Donyale Luna

When Donyale Luna was discovered by photographer David Mc Cabe  she was a creature of her own invention. Behind her was her family in Chicago where  she was raised by her mother who was  a nurse and father who worked in  a construction. She was no longer Peggy Ann Freeman  who performed in local theatre productions.  She had come to New York City to be a model and fate answered. The  editor of Harpers Bazaar  sent her to an illustrator and used the drawing  for the cover. The 6’2” stunning beauty went on to take Europe by storm walking in the haute couture shows.Then the achievement  of any model Donyale  became the first black model to grace the cover of Vogue. She was lionized by the press where she gave colorful and controversial interviews. She partied with Salvador Dali, the Rolling Stones and had a romance with Maxmillian  Schnell. Film roles followed in Skidoo, Andy Warhol’s Camp, Salome, and the lead in director Federico Fellini, Satyricon. Unfortunately Donyale had a drug habit that began to deteriorate her relationships and career. Her engagement to actor Klaus Kinski was called off. She married the photographer Lugi Cazzangina and had a daughter Dream. Sadly  her drug addiction overtook her life and she died of a  heroin overdose at 33 years old  in a Rome hospital.