New York (State)--New York--Harlem

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Colson Whitehead does extensive background research whenever he works on a book. For his latest novel, Harlem Shuffle, that meant learning how stolen items get "fenced."

Staples began singing with her family as a teenager. The Staple Singers started out in gospel, but moved over to pop, eventually playing the '69 Harlem Cultural Festival. Originally broadcast in 1989.

Amir 'Questlove' Thompson has ventured into a new arena: He's made his directorial debut with the documentary Summer of Soul, which tells the story of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, a series of six free concerts held in what is now Harlem's Marcus Garvey Park.

King began his career in the '50s with The Drifters, but it was the '61 hit "Stand by Me" that sealed his musical legacy. He spoke with Terry Gross in '88 about his career and his childhood in Harlem.

Singer-songwriter Brian Carpenter has cited places like Coney Island and the Florida Panhandle as inspiration for his work. On his latest album, Hothouse Stomp, Carpenter musically travels back to the jazz scene in 1920s Harlem and Chicago.

The photographer, who died Oct. 27 at age 89, dedicated his decades-long career to capturing images of African Americans. Roy DeCarava's subjects ranged from daily life in his hometown of Harlem to the Civil Rights movement.

Doctor Elaine Abrams and Doctor Stephen Nicholas are pediatricians who work with babies born with HIV. While many children have died, some have survived into adolescence. Abrams is the director of the Family Care Center at Harlem Hospital Center, and Dr. Nicholas is the director of pediatrics there. They treated the first wave of babies infected with HIV at the height of the epidemic in Harlem in the 1980s. They have studied the effects of the virus on the children's physical and mental health as well as the toll on the community. Some of the children spent years in the hospital.

Painter Jacob Lawrence died on June 9th at the age of 82. For six decades, Lawrence had been widely regarded as one of America's most important black artists. His work depicted the black American experience from the Civil War to the Civil Rights movement. (REBROADCAST from 5/16/88)

Writer Ernesto Quinonez His debut novel, “Bodega Dreams” (Vintage books), is set in Spanish Harlem. Like his narrator, Quinonez is half Ecuadorean, half-Puerto Rican. A reviewer in the Kirkus Reviews writes of the book, “Edgy, street-smart. . . An admirable debut, brimming with energy and refreshingly devoid of genre clichés.”

Rock historian Ed Ward profiles Apollo Records. Many of their albums are being reissued by Delmark.