Superstar Singer and Temptress Turns War Heroine and Spies on Nazis
Josephine Baker (1906 – 1975) was the first black person to become a world famous entertainer, or to star in a major movie. Dubbed the “Creole Goddess”, “Black Pearl”, and “Bronze Venus”, she was an American-born entertainer, renowned dancer, Jazz Age symbol, 1920s icon, and civil rights activist. She moved to France and made it her home, and when her adopted homeland was conquered by the Nazis in WWII, Josephine Baker joined the French Resistance.
Born into poverty as Freda Josephine McDonald in St. Louis, Missouri, she was forced by her family’s dire financial straits into working since childhood. By age 13, she was already performing on stage, and became a chorus girl a year later. She became a hit with audiences, as she injected comedy into her routines. Ambitious and confident in her talent, Josephine refused to accept the ceiling imposed by the color of her skin in America, so she moved to France. There, her career took off in post WWI Paris, and she became a global superstar.
When WWII broke out, Josephine Baker was recruited by French military intelligence. She had initially expressed support for the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in the 1930s, so when the Axis defeated and occupied France, they mistakenly assumed that she was friendly to their cause. She was not. Taking advantage of the conquerors’ trust, Josephine risked her life by spying. Her fame opened doors, and rubbing shoulders with high ranking Axis personnel, she collected information while charming officials she met in social gatherings.
As an international entertainer, Josephine had an excuse to travel, and she did, within Nazi-occupied Europe, to neutral Portugal, and to South America. She crossed borders while transporting coded messages, written in invisible ink on her music sheets, between the Resistance and the Allies. They contained information about German troop concentrations, airfields, harbors, and defenses. She also hid fugitives in her home, and supplied them with forged identification papers and visas obtained through her contacts. Later in the war, she joined and was commissioned a lieutenant in the French Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. She also performed in concerts for Allied troops.
In recognition of her wartime exploits and contributions to France, Josephine Baker was named a Chevalier of the Legion d’honeur by Charles De Gaulle. Among the medals awarded her by the French military were the Croix de Guerre and the Medal of Resistance with Rosette. Upon her death in 1975, she became the first American woman buried with military honors in France, including a twenty one gun salute.