I had the great pleasure to hear Kitt Shapiro talk about her mother, Eartha Kitt, last week. Â Kitt was the featured speaker for a group I am a member of called the Women’s Entrepreneur Network (WEN).
Kitt has introduced a lifestyle brand called Simply Eartha as a tribute to her mother.  Her candles, bracelets, stationary and home decor items all feature the inspiring words of Eartha Kitt, or her “Kittisms.”
 
 
Proceeds from specific Simply Eartha “Products That Give Back” go to the Colon Cancer Alliance to help prevent and treat this disease.  Eartha Kitt died of colon cancer in 2008.
Kitt Shapiro grew up in Los Angeles and London, and attended Barnard College / Columbia University before starting a successful modeling career. Â She has been president of Eartha Kitt Productions for over 20 years, organizing and producing Earth Kitt shows and productions all over the world.
After her mother passed away, Kitt came across hundreds of what her mother liked to call “Kittisms” written on napkins, notebooks ~ whatever was close at hand. Â These “Kittisms” adorn the Simply Eartha line of accessories as inspirations to anyone who buys them.
  
  
Kitt’s presentation was fascinating. Â She took us through her mother’s life from rural South Carolina to New York city where Eartha joined a famed dance troupe. Â While touring with the dance troupe, she was discovered in Paris and booked as a featured singer in a nightclub. Â Orson Welles saw her in Paris and deemed her “the most exciting woman in the world.” Broadway and film quickly followed. Â Earth Kitt is one of only a handful of performers to be nominated for a Tony, a Grammy and an Emmy award.
One of my favorite Eartha Kitt quotes is, “Every day, tell the ones you love, how you feel.”
 
For more information on Simply Eartha and these wonderful products:
For information on Serendipity Labs where this presentation was held:
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