By Olivia Allen-Price and Mina Kim
Poet and author Maya Angelou spent many formative years in San Francisco after moving here with her family from Arkansas. She studied drama at the California Labor School and, as a teen, was among the first black females to work as a streetcar conductor. She even produced and narrated a documentary series for KQED in 1968 called "Blacks, Blues, Black!"
Veteran KQED journalist Belva Davis was a good friend of Maya Angelou. The two met decades ago, as Davis' career was just beginning in news reporting. Of the many memories the two shared, Davis fondly remembers the parties Angelou would throw with another Bay Area friend, writer Jessica (Decca) Mitford. Angelou easily slipped into the role of hostess.
"They would come dressed to the nines to their own party with handbags and sometimes even a glove in hand. They would walk around as if they were an invited guest," said Davis. "They said they were [an invited guest] by then because they had already done the work."