Flashback: Maya Angelou Recalls the Time She Fired a Gun at an Intruder

Legendary author Maya Angelou dies (CNN)

Maya Angelou, a renowned poet, novelist and actress whose work defied description under a simple label, has died, her publicist, Helen Brann, said Thursday.

She died at her home in Winston-Salem, N.C., Brann said.

A professor, singer and dancer, among other things, Angelou's work spans different professions. She spent her early years studying dance and drama in San Francisco, California.

After dropping out at age 14, she become the city's first African-American female cable car conductor.