okoffi (African), [Stellina (unknown)] and Noel (French). Each child [was] privately tutored with consideration to his or her religious and cultural background.”# Her husband, Jo Bouillon, became increasingly concerned with the expenses incurred by running Les Milandes, caring for the children, and Baker’s unrealistic attitude toward money. He left in 1960 to live in Argentina. In 1963, a black producer had the idea to bring Josephine Baker to the United States to participate in a historical event in which over 200,000 people converged on Washington, D.C., to protest racism. The reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., gave his famous “I Have A Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Later, Baker admitted it was one of her most memorable experiences.By 1964, Baker’s 300-acre estate was in serious financial trouble. She spent four years performing, scrimping and praying that Les Milandes would, somehow, stay in her possession. In spite of all her hard work, the French government seized the estate in 1968. Although she was evicted, Princess Grace of Monaco, moved by Baker’s predicament, arranged for Josephine and her children to live in a villa near Monte Carlo.Ms. Baker experienced health problems during the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, which kept her in and out of hospitals. She was married, for the last time, in 1973, at the age of sixty-nine, to American artist Robert Brady. The marriage fell apart within a year. “In 1974, the Societe de Bains Mer of Monte Carlo invited Baker to star in their annual benefit for the Monacan Red Cross, the organization that helped subsidize her home near Monte Carlo. The show was called Josephine and told the story of Baker’s life in a series of scenes.”# Four days after the successful opening of the show in Paris, April 12, 1975, Ms. Baker experienced a stroke while she slept, which led to coma and eventually her ...
