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Actress

Discover Black women's legacies month by month. Explore history's milestones and celebrate the remarkable achievements of influential figures.

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Jan 10
January
Actress
Model
Singer
Teresa Graves
Graves (1948-2002) made television history as the first Black woman to star in her own dramatic TV series when she played undercover police officer Christie Love in Get Christie Love! (1974-1975).1 After achieving success in both comedy (as a regular performer on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In) and drama, she left Hollywood in the mid-1970s to devote herself to her religious faith as a Jehovah's Witness.
Texas
Jan 14
January
Actress
Vonetta McGee
Lawrence Vonetta McGee (1945-2010) was a trailblazing film and television actress who rose to fame during the Blaxploitation film period.
California
Jan 16
January
Dancer
Actress
Entertainment
Educator
Debbie Allen
Allen (1950) is an actress, choreographer, director, producer, and founder of a performing arts academy. The TV series "Fame" (1982-1987) marked her entertainment breakthrough when she both played dance teacher Lydia Grant and choreographed the series. She also received three Golden Globe nominations and one win for Best Actress for her role in 'Fame.' She also earned multiple Emmy Award nominations, winning five, and making history as the first Black woman to receive the Emmys' prestigious Governors Award for significant contributions to television.
Texas
Jan 17
January
Actress
Singer
Activist
Eartha Kitt
Kitt (1927-2008) rose from poverty in South Carolina, where she lived with relatives, to attend the High School of Performing Arts in New York before launching her career with Katherine Dunham's dance company. She became an international star renowned for her distinctive purring voice, feline grace, and multilingual performances, establishing herself as a symbol of seduction and sophistication with hits like "Santa Baby" (1953) and "C'est Si Bon." Her diverse career spanned Broadway, film, and television, including her memorable role as Catwoman in the 1960s Batman series. Kitt's career faced a significant setback in 1968 when her anti-Vietnam War statements at a White House luncheon led to CIA surveillance and an effective blacklisting in the U.S., though she later triumphantly returned to Broadway and television.
South Carolina
Jan 29
January
Journalism
Entrepreneur
Actress
Oprah Winfrey
Mississippi
Mar 4
March
Actress
Singer
Barbara McNair
Singer, Actress, and Host, McNair (1934-2007) was one of the first Black women to host a television show (1969-1971).
Illinois
Mar 10
March
Actress
Singer
Dancer
Baptist
Jasmine Guy
A quadruple threat as an actress, singer, dancer, and director, Guy's dynamic career spans from her early days as a dancer for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater to her continued work in television and film. Her versatility is evident in her two albums (Jasmine Guy and Try Me), Broadway performances in Grease!, Leader of the Pack, The Wiz, Dancin' in the Street, Bubbling Brown Sugar, and Chicago, and roles in Spike Lee's School Daze, Harlem Nights, Stompin' at the Savoy, and The Vampire Diaries.
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Mar 26
March
Singer
Actress
Baptist
Diana Ross
Michigan
Mar 29
March
Singer
Entertainment
Actress
Pearl Bailey
Virginia
May 26
May
Actress
Pam Grier
North Carolina
Jun 2
June
Author
Harlem Renaissance
Actress
Dorothy West
Massachusetts
Jun 10
June
Actress
Hattie McDaniel
McDaniel (1895-1952) was the first Black person to win an Academy Award, receiving the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Mammy in "Gone with the Wind" (1939). Despite her groundbreaking achievement, she faced significant racial discrimination throughout her career: She was barred from the film's premiere at the whites-only Loew's Grand Theatre in Atlanta and was forced to sit at a segregated table in a side room during the Academy Awards ceremony.
Kansas
Jun 14
June
Actress
Marla Gibbs
Illinois
Jun 19
June
Actress
Singer
Phylicia Rashad
Texas
Jun 25
June
Actress
Brenda Sykes
Louisiana
Jun 30
June
Civil Rights
Cotton Club
Dancer
Singer
Actress
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne
New York
Jul 6
July
Actress
Singer
Della Reese
Michigan
Jul 17
July
Singer
Actress
Diahann Carroll
Caroroll (1935-2019) was an actress and the first Black woman to earn an Emmy nomination (1969).
New York
Jul 21
July
Singer
Dancer
Actress
Josephine Premice
New York
Aug 6
August
Activist
Actress
Singer
Abbey Lincoln
Illinois
Aug 9
August
Singer
Actress
Whitney Houston
The Voice!
New Jersey
Aug 27
August
Actress
Theatre
Rose McClendon
South Carolina
Aug 31
August
Actress
Model
Donyale Luna
Luna (1945-1979) was the first black woman to appear on the cover of Vogue Magazine when, in 1966, she appeared on the cover of British Vogue.
Michigan
Sep 2
September
Actress
Singer
Pianist
Amanda Randolph
Kentucky
Sep 11
September
Singer
Actress
Dancer
Lola Falana
New Jersey
Oct 27
October
Actress
Civil Rights
Ruby Dee
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Oct 31
October
Singer
Actress
Ethel Waters
Entertainer
Pennsylvania
Nov 5
November
Actress
Singer
Etta Moten Barnett
Singer and Actress
Texas
Nov 9
November
Actress
Singer
Cotton Club
Dorothy Dandridge
Dandridge (1922-1965) was an actress and singer, known for her remarkable performances in films such as "Carmen Jones" (1954) and "Porgy and Bess" (1959). Dandridge's portrayal of the title role in "Carmen Jones" earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, making her the first African American woman to be nominated in this category. Ironically, Halle Berry, who later became the first African American woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress (2001), portrayed Dandridge in the HBO biopic "Introducing Dorothy Dandridge" (1999), paying tribute to the iconic actress's life and legacy.
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Nov 13
November
Actress
Theatre
Entertainment
Whoopi Goldberg
Actress, comedian, author, singer, and host, Goldberg (1955) was the first Black woman to earn EGOT status (2002)—winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony award.
New York
Dec 8
December
Singer
Government
Educator
Actress
Zelma Watson George
Multi-talent: a musicologist, diplomat, philanthropist, actress, singer, educator, sociologist, and administrator.
Texas
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