Parle Mag
  • Home
  • Entertainment
  • Diddy Trial
  • Lifestyle
  • Interviews
  • Contact Us
  • Team Parlé
  • Podcast
  • Advertising
Facebook 0 Likes
Twitter 0 Followers
Instagram 0 Followers
Pinterest 0 Followers
LinkedIn 0
Reddit 0 Subscribers
TikTok 0
0
0
0
0
0
Parle Mag
Subscribe
Parle Mag
  • Home
  • Entertainment
    • Books
    • Celebrity
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Sports
    • Television News
  • Diddy Trial
  • Lifestyle
    • Beauty
    • Business
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health
    • Op-Ed
    • Politics
    • Relationships
    • Travel
  • Interviews
Featured Categories
black countries
About Parlé
4 Posts
View Posts
Taye Diggs reads a book in an episode of private practice.
About Parle Magazine
4 Posts
View Posts
About the Editor
3 Posts
View Posts
Ad Test
1 Posts
View Posts
Posts
  • Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed 1
    Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed Their Way to the Top
    • October 30, 2025
  • Brandon Ingram Dating History Glorilla 2
    Who Is GloRilla’s Boyfriend? Brandon Ingram’s Dating History Revealed
    • October 29, 2025
  • Who are the StudBudz 3
    Meet The StudBudz, How They Gained Popularity, And Their Offseason Plans
    • October 29, 2025
  • Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed

    Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed Their Way to the Top

    • October 30, 2025
    View Post
  • Brandon Ingram Dating History Glorilla

    Who Is GloRilla’s Boyfriend? Brandon Ingram’s Dating History Revealed

    • October 29, 2025
    View Post
  • Who are the StudBudz

    Meet The StudBudz, How They Gained Popularity, And Their Offseason Plans

    • October 29, 2025
    View Post
  • Entertainment News
  • Lifestyle

Oprah Brings Incredible Story of Henrietta Lacks To HBO

  • April 21, 2017
  • Jennifer Shaw
Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0

Here’s What To Expect From Oprah’s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Coming To HBO This Weekend

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks tells the story of the collision between ethics, race and medicine of scientific discovery, faith healing and of the daughter haunted with questions about the mother she never knew.  The film shows that it’s impossible to separate the dark history of experiments on African-Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff that we are made of.  Director, George C. Wolfe and Oprah Winfrey come together to bring recognition to Henrietta Lacks and the story surrounding her, adapting the book, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” written by the award-winning best-seller by science journalist Rebecca Skloot.

HBO’s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is the perfect opportunity to discover who Henrietta Lacks was and what her cells, her life, and her death contributed to science.

The film centers around the oldest daughter of Henrietta Lacks (Deborah), and journalist, Rebecca Skloot, as the pair try to uncover the details surrounding Lacks.  Oprah Winfrey stars as Deborah, with Rose Byrne co-starring as Skloot and Renée Elise Goldsberry, the Tony award winning actress for her role in the Broadway hit Hamilton, takes on the role of Henrietta.

Advertisement

 

A bit of back story on Henrietta Lacks 
Henrietta Lacks was born Loretta Pleasant, born to Eliza and John Randall Pleasant, on August 1st, 1920. She was poor, she was black, she was unknown, she was used, she was forgotten and she died after losing her battle with cancer!!! This is only a brief description of an African-American woman, one that single handedly changed the face of medicine in this world without her knowledge and without any compensation!!! She wasn’t even thanked for her contributions!

Loretta Pleasant was a poor black tobacco farmer.  She married her first cousin, they had five children, and she died at age 31 without most people ever knowing her name!!! Her name was Loretta but everyone called her Henrietta or Henny. She was born on August 1st, 1920, in rural southern Roanoke Virginia. In 1924 Henrietta’s mother died and she was sent to live with her grandfather. They lived in a log cabin that had been the slave quarters of a white ancestor’s plantation. Henrietta Lacks shared a room with her first cousin David “Day” Lacks. In 1935 they had a son, they named Lawrence. At the time she was 14. In 1939, Henrietta and David had a daughter they would name Elsie. Henrietta and Day married in 1941.

Advertisement

Henrietta Lacks moved to Maryland after being persuaded by another cousin Fred Garret. She was a resident of Turner Station in Dundalk, Maryland. While living there they had 3 more children David Jr., Deborah, and Joseph. Their daughter Elsie was developmentally disabled; they placed her in the Hospital for the Negro Insane. While Henrietta was in Maryland, she went to John Hopkins complaining of abdominal pain and vaginal spotting. The doctor quickly diagnosed her with cervical cancer. The cancer quickly consumed her body despite radiation treatment.

During Henrietta’s treatment for cancer; doctors removed two cervical samples from Lacks without her knowledge.  Doctors isolated what became the first “immortal” human cells. Doctors called these cells “HeLa Cells” named after Henrietta Lacks.  These cells have been used in labs around the world for 65 years even though Lacks succumbed to cancer in 1951. The use of these cells has raised issues about medical samples being taken without consent and how if possible individuals and their families can be compensated for discoveries based on their tissues.

Here are just a few things that became possible due to the HeLa Cells:

Advertisement
  • Vaccinating girls against cancer
  • Showing us how cells stay young (human and animal cloning)
  • Eradicating Polio
  • Mapping the Human Genome
  • Creating the Field of Virology

 

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks will premiere on HBO on Saturday April 22nd at 8p.m. EST.

The movie will replay on the following dates:
Saturday April 22nd at 10:45pm HBO (East)
Sunday April 23rd at 1:45am HBO (West)
Sunday April 23rd at 6pm HBO (East)

Advertisement

 


Readers Also Liked:

Danielle Mone TruittDanielle Moné Truitt Shares Her Story From One-Woman Show To BET’s Breakout Series, ‘Rebel’

Advertisement

[INTERVIEW]  Deborah Joy Winans Opens Up About Playing Charity on Greenleaf

[INTERVIEW]  Jasmine Burke of Saints & Sinners Talks Her Church Upbringing, Filmmaking, & Latest Projects


Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Related Topics
  • HeLa Cells
  • Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
  • Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks movie
  • Oprah Winfrey
  • Rebecca Skloot
  • Renée Elise Goldsberry
  • Rose Bryne
Jennifer Shaw

Previous Article
  • Entertainment News
  • Music

Nas & DJ Shadow Link Up For New Track “Systematic”

  • April 20, 2017
  • Stephen Jordan
View Post
Next Article
Death Row Chronicles
  • Entertainment News
  • Lifestyle

BET Readies Six-Hour Miniseries About Death Row Records

  • April 22, 2017
  • Ashley Blackwell
View Post
You May Also Like
Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed
View Post
  • Celebrity
  • Entertainment News
  • Movies

Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed Their Way to the Top

  • Team Parle
  • October 30, 2025
Brandon Ingram Dating History Glorilla
View Post
  • Celebrity
  • Entertainment News
  • Sports

Who Is GloRilla’s Boyfriend? Brandon Ingram’s Dating History Revealed

  • Obiorah Precious
  • October 29, 2025
Who are the StudBudz
View Post
  • Celebrity
  • Entertainment News
  • Sports

Meet The StudBudz, How They Gained Popularity, And Their Offseason Plans

  • Obiorah Precious
  • October 29, 2025
Easy Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas 2025
View Post
  • Entertainment News
  • Fashion
  • Lifestyle

Easy and Creative Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas for 2025

  • Obiorah Precious
  • October 28, 2025
R&B Singer Sammie Arrested for Child Cruelty and family violence Charges,
View Post
  • Celebrity
  • Entertainment News
  • Music

R&B Singer Sammie Arrested for Child Cruelty Charges, What We Know About

  • Obiorah Precious
  • October 26, 2025
Cash Money vs No Limit Verzuz
View Post
  • Entertainment News
  • Music
  • TV

Round By Round Break Down of the Cash Money vs No Limit Verzuz

  • Kevin Benoit
  • October 25, 2025
C-Murder Prison Release Update
View Post
  • Celebrity
  • Entertainment News

C-Murder Prison Release Update – Will The Rapper Ever Come Home???

  • Obiorah Precious
  • October 25, 2025
Mystikal Legal Battles
View Post
  • Celebrity
  • Entertainment News

Where is Mystikal? The Legal Battles That Made Him A Registered Sex Offender & Ended His Career

  • Obiorah Precious
  • October 25, 2025
1 comment
  1. Steve Michalek says:
    April 26, 2017 at 6:15 am

    I live next door to Turner Station where Henrietta was from. Amazing story.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts
  • Easy Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas 2025
    Easy and Creative Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas for 2025
    • October 28, 2025
  • R&B Singer Sammie Arrested for Child Cruelty and family violence Charges,
    R&B Singer Sammie Arrested for Child Cruelty Charges, What We Know About
    • October 26, 2025
  • Cash Money vs No Limit Verzuz
    Round By Round Break Down of the Cash Money vs No Limit Verzuz
    • October 25, 2025
Categories
Entertainment News
5795 Posts
View Posts
Interviews
870 Posts
View Posts
Lifestyle
2805 Posts
View Posts
Featured Posts
  • Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed 1
    Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed Their Way to the Top
    • October 30, 2025
  • Brandon Ingram Dating History Glorilla 2
    Who Is GloRilla’s Boyfriend? Brandon Ingram’s Dating History Revealed
    • October 29, 2025
  • Who are the StudBudz 3
    Meet The StudBudz, How They Gained Popularity, And Their Offseason Plans
    • October 29, 2025
  • Easy Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas 2025 4
    Easy and Creative Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas for 2025
    • October 28, 2025
  • R&B Singer Sammie Arrested for Child Cruelty and family violence Charges, 5
    R&B Singer Sammie Arrested for Child Cruelty Charges, What We Know About
    • October 26, 2025

RSS Parle Mag

  • Hollywood Stars Who Borrowed Their Way to the Top
  • Who Is GloRilla’s Boyfriend? Brandon Ingram’s Dating History Revealed
  • Meet The StudBudz, How They Gained Popularity, And Their Offseason Plans
  • Easy and Creative Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas for 2025
  • R&B Singer Sammie Arrested for Child Cruelty Charges, What We Know About
Parle Mag
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Team Parlé
  • Podcast
  • Advertising
  • Parle Endeavors
  • Parle New York
  • Privacy Policy
parlemag.com - The Voice of The Culture

Input your search keywords and press Enter.