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Dorothy West

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Author

The Resume

    (June 2, 1907-August 16, 1998)
    Born in Boston, Massachusetts
    Founded the magazine 'Challenge' (1934)
    Wrote the novels 'The Living Is Easy' (1948) and 'The Wedding' (1985)

Why she might be annoying:

    As the youngest of the Harlem Renaissance writers, she was nicknamed 'Kid' by Langston Hughes.
    She took over four decades between publishing her first and second novel.
    She described herself as 'the best-known unknown writer of the time.'
    She refused to get involved with civil rights, saying 'I'm a creative writer. I'm not a black with a chip on my shoulder.'
    A relative said, 'Dottie had Oprah on speed dial.... Once, she called Oprah when she thought someone had parked illegally in front of her house.'

Why she might not be annoying:

    Her father was a former slave.
    She won a literary contest by the Boston Post when she was 14 and soon became a regular contributor to the newspaper.
    Her magazine published important works by Richard Wright and Ralph Ellison.
    When she discovered she could not have children, the white doctor told her, 'There are already enough black people in the world.'
    She dedicated 'The Wedding' to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who, as a Doubleday editor, convinced her to resume work on the stalled novel.
    During her 90th birthday party, she was called 'a national treasure' by First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 9 Votes: 88.89% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 7 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 50 Votes: 64.00% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 30 Votes: 23.33% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 54 Votes: 64.81% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 13 Votes: 38.46% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 27 Votes: 59.26% Annoying