennedy's pick to fill the endorsement position.<ref name=":15">{{Cite book |last=Ross |first=Steven J |title=Hollywood Left and Right: How Movie Stars Shaped American Politics |publisher=USA: Oxford University Press. |year=2011 |pages=185–226 |chapter=Politics in Black and White: Harry Belafonte }}</ref>

The two met in Belafonte's apartment, where Kennedy had hoped to convince Belafonte to mobilize support for his campaign. He thought to accomplish this by having Belafonte mobilize his influence amongst other Black entertainers of the era, persuading them to rally for Kennedy's presidential nomination. Unexpectedly, Belafonte was not so impressed by the candidate, sharing the same sentiments as Robinson about Kennedy's role (or lack thereof) in maintaining civil rights as an essential part of his campaign. To improve his engagement with Black America, Belafonte suggested to Kennedy that he contact [[Martin Luther King Jr.|Martin Luther King]], making a connection to a viable source of leadership within the movement. Kennedy, though, was hesitant with this suggestion, questioning the social impact the preacher could make on the campaign. After much convincing–as Kennedy and King would later meet in June 1960–the two men negotiated a deal that if Nixon became the nominee for the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican party]], Belafonte would support Kennedy's presidential pursuits.<ref name=":15"/> Belafonte's endorsement of the campaign was further substantiated after both Kennedy brothers had worked to bail King out of jail in [[Atlanta]] after a sit-in, engaging with a [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] judge.<ref name=":272"/>

Joining the Hollywood for Kennedy committee,<ref name=":15" /> Belafonte appeared in a 1960 campaign commercial for Democratic presidential candidate [[John F. Kennedy]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Commercials – 1960 – Harry Belafonte |url=http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/commercials/1960/harry-belafonte |access-date=November 5, 2013 |website=The Living Room Candidate}}</ref> Unfortunately, the commercial was shown on television for one broadcasting.<ref name=":03"/> Belafonte also attended and performed at Kennedy's [[United States presidential inaugural balls|inaugural ball]].<ref name=":272"/> Kennedy later named Belafonte cultural advisor to the [[Peace Corps]]. After [[Assassination of John F. Kennedy|Kennedy's assassination]], Belafonte supported [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] for the [[1964 United States presidential election]].<ref>Jet, October 1, 1964</ref>

=== The Baldwin-Kennedy Meeting ===
Renowned author [[James Baldwin]] contacted Belafonte three years after John F. Kennedy's election. The purpose of the call was to invite Belafonte to a meeting to speak with [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]] [[Robert F. Kennedy|Robert Kennedy]] about the continued plight of the Black people in America. This event was known as the [[Baldwin–Kennedy meeting|Baldwin-Kennedy Meeting]]. Belafonte met with fifteen others, including Kennedy and Baldwin, in Kennedy's [[Central Park South]] apartment on May 24, 1963.<ref name=":272"/>

The other members included were Thais Aubrey, David Baldwin, Edwin Berry, [[Kenneth and Mamie Clark|Kenneth Clark]], Eddie Fales, [[Lorraine Hansberry]], Lena Horne, [[Clarence B. Jones|Clarence Jones]], [[Burke Marshall]], [[Henry Morgenthau III]], [[June Shagaloff Alexander|June Shagaloff]], Jerome Smith, and [[Rip Torn]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Henderson Paul L |first1=A. Scott |title=James Baldwin: Challenging Authors |last2=Thomas |first2=Paul L. |last3=Reese |first3=Charles |publisher=Rotterdam: Birkhäuser Boston |year=2014 |isbn=9789462096172 |edition=1st |volume=5 |pages=121–136 |chapter=8. James Baldwin: Artist as Activist and the Baldwin/Kennedy Secret Summit of 1963 }}</ref>

The guests engaged in cordial political and social conversation. Later, the talk led to an investigation of the position of Black people in the [[Vietnam War]]. Offended by Kennedy's implication that Black men should serve in the war, Jerome Smith scolded the young Attorney General. Smith, a Black man and Civil Rights advocate had been severely beaten while fighting for the movement's cause, which enforced his strong resistance to Kennedy's assertion, frustrated that he should fight for a country that did not seem to want to fight for him.<ref name=":272"/>

A short time after the confrontation, Belafonte spoke with Kennedy. Belafonte then told him that even with the meeting's tension, he needed to be in the presence of a man like Smith to understand Black people's frustration with [[patriotism]] that Kennedy and other leaders could not understand.<ref name=":272"/>

===Obama administration===
In the 1950s, Belafonte was a supporter of the African American Students Foundation, which gave a grant to [[Barack Obama Sr.]], the late father of 44th U.S. president [[Barack Obama]], to study at the [[University of Hawaii]] in 1959.<ref>{{Cite news|date=April 17, 2012|title=Barack Obama's father on colonial list of Kenyan students in US|url=http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/apr/18/barack-obama-father-colonial-list|access-date=June 17, 2020|newspaper=The Guardian|author-link=Richard Norton-Taylor|first=Richard|last=Norton-Taylor|language=en}}</ref>

In 2011, Belafonte commented on the [[Obama administration]] and the role that popular opinion played in shaping its policies. "I think [Obama] plays the game that he plays because he sees no threat from evidencing concerns for the poor."<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.democracynow.org/2011/1/26/harry_belafonte_on_obama_he_plays|title=Harry Belafonte on Obama: 'He Plays the Game that He Plays Because He Sees No Threat from Evidencing Concerns for the Poor'|work=[[Democracy Now!]]|date=January 26, 2011}}</ref>

On December 9, 2012, in an interview with [[Al Sharpton]] on [[MSNBC]], Belafonte expressed dismay that many political leaders in the United States continue to oppose Obama's policies even after his reelection: "The only thing left for Barack Obama to do is to work like a third-world dictator and just put all of these guys in jail. You're violating the American desire."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://thegrio.com/2012/12/14/harry-belafonte-obama-should-work-like-a-third-world-dictator/|title=Harry Belafonte: Obama should 'work like a third world dictator'|author=Francis, Marquise|work=[[The Grio]]|publisher=MSNBC|date=December 14, 2012|access-date=June 20, 2013}}</ref>

On February 1, 2013, Belafonte received the [[NAACP]]'s [[Spingarn Medal]], and in the televised ceremony, he counted [[Constance L. Rice]] among those previous recipients of the award whom he regarded highly for speaking up "to remedy the ills of the nation."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-ZRo5ws44I |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/T-ZRo5ws44I| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live|title=NAACP Image Awards &#124; Harry Belafonte Speaks on Gun Control in Acceptance Speech &#124; Feb 1, 2013 |via=YouTube |date=February 2, 2013 |access-date=February 19, 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In November 2014, Belafonte attended "Revolution and Religion," a dialogue between [[Bob Avakian]] and [[Cornel West]] at [[Riverside Church]] in New York City.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://youtube.com/watch?v=OziqDB9rRwA&t=2h2m15s |title= Revolution & Religion ... A Dialogue Between Cornel West and Bob Avakian|website= [[YouTube]]|date= April 13, 2020}}</ref>

===Support for Bernie Sanders===
In 2016, Belafonte endorsed Vermont U.S. senator [[Bernie Sanders]] in the [[Democratic Party presidential primaries, 2016|Democratic primaries]], saying: "I think he represents opportunity, I think he represents a moral imperative, I think he represents a certain kind of truth that's not often evidenced in the course of politics."<ref>{{cite web |title = Harry Belafonte Endorses Bernie Sanders for President |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NunNrElCRDs |date = February 11, 2016 |publisher=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>

Belafonte was an honorary cochairman of the [[2017 Women's March|Women's March on Washington]], which took place on January 21, 2017, the day after the [[First inauguration of Donald Trump|inauguration of Donald Trump]] as president.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://time.com/4641011/gloria-steinem-harry-belafonte-on-activism-trump/|title=Gloria Steinem Harry Belafonte March on Washington Video |last=Aneja|first=Arpita|date=January 21, 2017|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|access-date=March 30, 2017}}</ref>

=== The Sanders Institute ===
Belafonte was a fellow at [[The Sanders Institute]].<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.sandersinstitute.com/about/fellow/belafonte|title = Harry Belafonte – The Sanders Institute|website =sandersinstitute.com}}</ref>

== Humanitarian activism ==
[[File:Harry Belafonte (left) with opera star Stacey Robinson in 1988.jpg|thumb|right|Belafonte (left) with activist and opera star Stacey Robinson in 1988.]]

===HIV/AIDS crisis===

In 1985, Belafonte helped organize the [[Grammy Awards|Grammy Award]]-winning song "[[We Are the World]]", a multi-artist effort to raise funds for Africa. He performed in the [[Live Aid]] concert that same year. In 1987, he received an appointment to [[UNICEF]] as a [[goodwill ambassador]]. Following his appointment, Belafonte traveled to [[Dakar]], [[Senegal]], where he served as chairman of the International Symposium of Artists and Intellectuals for African Children. He also helped to raise funds—along with more than 20 other artists—in the largest concert ever held in [[sub-Saharan Africa]]. In 1994, he embarked on a mission to [[Rwanda]] and launched a media campaign to raise awareness of the needs of Rwandan children.<ref name=":0" />

In 2001, Belafonte visited South Africa to support the campaign against [[HIV/AIDS]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte on the AIDS crisis in Africa |date=June 26, 2001 |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/HEALTH/06/26/Belafonte.cnna/index.html |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=[[CNN]]}}</ref> In 2002, [[Africare]] awarded him the [[Bishop John T. Walker Distinguished Humanitarian Service Award]] for his efforts.<ref name=time-25apr2023 /> In 2004, Belafonte traveled to [[Kenya]] to stress the importance of educating children in the region.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 16, 2004 |title=Harry Belafonte urges all countries to end school fees, UNICEF reports {{!}} UN News |url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2004/02/94202 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=news.un.org |language=en}}</ref>

===Prostate Cancer awareness===
Belafonte had been involved in [[prostate cancer]] advocacy since 1996, when he was diagnosed and successfully treated for the disease.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.phoenix5.org/stories/famous/Belafonte.html |title=Harry Belafonte and prostate cancer |publisher=Phoenix5.org |date=April 21, 1997 |access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref> On June 27, 2006, Belafonte received the [[Black Entertainment Television|BET]] Humanitarian Award at the 2006 [[BET Awards]]. He was named one of nine 2006 Impact Award recipients by ''[[AARP: The Magazine]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.aarp.org/politics-society/advocacy/info-2005/impact_awards_bela.html |title=Harry Belafonte, Humanitarian |magazine=AARP The Magazine |first=Mary P. |last=Willis|date= January 12, 2009 |access-date=April 26, 2023}}</ref>

===Work with UNICEF===
On October 19, 2007, Belafonte represented [[UNICEF]] on [[Norway|Norwegian]] television to support the annual telethon ([http://www.tvaksjonen.no TV Aksjonen]) and helped raise a world record of $10 per Norwegian citizen.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte {{!}} UNICEF |url=https://www.unicef.org/goodwill-ambassadors/harry-belafonte |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Unicef.org |language=en}}</ref>

===Various Activist work===
Belafonte was also an ambassador for the [[Bahamas]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte, EGOT Winner and Activist, Dead at 96 {{!}} Entertainment Tonight|first1= Latifah |last1=Muhammad |first2=Anthony |last2=Dominic |url=https://www.etonline.com/harry-belafonte-egot-winner-and-activist-dead-at-96-116105 |date=April 25, 2023|access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Etonline.com |language=en-US}}</ref> He sat on the board of directors of the Advancement Project.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.advancementproject.org |title=Advancement Project |publisher=Advancement Project |access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref> He also served on the advisory council of the [[Nuclear Age Peace Foundation]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chiu |first1=Kenneth |title=Remembering Harry Belafonte |url=https://www.wagingpeace.org/remembering-harry-belafonte/ |website=Nuclear Age Peace Foundation |access-date=June 4, 2024 |date=May 1, 2023}}</ref>

=== New York City Pride Parade ===
In 2013, Belafonte was named a grand marshal of the New York City Pride Parade alongside [[Edith Windsor|Edie Windsor]] and Earl Fowlkes.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=On Eve of Historic Windsor V. United States SCOTUS Case NYC Pride Announces 2013 Grand Marshals: Edith Windsor, Harry Belafonte, Earl Fowlkes to Lead March Down 5th Ave. |url=http://www.nycpride.org/uploads/press_releases/2013%20NYC%20Pride%20Grand%20Marshals.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029172050/https://www.nycpride.org/uploads/press_releases/2013%20NYC%20Pride%20Grand%20Marshals.pdf |archive-date=2013-10-29 |website=NYC Pride}}</ref>

== Belafonte and foreign policy ==
Belafonte was a longtime critic of [[U.S. foreign policy]]. He began making controversial political statements on the subject in the early 1980s. At various times, he made statements opposing the U.S. embargo on [[Cuba]]; praising Soviet peace initiatives; attacking the [[U.S. invasion of Grenada]]; praising the [[Abraham Lincoln Brigade]]; honoring [[Ethel and Julius Rosenberg]]; and praising [[Fidel Castro]].<ref name=var-25apr2023 /><ref>{{Cite web|date=February 28, 2017 |title=This week in history: Singer/activist Harry Belafonte thriving at 90 |url=https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/this-week-in-history-singeractivist-harry-belafonte-thriving-at-90/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=People's World |language=en-US}}</ref> Belafonte is also known for his visit to Cuba that helped ensure [[hip-hop]]'s place in Cuban society. According to Geoffrey Baker's article "Hip hop, Revolucion! Nationalizing Rap in Cuba", in 1999, Belafonte met with representatives of the rap community immediately before meeting with Castro. This meeting resulted in Castro's personal approval of, and hence the government's involvement in, the incorporation of rap into his country's culture.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Baker | first = Geoffrey |title=Hip Hop, Revolución! Nationalizing Rap in Cuba |journal= Ethnomusicology | volume = 49 | pages = 368–402 | issue = 3 | url = https://www.jstor.org/stable/20174403 |date=Fall 2005 | jstor = 20174403 }}</ref> In a 2003 interview, Belafonte reflected upon this meeting's influence:

[[File:Harry Belafonte Civil Rights March 1963.jpg|thumb|left|Belafonte speaking at the 1963 [[March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom]].]]
"When I went back to [[Havana, Cuba|Havana]] a couple years later, the people in the hip-hop community came to see me and we hung out for a bit. They thanked me profusely and I said, 'Why?' and they said, 'Because your little conversation with Fidel and the Minister of Culture on hip-hop led to there being a special division within the ministry and we've got our own studio.'."<ref>{{cite news |last=Levinson |first=Sandra |author-link=Sandra Levinson |title=An exclusive interview with Harry Belafonte on Cuba |work= Cuba Now | url = http://www.afrocubaweb.com/belafonte03interview.htm |date=October 25, 2003|access-date= October 25, 2003 }}</ref>

Belafonte was active in the [[Anti-Apartheid Movement]]. In 1987, he was the master of ceremonies at a reception honoring [[African National Congress]] President [[Oliver Tambo]] at Roosevelt House, [[Hunter College]], in New York City. The reception was held by the American Committee on Africa (ACOA) and The Africa Fund.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://africanactivist.msu.edu/document_metadata.php?objectid=32-130-F4A |title=Reception Honoring Oliver R. Tambo, President, The African National Congress (South Africa) |website=[[African Activist Archive]] |publisher=Matrix |access-date=December 10, 2013}}</ref> He was a board member of the [[TransAfrica Forum]] and the [[Institute for Policy Studies]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ips-dc.org/about/trustees |title=Institute for Policy Studies: Trustees |publisher=Ips-dc.org |access-date=November 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080311180901/http://www.ips-dc.org/about/trustees |archive-date=March 11, 2008 }}</ref>

===Opposition to the George W. Bush administration===
Belafonte achieved widespread attention for his political views in 2002 when he began making a series of comments about President [[George W. Bush]], his administration and the [[Iraq War]]. During an interview with [[Ted Leitner]] for [[San Diego]]'s 760 KFMB, on October 10, 2002, Belafonte referred to [[Malcolm X]].<ref name=CNNpowell /> Belafonte said:

{{blockquote|There is an old saying, in the days of [[slavery]]. There were those slaves who lived on the plantation, and there were those [[House slave|slaves who lived in the house]]. You got the privilege of living in the house if you served the master, do exactly the way the master intended to have you serve him. That gave you privilege. [[Colin Powell]] is permitted to come into the house of the master, as long as he would serve the master, according to the master's dictates. And when Colin Powell dares to suggest something other than what the master wants to hear, he will be turned back out to pasture. And you don't hear much from those who live in the pasture.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/2003/02/08/powells-mastery/c571df88-70d8-47c2-80eb-032d1cbdd919/|title=Opinion: Powell's Mastery|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=March 3, 2024}}</ref>}}

Belafonte used the quotation to characterize former [[United States Secretary of State|United States Secretaries of State]] Colin Powell and [[Condoleezza Rice]]. Powell and Rice both responded, with Powell calling the remarks "unfortunate"<ref name=CNNpowell>{{cite news | url=http://archives.cnn.com/2002/US/10/15/belafonte.powell/ | work=CNN | title=Belafonte won't back down from Powell slave reference | date=October 14, 2002 | access-date=May 4, 2010 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091225224441/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/US/10/15/belafonte.powell/ | archive-date=December 25, 2009 | df=mdy-all }}</ref> and Rice saying: "I don't need Harry Belafonte to tell me what it means to be black."<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,66288,00.html | work=Fox News | title=Powell, Rice Accused of Toeing the Line | date=October 22, 2002}}</ref>
[[File:Harry Belafonte-IPS.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.9|Belafonte in 2003]]
The comment resurfaced in an interview with [[Amy Goodman]] for ''[[Democracy Now!]]'' in 2006.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/01/30/157217&mode=thread&tid=25 |title=Harry Belafonte on Bush, Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and Having His Conversations with Martin Luther King Wiretapped by the FBI |website=Democracy Now!|access-date=November 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071116221213/http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06%2F01%2F30%2F157217&mode=thread&tid=25 |archive-date=November 16, 2007 }}</ref> In January 2006, Belafonte led a delegation of activists including actor [[Danny Glover]] and activist/professor [[Cornel West]] to meet with [[President of Venezuela|Venezuelan president]] [[Hugo Chávez]]. In 2005, Chávez, an outspoken Bush critic, initiated a program to provide cheaper [[heating oil]] for poor people in several areas of the United States. Belafonte supported this initiative.<ref>{{cite news| url= http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2006/01/08/2003288040 |title=Venezuela plans to expand program to provide cheap heating oil to US poor | newspaper= Taipei Times |date=October 29, 2013|access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref> He was quoted as saying, during the meeting with Chávez: "No matter what the greatest tyrant in the world, the greatest [[terrorism|terrorist]] in the world, George W. Bush says, we're here to tell you: Not hundreds, not thousands, but millions of the American people support your revolution."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna10767465 |title=Belafonte calls Bush 'greatest terrorist' – World news – Americas|website=[[NBC News]] |date=January 8, 2006|access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref> Belafonte and Glover met again with Chávez in 2006.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,214973,00.html | work=[[Fox News]] | title=Chavez Repeats 'Devil' Comment at Harlem Event | date=September 21, 2006}}</ref> The comment ignited a great deal of controversy. [[Hillary Clinton]] refused to acknowledge Belafonte's presence at an awards ceremony that featured both of them.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/382483p-324705c.html |location=New York |work=Daily News |title=Hillary's not wild about Harry |first=Katherine|last=Thomson|date=January 12, 2006| url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070218064934/http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/382483p-324705c.html |archive-date=February 18, 2007 }}</ref> [[AARP]], which had just named him one of its 10 Impact Award honorees 2006, released this statement following the remarks: "AARP does not condone the manner and tone which he has chosen and finds his comments completely unacceptable."<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.aarp.org/research/press-center/presscurrentnews/harry_belafonte_comments.html |title= Harry Belafonte Comments |publisher=AARP.org |date=November 1, 2013 |access-date=November 5, 2013}}</ref>

During a [[Martin Luther King Jr. Day]] speech at [[Duke University]] in 2006, Belafonte compared the American government to the [[9/11 hijackers|hijackers]] of the [[September 11 attacks]], saying: "What is the difference between that terrorist and other terrorists?"<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/01/30/157217 |title=Harry Belafonte on Bush, Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and Having His Conversations with Martin Luther King Wiretapped by the FBI |website=[[Democracy Now!]]|access-date=November 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071114183807/http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06%2F01%2F30%2F157217 |archive-date=November 14, 2007 }}</ref> In response to criticism about his remarks, Belafonte asked: "What do you call Bush when the war he put us in to date has killed almost as many Americans as died on 9/11 and the number of Americans wounded in war is almost triple? ... By most definitions Bush can be considered a terrorist." When he was asked about his expectation of criticism for his remarks on the war in Iraq, Belafonte responded: "Bring it on. [[Dissent]] is central to any democracy."<ref>{{cite web |last=Williams |first=Brad |url=http://dailybeacon.utk.edu/showarticle.php?articleid=50447 |title=Audience applauds Belafonte |work=[[The Daily Beacon]] |publisher=University of Tennessee, Knoxville |date=September 13, 2006|access-date=November 5, 2013|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016110632/http://dailybeacon.utk.edu/showarticle.php?articleid=50447 |archive-date=October 16, 2007 }}</ref>

In another interview, Belafonte remarked that while his comments may have been "hasty", he felt that the Bush administration suffered from "arrogance wedded to ignorance" and its policies around the world were "[[morally bankrupt]]."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=35313 |title=Politics-US: Belafonte on Thinking Outside the Ballot Box |publisher=Ipsnews.net |access-date=November 4, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120220131219/http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=35313 |archive-date=February 20, 2012 }}</ref> In a January 2006 speech to the annual meeting of the Arts Presenters Members Conference, Belafonte referred to "the new [[secret police|Gestapo]] of [[Homeland Security]]", saying: "You can be arrested and have no [[right to counsel]]!"<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,182413,00.html | work=Fox News | title=Belafonte Blasts 'Gestapo' Security | date=January 23, 2006}}</ref> During a Martin Luther King Jr. Day speech at [[Duke University]] in [[Durham, North Carolina]] in January 2006, Belafonte said that if he could choose his [[epitaph]], it would read "Harry Belafonte, Patriot."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.democracynow.org/2011/5/16/sing_your_song_harry_belafonte_on |title=''Sing Your Song'': Harry Belafonte on Art & Politics, Civil Rights & His Critique of President Obama |last1=Goodman |first1=Amy |website=[[Democracy Now!]]|date= May 16, 2011|access-date=December 10, 2013}}</ref>

In 2004, he was awarded the Domestic Human Rights Award in San Francisco by [[Global Exchange]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2023}}

==Business career==
Belafonte liked and often visited the Caribbean island of [[Bonaire]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://knipselkrant-curacao.com/tpo-ode-aan-bonaire-een-ongrijpbare-liefde-in-de-caraibische-branding/ |title=Ode aan Bonaire, een ongrijpbare liefde in de Caraïbische branding |website=ThePostOnline via Knipselkrant Curacao|access-date=May 3, 2021|language=nl}}</ref> He and Maurice Neme of [[Oranjestad, Aruba]], formed a joint venture to create a luxurious [[private community]] on Bonaire named [[Belnem]], a portmanteau of the two men's names. Construction began on June 3, 1966.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.delpher.nl/nl/kranten/view?query=belnem&coll=ddd&identifier=ddd:010640638:mpeg21:a0057&resultsidentifier=ddd:010640638:mpeg21:a0057&rowid=3 |title=Belnemproject|website=Amigoe via Delpher.nl|date=April 21, 1981|access-date=May 3, 2021|language=nl}}</ref> The neighborhood is managed by the Bel-Nem Caribbean Development Corporation. Belafonte and Neme served as its first directors.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.delpher.nl/nl/kranten/view?query=belnem&coll=ddd&page=1&facets%5Bperiode%5D%5B%5D=2%7C20e_eeuw%7C1960-1969%7C1966%7C&identifier=ddd:010462950:mpeg21:a0092&resultsidentifier=ddd:010462950:mpeg21:a0092&rowid=2 |title=Statuten Bel-Nem goedgekeurd|website=Amigoe di Curacao via Delpher.nl|date=June 29, 1966|access-date=May 3, 2021|language=nl}}</ref> In 2017, Belnem was home to 717 people.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/maatwerk/2018/17/bonaire-bevolkingscijfers-per-buurt |title=Bonaire, bevolkingscijfers per buurt|website=Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek|access-date=May 3, 2021|year=2017|language=nl}}</ref>

==Personal life, health and death==
[[File:Julie Belafonte 1998.jpg|thumb|upright|Second wife Julie Robinson in 1998]]
[[File:HarryPamelaBelafonteApr2011.jpg|thumb|upright|Belafonte with third wife Pamela Frank in April 2011]]
Belafonte and Marguerite Byrd were married from 1948 to 1957. They had two daughters: Adrienne and [[Shari Belafonte|Shari]]. They separated when Byrd was pregnant with Shari.<ref name="people39" /> Adrienne and her daughter Rachel Blue founded the Anir Foundation/Experience, focused on humanitarian work in southern Africa.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.anirfoundation.org/About_Anir.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904024046/http://www.anirfoundation.org/About_Anir.html |archive-date=September 4, 2011 |title=Welcome to the Anir Experience |website=Anir Foundation |access-date=April 26, 2023}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In 1953, Belafonte was financially able to move from [[Washington Heights, Manhattan]], "into a white neighborhood in [[East Elmhurst, Queens]]."<ref>[[Henry Louis Gates, Jr.|Gates Jr., Henry Louis]] (August 26, 1996). [http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1996/08/26/belafontes-balancing-act "Belafonte's Balancing Act"], ''[[The New Yorker]]''. Accessed March 19, 2019. "In 1953, enjoying his first real taste of affluence, Belafonte moved from Washington Heights into a white neighborhood in Elmhurst, Queens."</ref>

Belafonte had an affair with actress [[Joan Collins]] during the filming of [[Island in the Sun (film)|''Island in the Sun'']].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://parade.com/211568/erinhill/joan-collins-shares-steamy-details-of-affairs-with-harry-belafonte-and-warren-beatty/|title=Joan Collins Shares Steamy Details of Affairs with Harry Belafonte and Warren Beatty|last=Hill|first=Erin|date=October 14, 2013|newspaper=Parade: Entertainment, Recipes, Health, Life, Holidays}}</ref>

On March 8, 1957, Belafonte married his second wife Julie Robinson (1928–2024), a dancer with the [[Katherine Dunham Company]] who was of [[American Jews|Jewish]] descent.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Zack |first1=Ian |title=Julie Robinson Belafonte, Dancer, Actress and Activist, Is Dead at 95 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/21/arts/julie-belafonte-dead.html |website=The New York Times |access-date=6 September 2024 |date=23 March 2024}}</ref> They had two children: [[Gina Belafonte|Gina]] and David.<ref>{{cite news|last=Bloom|first=Nate|title=Jewish Stars 11/18 |newspaper=[[Cleveland Jewish News]]|date=November 17, 2011|url=https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/archives/jewish-stars/article_7913ef9e-115a-11e1-a5a7-001cc4c03286.html|quote=His second wife, dancer Julie Robinson, to whom he was married from 1958–2004, is Jewish. They had a daughter Gina, 50, and a son David, 54}}</ref> After 47 years of marriage,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/culture/music/interview-harry-belafonte-singer-1-2321445 |title= Interview: Harry Belafonte, singer |first= James |last= Mottran |date= May 27, 2012 |work= The Scotsman }}</ref> Belafonte and Robinson divorced in 2004.

In Fall 1958, Belafonte was looking for an apartment to rent on the Upper West Side. After he had been turned away from other apartment buildings due to being black, he had his white publicist rent an apartment at 300 West End Avenue for him. When he moved in, and the owner realized that he was an African American, he was asked to leave. Belafonte not only refused, but he also used three dummy real estate companies to buy the building and converted it into a co-op, inviting his friends, both white and black, to buy apartments. He lived in the 21-room, 6-bedroom apartment for 48 years.<ref name=memoir>Belafonte, Harry with Shnayerson, Michael (2012) ''My Song: A Memoir of Art, Race, and Defiance'' [https://books.google.com/books?id=wnQdr26vRCgC&q=%22West%20End%22&pg=PA192 pp.192–193]. New York: Knopf Doubleday. {{isbn|9780307473424}}</ref> In April 2008, he married Pamela Frank, a photographer.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/07/us/harry-belafonte-fast-facts/index.html |title=Harry Belafonte Fast Facts |publisher= CNN|date=July 7, 2013 |access-date = December 10, 2013}}</ref>

[[File:Harry belafonte 0103.JPG|thumb|right|upright=0.9|Belafonte in 2013]]
Belafonte had five grandchildren: Rachel and Brian through his children with Marguerite Byrd, and Maria, Sarafina and Amadeus through his children with Robinson. He had two great-grandchildren by his oldest grandson Brian. In October 1998, Belafonte contributed a letter to [[Liv Ullmann]]'s book ''Letter to My Grandchild''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ullmann|first=Liv|title=Letter to My Grandchild|publisher=Atlantic Monthly Press|date=1998|isbn=0-87113-728-3}}</ref>

In 1996, Belafonte was diagnosed with prostate cancer and was treated for the disease. He suffered a stroke in 2004, which took away his inner-ear balance. From 2019, Belafonte's health began to decline, but he remained an active and prominent figure in the civil rights movement.{{citation needed|date=June 2023}}

Belafonte died from [[congestive heart failure]] at his home on the [[Upper West Side]] of [[Manhattan]], New York City, on April 25, 2023, at the age of 96.<ref name = Keepnews>{{cite news|url = https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/25/arts/music/harry-belafonte-dead.html|title = Harry Belafonte, 96, Dies; Barrier-Breaking Singer, Actor and Activist|last = Keepnews|first = Peter|newspaper = [[The New York Times]]|date = April 25, 2023|access-date = April 25, 2023|url-access = limited}}</ref>

==Discography==
{{further|Harry Belafonte discography}}

Belafonte released 27 studio albums, 8 live albums, and 6 collaborations, and achieved critical and commercial success.

==Filmography==
=== Film ===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
! {{Tooltip|Ref|Reference}}
|-
|1953 || ''[[Bright Road]]'' || Mr. Williams|| ||<ref name="auto">{{Cite news|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/harry_belafonte|title=Harry Belafonte – Rotten Tomatoes|newspaper=Rotten Tomatoes}}</ref>
|-
|1954 || ''[[Carmen Jones (film)|Carmen Jones]]'' ||Joe || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|rowspan=2|1957 || ''[[Island in the Sun (film)|Island in the Sun]]'' ||David Boyeur || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
| ''The Heart of Show Business'' || || Short ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/508734/the-heart-of-show-business#overview|title=The Heart of Show Business|access-date=April 25, 2023|publisher=TMC}}</ref>
|-
|rowspan=2|1959 || ''[[The World, the Flesh and the Devil (1959 film)|The World, the Flesh and the Devil]]'' ||Ralph Burton || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
| ''[[Odds Against Tomorrow]]'' ||Johnny Ingram || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|1970 || ''[[The Angel Levine]]'' ||Alexander Levine || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|1972 || ''[[Buck and the Preacher]]'' ||Preacher || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|1974 || ''[[Uptown Saturday Night]]'' ||Dan "Geechie Dan" Beauford|| ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|1983 || ''Drei Lieder'' || || Short ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQKufttgFbE|title=Drei Lieder|date=March 3, 2023 |publisher=Youtuber|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|1992 || ''[[The Player (1992 film)|The Player]]'' || Cameo || ||<ref name=tvguide/>
|-
|1994 || ''[[Prêt-à-Porter (film)|Ready to Wear]]'' || Cameo || ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/harry-belafonte-civil-rights-and-entertainment-giant-dies-at-96|title=Harry Belafonte, civil rights and entertainment giant, dies at 96|publisher=PBS|date=April 25, 2023|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|1995 || ''[[White Man's Burden (film)|White Man's Burden]]'' ||Thaddeus Thomas || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|1996 || ''[[Kansas City (1996 film)|Kansas City]]''|| Seldom Seen || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|2006 || ''[[Bobby (2006 film)|Bobby]]'' || Nelson || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|2018 || ''[[BlacKkKlansman]]'' ||Jerome Turner || ||<ref name="auto"/>
|}

;Documentary
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! {{Tooltip|Ref|Reference}}
|-
|1970 || ''[[King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis]]'' ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nmaahc.si.edu/events/king-filmed-record-montgomery-memphis|title=King: A Filmed Record ... Montgomery to Memphis|publisher=NMAAHC|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|1981 || ''Fundi: The Story of [[Ella Baker]]'' ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/fundi-the-story-of-ella-baker/1030240761/|title=Fundi: The Story of Ella Baker|website=TV Guide|date=1986|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|1982 || ''A veces miro mi vida'' ||<ref name=tvguide/>
|-
|1983 || ''Sag nein'' ||<ref name=tvguide/>
|-
|1984 || ''Der Schönste Traum'' ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b7e75bebb|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210923063453/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b7e75bebb|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 23, 2021|title=Harry Belafonte|publisher=BFI.org|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|1989 || ''We Shall Overcome''||<ref name=tvguide/>
|-
|1995 || ''[[Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream]]'' ||<ref name=xxicentury/>
|-
|1996 || ''Jazz '34'' ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|1998 || ''Scandalize My Name: Stories from the Blacklist'' || <ref name=tvguide/>
|-
|2001 || ''[[Fidel (2001 documentary)|Fidel]]'' ||<ref name=tvguide>{{cite web|url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/harry-belafonte/tv-listings/3000044658/|title=Harry Belafonte|website=TV Guide|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|rowspan=2|2003 || ''XXI Century'' ||<ref name=xxicentury>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Uhh7GggNxQoC&dq=XXI+century+film+2003+harry+belafonte&pg=PA635|title=Harry Belafonte|date=February 28, 2010 |isbn=9781851097692 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |last1=Alexander |first1=Leslie M. |last2=Rucker |first2=Walter C. |publisher=Abc-Clio }}</ref>
|-
| ''[[:fr:Conakry Kas|Conakry Kas]]'' ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2004/film/reviews/conakry-kas-1200532085/|title=Conakry Kas|website=Variety|first=Dennis|last=Harvey|date=July 20, 2004|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|2004 || ''Ladders'' ||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kronos36.news/tr/kalipso-krali-harry-belafonte-96-yasinda-hayatini-kaybetti/|title='Kalipso Kralı' Harry Belafonte, 96 yaşında hayatını kaybetti|work=Kronos Haber |publisher=Kronos36|date=April 25, 2023|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|2010 || ''[[Motherland (2010 film)|Motherland]]''||<ref>{{cite web|url=https://mubi.com/films/motherland-2010/cast|title=Motherland|publisher=Mubi|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
|-
|2011 || ''[[Sing Your Song]]'' ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|2013 || ''[[:pt:Hava Nagila: The Movie|Hava Nagila: The Movie]]'' ||<ref name="auto"/>
|-
|2020 || ''The Sit-In: Harry Belafonte hosts the Tonight Show'' || <ref name="auto"/>
|}

===Television===
[[File:After Dark 11th June 1988.jpg|upright=1.36|right|thumb|Appearing (second from left) on British television discussion programme ''[[After Dark (TV programme)|After Dark]]'' in 1988]]
{{columns-list|colwidth=400px|
* ''[[Sugar Hill Times]]'' (1949–1950)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.videodetective.com/show/sugar-hill-times-28549|title=Sugar Hill Times|website=Video Detective|date=September 13, 1949 |access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'' (1953–1964)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.edsullivan.com/celebrating-the-activism-of-harry-belafonte/|title=Celebrating the Activism of Harry Belafonte|date=November 20, 2014 |publisher=Ed Sullivan.com|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''The Nat King Cole Show'' (1957)<ref name=CBSRem>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/pictures/remembering-harry-belafonte-through-the-years/|title=Remembering Harry Belafonte|website=[[CBS News]] |date=April 25, 2023 |access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''[[The Steve Allen Show]]'' (1958)<ref>[http://www.tv.com/shows/the-steve-allen-show/harry-belafonte-and-the-belafonte-singers-johnny-carson-martha-raye-676944/cast/ Cast] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801140441/http://www.tv.com/shows/the-steve-allen-show/harry-belafonte-and-the-belafonte-singers-johnny-carson-martha-raye-676944/cast/ |date=August 1, 2020 }} (Harry Belafonte and the Belafonte Singers; Johnny Carson; Martha Raye). ''The Steve Allen Show'' Season 4 Episode 9.</ref>
* ''Tonight With Belafonte'' (1959)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/480309/tonight-with-belafonte#overview|title=Tonight with Belafonte|publisher=TMC|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''Round Table on March on Washington'' (1963)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.c-span.org/video/?314549-1/roundtable-march-washington|title=Roundtable on March on Washington|publisher=C-SPAN|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''[[The Danny Kaye Show]]'' (1965)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/harry_belafonte|title=Harry Belafonte|access-date=April 25, 2023|publisher=Rotten Tomatoes}}</ref>
* ''Petula'' (1968)<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/apr/02/how-petula-clark-and-harry-belafonte-fought-racism-arm-in-arm|title=How Petula Clark and Harry Belafonte Fought Racism Arm in Arm|work=The Guardian|date=April 2, 2018 |access-date=April 25, 2023 |last1=Goddard |first1=Simon }}</ref>
* ''[[The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour]]'' (1968)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item/?q=Smothers+Brothers+Comedy+Hour&p=1&item=T:22125.Snierson|title=The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour|publisher=Paley Center|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''[[The Tonight Show]]'' (1968)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wuwm.com/podcast/lake-effect-segments/documentary-harry-belafonte-death-historic-week-hosting-tonight-show-1968|title=Documentary looks at Harry Belafonte's historic week hosting 'The Tonight Show' in 1968|publisher=WUWM|date=April 25, 2023|first1=Audrey |last1=Nowakowski|first2=Jack|last2=Hurbanis|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''A World in Music'' (1969)<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLiSUU5c3Rs|title=Harry Belafonte & Julie Andrews – A World in Music (1969)|date=December 8, 2020 |via=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
* ''Harry & Lena, For The Love Of Life'' (1969)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/harry-lena-mw0001006735|title=Harry Belafonte, Lena Horne – Harry & Lena Album Reviews, Songs & More |website=[[AllMusic]]}}</ref>
* ''A World in Love'' (1970)<ref name="auto2"/>
* ''[[The Flip Wilson Show]]'' (1973)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-flip-wilson-show--harry-belafonte-burns-and-schreiber-vm332723|title=The Flip Wilson Show : Harry Belafonte, Burns and Schreiber (1973) – &#124; Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related |website=[[AllMovie]]}}</ref>
* ''[[Free to Be ... You and Me]]'' (1974)<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/25/arts/music/harry-belafonte-singer-activist.html|title=Harry Belafonte, Folk Hero|first=Wesley|last=Morris|work=The New York Times |date=April 25, 2023|via=NYTimes.com}}</ref>
* ''[[The Muppet Show]]'' (1978)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://toughpigs.com/harry-belafonte/|title=RIP Muppet Show Guest Harry Belafonte|first=Joe|last=Hennes|date=April 25, 2023|website=ToughPigs}}</ref>
* ''[[Grambling's White Tiger]]'' (1981)<ref name="auto"/>
* ''Don't Stop The Carnival'' (1985)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/466853/harry-belafonte-dont-stop-the-carnival|title=Harry Belafonte: Don't Stop The Carnival|website=Turner Classic Movies}}</ref>
* ''[[After Dark (TV series)|After Dark]]'' (1988) (extended appearance on political discussion programme, more [[After Dark (TV series)#Harry Belafonte, Denis Worrall and "South Africa"|here]])<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNCs40ejqfE|title=Harry Belafonte &#124; 'South Africa' &#124; After Dark &#124; Late-night live talk show &#124; 1988|date=October 23, 2020 |via=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
* ''[[An Evening with Harry Belafonte and Friends]]'' (1997)<ref name="latimes-heckman"/>
* ''Swing Vote'' (1999)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/swing-vote/cast/2030118540/|title=Swing Vote|website=TVGuide.com}}</ref>
* ''Swing Vote'' (1999 TV movie)<ref name="auto"/>
* ''[[PB&J Otter]]'' "The Ice Moose" (1999)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.videodetective.com/show/pbj-otter-3619/season/2/episode/26|title=PB&J Otter – Season 2 Episode 26 – Video Detective|date=December 6, 1999|website=Videodetective.com}}</ref>
* ''[[Tanner on Tanner]]'' (2004)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/harry-belafonte-dead-2d8cbdf0043e4383a6c4a85c862cdbe1|title=Harry Belafonte, activist and entertainer, dies at 96|website=[[Associated Press]]|date=April 25, 2023 |access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''That's What I'm Talking About'' (2006) (miniseries)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQR_1EA5kHE|title=That's What I'm Talking About|date=May 13, 2019 |via=[[YouTube]]|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''[[When the Levees Broke|When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts]]'' (2006) (miniseries)<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/21/arts/television/21leve.html|title='When the Levees Broke': Spike Lee's Tales From a Broken City|first=Stephen|last=Holden|work=The New York Times |date=August 21, 2006|via=NYTimes.com}}</ref>
* ''Speakeasy'', interviewing [[Carlos Santana]] (2015)<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Grow|first1=Kory|title=Roger Waters, John Mellencamp Choose Interviewers for 'Speakeasy' TV Show|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/roger-waters-john-mellencamp-choose-interviewers-new-speakeasy-tv-show-20150108|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=January 27, 2015|date=January 8, 2015}}</ref>
}}

===Concert videos===
* ''En Gränslös Kväll På Operan'' (1966)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/belafonte-en-gr%C3%A4nsl%C3%B6s-kv%C3%A4ll-p%C3%A5-operan-an-evening-without-borders-at-the-operahouse-mw0001391156|title=Harry Belafonte – Belafonte-En Gränslös Kväll På Operan (An Evening Without Borders at the Operahouse) Album Reviews, Songs & More|website=[[AllMusic]]}}</ref>
* ''Don't Stop The Carnival'' (1985)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/466853/harry-belafonte-dont-stop-the-carnival#overview|title=Harry Belafonte: Don't Stop the Carnival|work=TCM}}</ref>
* ''Global Carnival'' (1988)<ref name="Harry Belafonte in Concert – Global Carnival" />
* ''[[An Evening with Harry Belafonte and Friends]]'' (1997)<ref name="latimes-heckman"/>

==Theatre==
* ''[[John Murray Anderson's Almanac]]'' (1953)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/shows/John-Murray-Anderson%27s-Almanac-5338.html|title=John Murray Anderson's Almanac|website=Broadway World|date=1953|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''3 for Tonight'' (1955)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1955/04/17/293885792.html#|title=3 for Tonight|access-date=April 25, 2023|date=April 17, 1955|newspaper=The New York Times|first=Brooks |last=Atkinson}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1955/04/17/archives/3-for-tonight-harry-belafonte-and-the-champions-in-an-informal.html|title=3 for Tonight: Harry Belafonte and the Champions in an Informal|newspaper=The New York Times|first=Brooks|last=Atkinson|date=April 17, 1955|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''Moonbirds'' (1959) (producer)<ref name=playbill>{{cite web|url=https://playbill.com/article/tony-winner-harry-belafonte-passes-away-at-96|title=Tony Winner Harry Belafonte Passes Away at 96|website=Playbill|first=Margaret|last=Hall|date=April 25, 2023|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''Belafonte at the Palace'' (1959)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://playbill.com/production/belafonte-at-the-palace-palace-theatre-vault-0000009185|title=Belafonte at the Palace: Theatre Vault|website=Playbill|date=1959|access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref>
* ''Asinamali!'' (1987) (producer)<ref name=playbill/>

==Accolades and legacy==
Belafonte is an [[List of EGOT winners|EGOT]] honoree, having received three [[Grammy Awards]], an [[Emmy Award]],<ref name="emmys.com"/> a [[Tony Award]],<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Harry Belafonte Tony Awards Wins and Nominations |url=https://www.tonyawards.com/nominees/?q=harry%20belafonte |access-date=2024-02-08 |website=Tonyawards.com}}</ref> and, in 2014, the [[Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award]] at the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences|Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences']] [[Governors Awards#6th Annual Governors Awards|6th Annual Governors Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-10-28 |title=6th Annual Governors Awards {{!}} Oscars.org {{!}} Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences |url=https://www.oscars.org/events/6th-annual-governors-awards |access-date=2023-08-07 |website=Oscars.org |language=en}}</ref>

Belafonte won an Emmy in 1960 for his performance on [[Revlon Revue]]. He was nominated four other times.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.emmys.com/bios/harry-belafonte|title=Harry Belafonte|website=Television Academy}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+Theater Awards
!Year
!Award
!Theatrical Production
!Category
|-
|[[8th Tony Awards|1954]]
|[[Tony Awards|Tony Award]]<ref name=":3" />
|''[[John Murray Anderson's Almanac]]''
|[[Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical|Distinguished Supporting or Featured Musical Actor]]
|-
|1954
|[[Theatre World Award]]s<ref>{{Cite web |title=Theatre World Awards – Theatre World Awards |url=https://www.theatreworldawards.org/past-recipients.html |access-date=2023-08-07 |website=Theatreworldawards.org |archive-date=April 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428153856/http://theatreworldawards.org/past-recipients.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|[[John Murray Anderson's Almanac]]
|Award Winner
|-
|1954
|[[Donaldson Awards|Donaldson Award]]<ref>{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4h4EAAAAMBAJ&dq=donaldson+awards%2C+theatre+awards%2C+1953-1954&pg=PA2 |title=Billboard |date=1954-06-19 |publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc. |language=en}}</ref>
|''[[John Murray Anderson's Almanac]]''
|Best Actor Debut in a Musical
|}
He also received various honours including the [[Kennedy Center Honors]] in 1989, the [[National Medal of Arts]] in 1994 and was inducted into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] in the Early Influence category in 2022.<ref name="auto3"/>

Belafonte celebrated his 93rd birthday on March 1, 2020, at Harlem's [[Apollo Theater]] in a tribute event that concluded "with a thunderous audience singalong" with rapper [[Doug E. Fresh]] to 1956's "Banana Boat Song". Soon after, the New York Public Library's [[Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture]] announced it had acquired Belafonte's vast personal archive of "photographs, recordings, films, letters, artwork, clipping albums," and other content.<ref name="Schomburg archive">{{cite news |last1=Schuessler |first1=Jennifer |title=A Great Day-O for Black Culture |issue=Arts pp C1, C3 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=March 14, 2020}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of peace activists]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal |last1=Sharlet |first1=Jeff |year=2013 |title=Voice and Hammer |journal=[[Virginia Quarterly Review]] |issue=Fall 2013 |pages=24–41 |url=http://www.vqronline.org/articles/2013/fall/sharlet-belafonte/ |access-date=October 4, 2013 |archive-date=January 25, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140125151228/http://www.vqronline.org/articles/2013/fall/sharlet-belafonte/ |url-status=dead }}
* Smith, Judith. ''Becoming Belafonte: Black Artist, Public Radical''. University of Texas Press, 2014. {{ISBN|9780292729148}}.
* Wise, James. ''Stars in Blue: Movie Actors in America's Sea Services''. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1997. {{ISBN|1557509379}}. {{OCLC|36824724}}.

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Commons category}}
* [https://snccdigital.org/people/harry-belafonte/ SNCC Digital Gateway: Harry Belafonte], Documentary website created by the SNCC Legacy Project and Duke University, telling the story of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee & grassroots organizing from the inside out
* {{IMDb name}}
* {{TCMDb name|12907{{!}}66480|Harry Belafonte}}
* {{IBDB name}}
* {{Iobdb name}}
* {{Discogs artist|Harry Belafonte}}
* {{C-SPAN}}

{{Harry Belafonte|state=expanded}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for Harry Belafonte
|list =
{{EmmyAward VarietyPerformance 1959–1973}}
{{Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award}}
{{Kennedy Center Honorees 1980s}}
{{NAACP Image Award – Chairman's Award}}
{{National Medal of Arts recipients 1990s}}
{{2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}
{{Spingarn Medal}}
{{TonyAward MusicalFeaturedActor 1947-1975}}
{{Billboard Year-End number one albums 1956–1969}}
}}
{{EGOT winners}}
{{Civil rights movement}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Belafonte, Harry}}
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