Playwright Lorraine Hansberry was just 34 years old when she died of pancreatic cancer in 1965. Her life, as tragically short as it was, was packed with accomplishment. In 1959 Hansberry became the first Black woman to write a play performed on Broadway with A Raisin in the Sun. It was nominated for four Tony Awards in 1960 and adapted into a film—starring members of the Broadway cast—in 1961. Did Hansberry then spend her days swimming in pools of cash? No. She used her newfound fame for good. In 1963 she met with President Kennedy and urged him to take a stronger stance for civil rights in America. What's more: She was once under FBI surveillance, she was the godmother to Nina Simone's daughter, and she struggled with her sexuality but ultimately embraced the fact that she was a lesbian and supported gay rights. Pretty much a rad-as-fuck woman! Imani Perry's book Looking for Lorraine takes a much closer look at what a complicated, brilliant artist Hansberry was, and on Wednesday evening at Elliott Bay Book Club, The Stranger's own Charles Mudede will lead a discussion about the book, Hansberry's achievements, and the ways in which her life is echoed in the last play she ever wrote, The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window. RSVPs are encouraged.