Richard Erskine Frere Leakey was a Kenyan paleoanthropologist, conservationist and politician. Leakey held a number of official positions in Kenya, mostly in institutions of archaeology and wildlife conservation. He was Director of the National Museum of Kenya, founded the NGO WildlifeDirect, and was the chairman of the Kenya Wildlife Service. Leakey served in the powerful office of cabinet secretary and head of public service during the tail end of President Daniel Toroitich Arap Moi's government
Dian Fossey was an American primatologist and conservationist known for undertaking an extensive study of mountain gorilla groups from 1966 until her murder in 1985. She studied them daily in the mountain forests of Rwanda, initially encouraged to work there by paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey. Gorillas in the Mist, a book published two years before her death, is Fossey's account of her scientific study of the gorillas at Karisoke Research Center and prior career. It was adapted into a 1988 film of the same name.
The Wild Thornberrys is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, Steve Pepoon, David Silverman, and Stephen Sustarsic for Nickelodeon. The series portrays the zany hijinks of an American family of wildlife documentary filmmakers known as the Thornberrys, which consist of the British nature documentary television host Nigel, his wife and camera operator Marianne, their 16-year-old daughter Debbie, their younger daughter Eliza, their adopted son Donnie, and a chimpanzee named Darwin. The series focuses in particular on Eliza, who has a magical ability to communicate with animals. The Thornberry family travels to every continent and wildlife environment in the ComVee, a recreational vehicle equipped with safety mechanisms to handle any terrain or body of water, to document their journeys in detail, with typical episodes involving Eliza befriending an animal and subsequently finding herself in peril.
The Wild Thornberrys Movie is a 2002 American animated fantasy adventure film based on the television series of the same name. It was produced by Klasky Csupo and distributed by Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies. Directed by Jeff McGrath and Cathy Malkasian, the film follows the show's protagonist, Eliza Thornberry as she goes on a quest to save a cheetah cub from ruthless poachers. The film was released on December 20, 2002, to mostly positive reviews and grossed more than $60 million worldwide. It is the first installment in the The Wild Thornberrys film series.
The Kamba or Akamba people are a Bantu ethnic group who predominantly live in the area of Kenya stretching from Nairobi to Tsavo and north to Embu, in the southern part of the former Eastern Province. This land is called Ukambani and constitutes Makueni County, Kitui County and Machakos County. They also form the second largest ethnic group in 8 counties including Nairobi and Mombasa counties.
The Cheetah Girls is a 2003 American musical television film produced by singer Whitney Houston, Debra Martin Chase, and Jacqueline George, based on the book series of the same name by Deborah Gregory. This film marks the first Disney Channel Original Movie as a musical.
Duma is a 2005 American family drama adventure film about a young South African boy's friendship with an orphaned cheetah, based on How It Was with Dooms by Carol Cawthra Hopcraft and Xan Hopcraft. It was directed by Carroll Ballard and stars Alexander Michaletos in his only film role, Eamonn Walker, Campbell Scott and Hope Davis. This was Carroll Ballard's final film before his retirement.
Arthur 2: On the Rocks is a 1988 American romantic comedy film and the sequel to the 1981 film Arthur. Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli, John Gielgud, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Stephen Elliott, Thomas Barbour, Ted Ross and Barney Martin reprise their roles with Cynthia Sikes replacing Jill Eikenberry, who was committed to filming L.A. Law at the time, in the role of Susan Johnson. Burt Bacharach also returned to score the film. The soundtrack also features songs by popular artists, including OMD and Kylie Minogue. While still a comedy, On the Rocks is somewhat darker than its predecessor. The film received generally negative reviews and also was a financial disappointment when compared to the more successful original.
Betty Leslie-Melville was an American born author and conservationist.
Born to Dance is a 1936 American musical film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Eleanor Powell, James Stewart and Virginia Bruce. It was produced and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The score was composed by Cole Porter.
George Peter Kinyonga was a Tanzanian born musician who later migrated to Kenya together with his siblings Wilson Kinyonga and William Kinyonga.
A Far Off Place is a 1993 American adventure drama film based on Laurens van der Post's works A Far Off Place (1974) and its predecessor, A Story Like the Wind (1972). It stars Reese Witherspoon, Ethan Randall, Jack Thompson and Maximilian Schell. The plot concerns three young teenagers who must cross the Kalahari Desert to safety when their parents are killed by a poacher.
Babar is an animated television series produced in Canada by Nelvana Limited and The Clifford Ross Company. It premiered in 1989 on CBC in Canada, and on HBO in the United States. The series is based on Jean de Brunhoff's original Babar books, and was Nelvana's first international co-production. The show has been dubbed in 30 languages in over 150 countries.
Wanuri Kahiu is a Kenyan film director, producer, and author. She is considered to be “one of Africa's most aspiring directors, being part of a new, vibrant crop of talents representing contemporary African culture”. She has received several awards and nominations for the films which she directed, including the awards for Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Picture at the Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2009 for her dramatic feature film From a Whisper. She is also the co-founder of AFROBUBBLEGUM, a media collective dedicated to supporting African art for its own sake.
Doglands (2011) is a children's fantasy novel written by Tim Willocks. It was published by the Random House imprint Random House Books for Young Readers. It is written in the first-person point of view of the main character, a lurcher named Furgul.
Nairobi Half Life is a 2012 Kenyan drama film directed by David "Tosh" Gitonga. The film was selected as the Kenyan entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the 85th Academy Awards, but did not make the final shortlist. It is the first time Kenya has submitted a film in this category.
Be Somebody is a 2016 romantic comedy film, directed by Joshua Caldwell. The film stars Vine blogger Matthew Espinosa as Jordan Jaye, a pop star who disappears from his own tour to escape his demanding mother.
"Pippi Longstocking" is the 15th episode of the second season of the American television series Shirley Temple's Storybook. The episode was directed by Frank Bunetta and starring Gina Gillespie as Pippi Longstocking. It is based on the famous children's novel of the same name by Astrid Lindgren.
Susan Wood (1918-2006), British philanthropist and writer who helped create the African Medical Research Foundation (Amref) in Kenya and founded an enterprise to employ poor single mothers. She lived much of her life in Kenya.
Susan Wakhungu-Githuku is a Kenyan business executive, writer, and publishing house founder, who in her youth was ranked as Kenya's top women's tennis player. She was born in Bungoma in British Kenya and around the age of 11 moved to Nairobi. While attending Loreto Convent Valley Road High School, she began to play tennis. In 1978, she qualified to play in the Junior girls' singles at the Wimbledon Championships. According to the sports journalist Ross McLean, she was the first Kenyan to play in a Junior Grand Slam tournament and until 2022 was the only Kenyan to have qualified for and played in a Junior Grand Slam event at Wimbledon. At the 1978 All-Africa Games she won the gold medal in women's doubles and the silver medal for the women's singles. While studying at St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, she played in the college circuit. After winning a women's singles title at the World University Games in Mexico City in 1979, she became Kenya's top women's player. She was the 1983 women's champion at the Robbialac Classic Tournament and won the tournament's women's doubles title with her sister Judi Wakhungu the following year. In 1984, she was the winner of the women's matches at the Kenya Closed Championships and in 1987 won the bronze medal in ladies' doubles at the All-Africa Games, before retiring from tennis.
