Diahann Carroll ( ; born Carol Diann Johnson; July 17, 1935 – October 4, 2019) was an American actress, singer, model, and activist. Carroll was the recipient of numerous nominations and awards for her stage and screen performances, including a Tony Award in 1962, Golden Globe Award in 1968, an Academy Award nomination in 1974, and five Emmy Award nominations between 1963 and 2008.
Carroll rose to prominence in some of the earliest major studio films to feature black<!--Lowercase "b," per Wikipedia and Associated Press style; see "Wikipedia:Race and ethnicity" for more--> casts during the Golden Age of Hollywood, including the classic movie musicals Carmen Jones (1954) and Porgy and Bess (1959). She received an Academy Award for Best Actress nomination for her title role in the romantic comedy-drama film Claudine (1974). Carroll's other notable film credits include Paris Blues (1961), The Split (1968), Eve's Bayou (1997), and Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters First 100 Years (1999).
She starred in the title role in Julia (1968–1971), for which she received a Golden Globe Award for Best TV Star – Female. The series- in which Carroll played a nurse at a doctor's office at an aerospace company- was the first on American television to star a Black woman whose character was not a servant or slave. She played the role of diva Dominique Deveraux in the prime time soap opera Dynasty from 1984 to 1987. She also had roles in Naked City, A Different World, and Grey's Anatomy.
Carroll made her Broadway debut playing Ottilie Alias Violet in the musical House of Flowers (1954). She became the first African American woman to win the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as Barbara Woodruff in the musical No Strings (1962).
Early years
thumb|left|239x239px|Carroll, by [[Carl Van Vechten, 1955]]
Carol Diann Johnson was born on on July 17, 1935, in the Bronx, New York City a nurse. She attended Music and Art High School,
thumb|upright|Carroll and [[Sammy Davis Jr. on The Hollywood Palace, 1968]]Carroll's film debut was a supporting role in Carmen Jones (1954), Twelve years later, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starring role alongside James Earl Jones in the film Claudine (1974), which made her the first African-American actress in a television series starring role that was not of a domestic worker. and a nomination for an Primetime Emmy Award in 1969. in which she voiced Queen La, ruler of the ancient city of Opar.
In 2006, Carroll appeared in several episodes of the television medical drama Grey's Anatomy as Jane Burke, the demanding mother of Dr. Preston Burke. From 2008 to 2014, she appeared on USA Network's series White Collar in the recurring role of June, the savvy widow who rents out her guest room to Neal Caffrey. In 2010, Carroll was featured in UniGlobe Entertainment's breast cancer docudrama titled 1 a Minute, and appeared as Nana in two Lifetime movie adaptations of Patricia Cornwell novels: At Risk and The Front.
In 2013, Carroll was present on stage at the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards to briefly speak about being the first African-American nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. She was quoted as saying about Kerry Washington, nominated for Scandal, "she better get this award."
Personal life
Carroll was married four times. Her father boycotted the ceremony for her first wedding Carroll gave birth to her daughter, Suzanne Kay (born September 9, 1960), who became a journalist and screenwriter. Eventually he divorced his wife. According to Poitier, their relationship ended because he wanted to live with Carroll for six months without her daughter present so he would not be "jumping from one marriage straight into another." She refused.
thumb|upright|From left to right: [[Cass Elliot, Carroll and Jack Lemmon in 1973]]
Carroll dated and was engaged to British television host and producer David Frost from 1970 until 1973. Glusman was reportedly physically abusive.
On May 25, 1975, Carroll, then aged 39, married Robert DeLeon (1950–1977), the 24-year-old managing editor of Jet magazine in New York City. DeLeon had a daughter, Monica, from a previous marriage. Carroll's fourth and final marriage was to singer Vic Damone in 1987.
Charitable work
Carroll was a founding member of the Celebrity Action Council, a volunteer group of celebrity women who served the women's outreach of the Los Angeles Mission, working with women in rehabilitation from problems with alcohol, drugs, or prostitution. She helped to form the group along with other female television personalities including Mary Frann, Linda Gray, Donna Mills, and Joan Van Ark.
Illness, death, and memorial
Carroll was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1997. She said the diagnosis "stunned" her, because there was no family history of breast cancer, and she had always led a healthy lifestyle. She underwent nine weeks of radiation therapy and had been clear for years after the diagnosis. She frequently spoke of the need for early detection and prevention of the disease. She died from natural causes at her home in West Hollywood, California, on October 4, 2019, at the age of 84.
Filmography
Film
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
| 1954 || Carmen Jones || Myrt ||
|-
| 1997 || Eve's Bayou || Elzora ||
|-
| 2016 || The Masked Saint || Ms. Edna || (final film role)
|-
| rowspan=2|1960 || Peter Gunn || Dina Wright || Episode: "Sing a Song of Murder" ||
|-
| Naked City || Ruby Jay || Episode: "A Horse Has a Big Head!" ||
|-
| 1972 || The New Bill Cosby Show || Herself || 1 episode ||
|-
| 1975 || Death Scream || Betty May || TV movie ||
|-
| Livin' for Love: The Natalie Cole Story || Maria Cole || TV movie ||
|-
| 2009–14 || White Collar || June Ellington || 25 episodes ||
|-
| The Front || Nana Evelyn || TV movie ||
|-
| 2010–11 ||Diary of a Single Mom || Jane Marco || 7 episodes ||
|-
|1990 || Love Letters || Melissa Gardner || Los Angeles Production ||
|-
|1995 || Sunset Boulevard || Norma Desmond || Ford Centre, Toronto ||
|-
|2007 || Both Sides Now || Performer || Feinstein's at the Regency, New York ||
- Best Beat Forward (1958)
- The Persian Room Presents Diahann Carroll (1959)
- Porgy and Bess (1959) (with the André Previn Trio)
- The Magic of Diahann Carroll (with the André Previn Trio) (1960)
- Showstopper! (1962)
- The Fabulous Diahann Carroll (1962)
- You're Adorable: Love Songs for Children (1967)
- Nobody Sees Me Cry (1967)
- Diahann Carroll (1974)
- A Tribute to Ethel Waters (1978)
|-
| 1999
| Daytime Emmy Awards
| Outstanding Performer in a Children's Special
| The Sweetest Gift
|
|
|-
| 1966
| Best Recording for Children
| Love Songs for Children: "A" You're Adorable
|
|-
| 1975
|rowspan="5"| NAACP Image Award
| Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture
| Claudine
|
|-
| 2000
| Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie/Miniseries/Dramatic Special
| Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years
|
|-
| 2005
| rowspan="3"| Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
| Soul Food
|
|-
| 2012
|rowspan="2"| White Collar
|
|-
| 2014
|
|-
| 2011
|colspan="2"| Television Academy Hall of Fame
| Herself
|
|
|-
| 1962
| Tony Awards
| Best Leading Actress in a Musical
| No Strings
|
|
|-
| 1998
| Lucy Award
|
|