Lena Horne's life in pictures

1935: A studio portrait of Lena Horne. Four years later, she was described in the New York Times as 'a radiantly beautiful sepia girl who will be a winner when she has proper direction' Photograph: Frank Driggs Collection/Getty Images Photograph: Frank Driggs Collection/guardian.co.uk 1942: Performing in the film Panama Hattie, the first of several movies she made with MGM early in her career Photograph: Cinetext/MGM/Allstar Photograph: Cinetext/MGM/guardian.co.uk 1943: A poster advertising Horne's lead role in Stormy Weather. Her version of the title song was a major hit , and became her signature piece Photograph: ITV/Rex Features Photograph: ITV/guardian.co.uk 1947: At the Copacabana nightclub. Such appearances provided a lucrative addition to her income from film and radio Photograph: Leonard McCombe/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Image Photograph: Leonard McCombe/guardian.co.uk 1947: Lena Horne on stage Photograph: Yale Joel/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Image Photograph: Yale Joel/guardian.co.uk 1948: Horne was considered Hollywood's first black sex symbol. 'I had the worst kind of acceptance,' she once said, 'because it was never for how great I was or what I contributed. It was because of the way I looked' Photograph: Cinetext/Sportsphoto Ltd/Allstar Photograph: Cinetext/guardian.co.uk 1950s: During her 60-year career, Horne broke down numerous racial barriers Photograph: AFP/Getty Images Photograph: guardian.co.uk 1951: Horne performs on Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town Photograph: CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images Photograph: CBS Photo Archive/guardian.co.uk 1958: Horne was respected as both a jazz and blues singer, and had numerous hit showtunes Photograph: Cinetext/Sportsphoto Ltd/Allstar Photograph: Cinetext/guardian.co.uk 1969: With Richard Widmark in the western Death of a Gunfighter. She would not return to the screen for almost a decade Photograph: Univeral/Sportsphoto Ltd/Allstar Photograph: Univeral/guardian.co.uk 1970: Performing on television Photograph: David Redfern/Redferns/Getty Photograph: David Redfern/guardian.co.uk 1981: Starring in the Broadway production Lena Horne: the Lady and Her Music. Her one-woman show won a special Tony award Photograph: Christian Steiner/AP Photograph: Christian Steiner/guardian.co.uk 1994: Horne in New York. 'My identity is very clear to me now,' she would say a few years later. 'I am a black woman. I’m free ... I don’t have to be an imitation of a white woman that Hollywood sort of hoped I’d become. I’m me, and I’m like nobody else' Photograph: Garth Vaughan/AP Photograph: Garth Vaughan/guardian.co.uk