Karen Carpenter (1950

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Biography

Karen Anne Carpenter was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and drummer of the highly successful duo the Carpenters, formed with her older brother Richard. With a distinctive three-octave contralto range, she was praised by her peers for her vocal skills. Carpenter appeared on Rolling Stone's 2010 list of the 100 greatest singers of all time.

Timeline

The story of Karen Carpenter, told in moments.

1970 Event

"(They Long to Be) Close to You" hit number one. The Carpenters sold over 100 million records worldwide. Her contralto voice was unusually rich for pop radio. She sang at a pitch most female pop singers avoided.

Did you know your contralto was unusual for pop radio? What did selling 100 million records feel like? Was singing at a pitch most avoided a conscious choice?

1975 Life

At their commercial peak but privately struggling. Karen began starving herself. Anorexia wasn't well understood. The music industry treated thinness as a job requirement. Nobody intervened in time.

Did the music industry's demand for thinness feel like violence? Was anyone brave enough to tell you the truth? How do you struggle in silence at your commercial peak?

1983 Death

Died at her parents' home in Downey, California, of cardiac arrest caused by emetine cardiotoxicity from years of ipecac syrup abuse. Age 32. Her death brought anorexia nervosa into public awareness for the first time.

Did you know your death would change how America sees eating disorders? Was 32 enough time? What would you tell a young woman today about her body?

Artifacts (15)

Gender Stereotypes in Jamaican Pre-school Children (towards Personhood)

Faculty of Arts and Education. Supervisor : Barbara Bailey.

1999

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Naughty Ladies of the Pearly Gates

NAUGHTY LADIES OF THE PEARLY GATES is a fictional account of what we now know as courageous, independent, adventuresome and in many cases strong willed women who helped settle the west. It is written...

2006

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Questioning Jewish Caribbean Identity

Questioning Jewish Caribbean Identities lends a fresh, psychological approach to identity and Jewishness in the Caribbean. It explores the ways in which individuals in the islands have maintained...

2018

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From Chaos To Bliss: Creating Clarity, Confidence, Control and a Life You Love

Today's world can give you circumstances that turn your life upside down. Losses can pile up and you can feel as if there is no way to bring the joy and bliss back into your life. In From Chaos to...

2019

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Language, Race and the Global Jamaican

This book examines the racial and socio-linguistic dynamics of Jamaica, a majority black nation where the dominant ideology continues to look to white countries as models, yet which continues to defy...

2020

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6-Figure Retirement Income Now: Creating Residual Income from Your Online Business

The key to building a successful income stream to meet your retirement goals starts with acknowledging the need to step away from the typical 9 to 5 career. Business ownership is the key to building a...

2017

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the safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is t...

luenced Christian philosophy, and both Jewish and Islamic philosophy. In modern times, Alfred North Whitehead said: "the safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that...

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