Catch HBO's 'Bessie' about the life of Bessie Smith

NPR ran a story yesterday about the new HBO movie Bessie, about the life of Bessie Smith, one of the top blues singers during the 1920s.  Queen Latifah plays Bessie, and it's clear from the article that this movie about the blues singer is primarily Latifah's doing.  It sounds like she's been working toward this for more than 20 years.

Queen Latifah — who plays the title role in the HBO movie Bessie, which premieres tonight — has been working for more than 20 years to bring Bessie Smith's life to the screen and finally pulled it together with writer-director Dee Rees.

If you read the article or listen to the interview, you can tell how passionate Latifah is about Bessie Smith.  She sounds much like I do when I'm excited about a topic (the 1920s being one of them, the Bronte sisters being another).

I'm really excited about this movie, and although I don't have HBO, I'm determined to find a way to see i!