Gail Lumet Buckley, Cultural Curator, Dies at 86
She was the lone daughter of the legendary Lena Horne
Gail Lumet Buckley, who dedicated her professional to chronicling Black American history, has passed away at the age of 86. As the daughter of entertainer Lena Horne and her first husband, entrepreneur Louis Jones, Buckley lived the life of the Black upperclass.
Much of her young life was covered in publications like Ebony and Jet. After graduating from Radcliffe College, she worked for Life magazine.
She also wrote for The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Vogue. Her most profound work came when she compiled her family history, going back to the American Revolution through the late 20th century. She published The Hornes: An American Family in 1986 and The Black Calhouns: From Civil War to Civil Rights With One African American Family in 2016.
She also wrote American Patriots: The Story of Blacks in the Military From the Revolution to Desert Storm, published in 2001. The book won her the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award the following year.
She is survived by her daughters Amy Lumet and Jenny Lumet and grandchildren.