The enchanting jazz singer and actress Lena Calhoun Horne died on Sunday, at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, she was 92. Ms. Horne was the first black performer with a major studio contract, and she achieved international success in nightclubs and on records. During the 1940s, she was the first to play the Copacabana nightclub and was one of a few with a Hollywood contract. In 1943, MGM Studios loaned her to 20th Century-Fox to play the role of Selina Rogers in the all-black movie musical "Stormy Weather." Her rendition of the title song became a major hit and her signature piece. The striking beauty with the sultry voice was also a civil rights activist who participated in numerous marches and protest.

Her daughter, Gail Lumet Buckley, survives Ms. Horne.