Gloria Gaynor kicked off the gala at the majestic Radio City Music Hall, in the heart of Manhattan, with a rousing [...]]]> Nelson Mandela turned 91, a grand event celebrated in South Africa, naturally, but also in countries around the world. Including the U.S. where they held a charity concert for him, as reported by the AFP:

Gloria Gaynor kicked off the gala at the majestic Radio City Music Hall, in the heart of Manhattan, with a rousing performance of her 1978 disco hit “I Will Survive.”

The former leader did not attend — but not because of disco. He’s said to be in frail health.

Link to the story here.

I also hoped to link to a travel story I wrote in 1997 after seeing the mostly retired Mandela speak in Cape Town, when he blistered the ears of the former apartheid regime hangers-on for blocking the progress of the rainbow nation. It was a parliamentary session, open to anyone, but incredibly, I was one of the few of the general public who bothered walking in to experience this little slice of history.

I didn’t realize the Washington Post charges to see archived stories (they sure haven’t been sending me a cut), so you could probably read it in your local library for free, but I’ll put the link up here all the same.