Maya Angelou, 1928 - 2014

Poet and artist Maya Angelou has died at the age of 86.  Since 1982 a professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University, Angelou achieved fame for her 1970 work "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings."  She's won Grammy awards for spoken word albums, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the National Book Award.  Coming from a harsh background that included dancing at a strip club in her teens, and rape at age 7 by her mother's boyfriend, Angelou later befriended Presidents and artists alike and became an icon to generations.  RIP.