Throwback: Happy 99th Birthday, Harry Belafonte!

It’s March 2026. We’re about to blow through the first third of the year. Things have gotten messier and more hellish. Apparently, we’re now at war. We’ve got masked goons grabbing people off the streets and shooting civilians. The economy is reeling. We’re dealing with a mad, dying king. And yet, we have to simultaneously fight fascists and get on with our daily lives.

But there’s music, art and community. I hope that this site is a bit of escape and maybe even a reminder of how much community means when the world is running down.

• The Who frontman  Roger Daltrey celebrates his 82nd birthday today

The pioneering singer, activist and actor Harry Belafonte was born on this day 99 years ago. Belafonte helped popularize calypso with international audiences throughout the 1950s and 1960s. His breakthrough album, 1956’s Calypso was the first million-selling LP by a single artist.

If you’ve been conscious over the past 75 years or so, you know his famous and beloved rendition of “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)” in some fashion or another. Though if you’re a Gen X-er or later, you might be more familiar with his rendition of the song appearing in 1988’s Beetlejuice. Sadly, most of us may be unfamiliar with the fact that Belafonte recorded and performed songs across a number of genres including blues, folk, gospel, show tunes and American standards.

As an actor he starred in number of films including 1954’s Carmen Jones, 1957’s Island in the Sun, 1959’s Odds Against Tomorrow, 1972’s Buck and the Preacher and 1974’s Uptown Saturday Night. His last film appearance was in Spike Lee’s 2018 film BlacKKKlansman.

Belafonte was also a civl rights activist, famously known for his role in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s and beyond. He was a confident and friend of Dr. King — and was a living link between the battles of the past and the battles of the present.

We lost Mr. Belafonte a couple of years ago, but his legacy and his importance is towering and remains powerfully relevant. Happy birthday, sir! Happy birthday, wherever you are!

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