Carroll, Diahann

Diahann Carroll is the consummate entertainer. So varied and dynamic are her gifts that she continually astounds fans and critics alike with her versatility and magnetism. She is one of America's major performing talents appearing in nightclubs, the Broadway stage, a Las Vegas headliner, motion pictures and television. Diahann Carroll is a Tony Award winner, an Emmy and Grammy nominee, a Golden Globe winner and a Best Actress Oscar nominee.

Her television nominations go back to 1963 and in 1968, Diahann Carroll became the first black actress in television history to star in her own series,Juliafor NBC, which soared to the top of the Nielsen rating and received an Emmy nomination in its first year on the air. In 1989 she was nominated for an Emmy Award for the successful NBC TV series,A Different World, as outstanding actress in a comedy series. In 1984 Diahann Carroll became the first black actress to star in the award winning nighttime seriesDynasty, which is still in syndication all around the world.

She had a recurring role in Showtime's hit seriesSoul Food, playing the outspoken "Aunt Ruthie", for which she was nominated twice for a NAACP Image Award. She guest starred in Lifetime TV'sStrong Medicineand in NBC's TV showWhoopi, playing Whoopi Goldberg's mother. In 2004 she starred on stage in the musical "Bubbling Brown Sugar" receiving critical acclaim.

In October of 1995 she starred on stage as ‘Norma Desmond' in the Toronto premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber's hit musicalSunset Boulevard, staged by director Trevor Nunn and the show's entire original creative team. Hailed by the press as "the ultimate Norma Desmond", Diahann Carroll played to sell-out crowds and her Canadian cast recording outsold all other recordings of the show.

Diahann made her Broadway stage debut starring in Harold Arlen and Truman Capote'sHouse of Flowersand after seeing her in this production, Richard Rodgers created the Broadway productionNo Stringsas a starring vehicle for Miss Carroll, for which she won the Tony Award. She also starred on Broadway in the award winning playAgnes of God.

Her film work includesClaudine, for which she received a 1974 Best Actress Academy Award nomination,Carmen Jones, Paris Blues, Porgy & Bess, Hurry Sundown, I know Why The Caged Bird SingsandEve's Bayou. She is an award winning actress, a successful entrepreneur, a devoted humanitarian... indeed Diahann Carroll is a legend.

Biographical Note

Born Carol Diann Johnson, July 17, 1935 in the Bronx, NY. Having appeared for a short period in Arthur Godfrey's radio show as a child, she entered New York's High School of Music and Art at the age of 10. While enrolled in New York University, she modeled and sang in nightclubs and television In 1954 she had a minor part in the film "Carmen Jones" and she appeared on Broadway in the "House of Flowers" (Truman Capote and Harold Arlen), for which she received a Tony nomination for best supporting actress in a musical. She recorded her first solo album "" in 195?. In 1962 she won a Tony for her performance in the Broadway musical "No Strings" (Richard Rodgers). The original cast album for that show won a Grammy. The sixties also included numerous appearances on televsion, including an Emmy-nominated performance for .... In 1968 she starred in the television situation comedy "Julia", which ran until 1971, when she decided not to renew her contract. She was nominated for an Academy Award for best actress in 1974 for her starring role in the motion picture "Claudine". In 1984 she took a role in the series "Dynasty" and in 1995 she returned to stage in the Canadian production of the musical "Sunset Boulevard" (Andrew Lloyd Webber). [Source: Steven Otfinoski, "African Americans in the Performing Arts". Facts on File, 2003]