Showtime Is Developing Series Based on the Life of Lena Horne

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Showtime is currently developing limited series based on the life of stage and screen star Lena Horne. Horne's granddaughter, Jenny Lumet, is set to write and executive produce the project, titled Blackbird: Lena Horne and America.

"Lena's story is so intimate and at the same time, it's the story of America - America at its most honest, most musical, most tragic and most joyous. It's crucial now. Especially now," she told THR.

Horne's career spanned over 70 years, appearing in film, television, and theater. Horne joined the chorus of the Cotton Club at the age of 16 and became a nightclub performer before moving to Hollywood.

Returning to her roots as a nightclub performer, Horne took part in THE MARCH on Washington in August 1963 and continued to work as a performer, both in nightclubs and on television while releasing well-received record albums. She announced her retirement in March 1980, but the next year starred in a one-woman show, Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music, which ran for more than 300 performances on Broadway. She then toured the country in the show, earning numerous awards and accolades. Horne continued recording and performing sporadically into the 1990s, disappearing from the public eye in 2000. Horne died of congestive heart failure on May 9, 2010, at the age of 92.