Black History: Diahann Carroll

Diahann Carroll paved the for actress like today like Angela Bassett, Kerry Washington, Viola Davis, and new comer Issa Rae. Carroll he was the first African-American woman to star in her own television series where she didn’t play the role of a servant or maid.

 I remember watching her play Dominique Deveraux on Dynasty with my mother. It was the first time I saw a black woman on tv playing a wealthy and powerful character which, at the time, was unheard of.
Carroll was born July 17, 1935 in Bronx, New York. Her parents were very supportive of her dreams and placed her in dancing, and modeling classes. She went to Manhattan’s School of Performing Arts where she was in classes with Billy Dee Williams.
She started modeling for Ebony magazine by the time she was 15 years old from there Carroll never looked back, having a trailblazing career.
In 1968 she won the Golden Globe Award for Best TV Star for her television series Julia, she won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress for her role in the musical No Strings, and in 2011 she was also inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.
Carroll was also nominated for an Emmy in 1989 for her role on A Different World. She is still working today with a recurring guest appearance on ABC’s hit show Grey’s Anatomy.