January 1976

Physicist Shirley Ann Jackson conducted theoretical research at Bell Laboratories in the 1970s on subatomic particles and condensed matter that laid the scientific groundwork for the portable fax machine, touch-tone telephone, solar cells, and fiber optic cables. Her career bridged fundamental physics and transformative technology.

Scott Joplin's opera Treemonisha, composed in 1911, receives its first full professional production in 1975 followed by a Pulitzer Prize for Music awarded posthumously to Joplin in 1976, a historic reclamation of a lost Black artistic masterwork.

Richard Pryor releases Bicentennial Nigger, another Grammy-winning comedy album that skewers American racial history on the eve of the nation's bicentennial with devastating wit and honesty.

Richard Pryor releases Bicentennial Nigger, a Grammy-winning comedy album that skewers American racial history on the eve of the nation's bicentennial with devastating wit and honesty.

Teddy Pendergrass leaves Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes to launch a solo career, quickly becoming one of the top-selling soul artists of the late 1970s.

Alice Coltrane releases Eternity on Warner Bros., one of several remarkable albums of spiritual jazz incorporating Indian classical music and Vedantic philosophy, expanding the spiritual dimensions of jazz as a uniquely Black American art form.

Alice Coltrane releases Eternity on Warner Bros., one of several remarkable albums of spiritual jazz incorporating Indian classical music and Vedantic philosophy that she created in this period, expanding the spiritual dimensions of jazz.

Teddy Pendergrass leaves Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes to launch a solo career, quickly becoming one of the top-selling soul artists of the late 1970s and a major sex symbol whose concerts were famous for women-only sections.

Lynn Swann wins the Super Bowl X MVP award with four catches for 161 yards including a leaping 53-yard touchdown reception, with catches so acrobatic they transformed the wide receiver position.

Franco Harris rushes for 82 yards as the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl X, part of a dynasty that would win four Super Bowls in six years and featured multiple Hall of Fame Black players.

Gordon Parks directs Leadbelly, a biographical film about the legendary blues musician Huddie Ledbetter, continuing his path as one of the few major Black film directors working in Hollywood with serious biographical and dramatic material.

At the 1976 Montreal Olympics, Black American women dominate track and field events, with athletes including Evelyn Ashford beginning her rise to prominence, continuing a tradition of excellence that stretches from Wilma Rudolph.