A Polish Immigrant Embraces Her New Home

Almendros worked on "Sophie's Choice," "Kramer vs. Kramer" and "Days of Heaven," for which he won the Academy Award. He got his start making propaganda films in Cuba, but had a falling out with the Castro regime. Almendros later returned to make a documentary about the country's human rights violations.

Together, brothers Brian and Eddie Holland, along with Lamont Dozier, wrote dozens of hits for the Detroit label. They worked with other record companies in the 1970s, but, says rock historian Ed Ward, they never their earlier success with Motown.

Thomas started working professionally at seventeen. The 1970s were difficult for her career: a hurricane devastated the scene around New Orleans, where she often performed. Changing musical tastes kept her from getting gigs in her new home of Los Angeles. Now, Thomas is back with a new album, called The Way I Feel.