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Josephine Baker (June 3, 1906 – April 12, 1975) was an American and French dancer, singer, and actress. She was the first Black woman to star in a major motion picture, the 1927 French silent film Siren of the Tropics, directed by Mario Nalpas and Henri Étiévant. During her early career, Baker was among the most celebrated performers to headline the revues of the Folies Bergère in Paris, and the most successful American entertainer in France. During World War II, Baker aided the French Resistance, and after the war, she was awarded the Resistance Medal by the French Committee of National Liberation, the Croix de Guerre by the French Armed Forces, and was named a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour by General Charles de Gaulle. After the war, Baker supported the American civil rights movement, working with the NAACP and refusing to perform for segregated audiences. This 1931 poster depicting Baker was illustrated by Jean Chassaing.Poster credit: Jean Chassaing