The first African-American woman to win an Academy Award, Hattie McDaniel, when the Oscar curse sets in, is thrust in the middle of two worlds--black and white--and is not welcomed in either but, through it all, continued her fight to pave a path for other Negro actors.

Kezia Cooper Hobson, recently widowed, arrives in New York from San Francisco. Determined to make a fresh start, she has just completed the sale of her Pacific Heights home, not to mention her husband’s venture capital firm, and in doing so, is also freed from her responsibility as a board member of the company. Bringing with her only a few personal treasures, she is excited to move into the blank slate of a beautiful midtown penthouse, in the...