Focus On: Kitt Shapiro
Honoring her mother Eartha Kitt

by Liz Dowling

I had the great pleasure to hear Kitt Shapiro talk about her mother, Eartha Kitt, last week.  Kitt was the featured speaker for a group I am a member of called the Women’s Entrepreneur Network (WEN).

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Kitt has introduced a lifestyle brand called Simply Eartha as a tribute to her mother.  Her candles, bracelets, stationary and home decor items all feature the inspiring words of Eartha Kitt, or her “Kittisms.”

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Proceeds from specific Simply Eartha “Products That Give Back” go to the Colon Cancer Alliance to help prevent and treat this disease.  Eartha Kitt died of colon cancer in 2008.

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Kitt Shapiro grew up in Los Angeles and London, and attended Barnard College / Columbia University before starting a successful modeling career.  She has been president of Eartha Kitt Productions for over 20 years, organizing and producing Earth Kitt shows and productions all over the world.

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After her mother passed away, Kitt came across hundreds of what her mother liked to call “Kittisms” written on napkins, notebooks ~ whatever was close at hand.  These “Kittisms” adorn the Simply Eartha line of accessories as inspirations to anyone who buys them.

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Kitt’s presentation was fascinating.  She took us through her mother’s life from rural South Carolina to New York city where Eartha joined a famed dance troupe.  While touring with the dance troupe, she was discovered in Paris and booked as a featured singer in a nightclub.  Orson Welles saw her in Paris and deemed her “the most exciting woman in the world.” Broadway and film quickly followed.  Earth Kitt is one of only a handful of performers to be nominated for a Tony, a Grammy and an Emmy award.

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One of my favorite Eartha Kitt quotes is, “Every day, tell the ones you love, how you feel.”

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For more information on Simply Eartha and these wonderful products:

www.simplyeartha.com

For information on Serendipity Labs where this presentation was held:

Serendipity Labs ~ Rye, NY

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