Tony Award-winning and legendary “Dynasty” actress Diahann Carroll lost her long battle with cancer Friday. She was 84.
Carroll’s daughter, producer-journalist Suzanne Kay, confirmed the sad news to the Hollywood Reporter that her mother had died at the star’s Los Angeles home. (RELATED: Legendary Comic Don Rickles Died At Age 90)
Diahann Carroll (L) and Kerry Washington…65th Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles September 22, 2013. REUTERS/Mike Blake
The singer/actress is probably best known for her roles on such popular TV shows as “Julia” in 1968 when she became the first black woman to star in her own TV series, and on the primetime soap opera as the glamorous Dominique Devereaux in “Dynasty” in 1981. (RELATED: Hollywood Reacts To Death Of Legendary Actress Doris Day)
Carroll was approached by an NBC executive to play Julia Baker, a widowed nurse raising a young son in the TV comedy series and at first she didn’t think it was “going to work.”
“I really didn’t believe that this was a show that was going to work,” the legendary actress shared in a 1998 chat for the website The Interviews: An Oral History of Television. “I thought it was something that was going to leave someone’s consciousness in a very short period of time. I thought, ‘Let them go elsewhere.'”
But she soon changed her mind when she learned that veteran screenwriter, Hal Katner, thought she was too glamorous for the role and was determined to prove him wrong.
“We were saying to the country, ‘We’re going to present a very upper middle-class black woman raising her child, and her major concentration is not going to be about suffering in the ghetto,'” Carroll shared. “Many people were incensed about that. They felt that [African Americans] didn’t have that many opportunities on television or in film to present our plight as the underdog … they felt the [real-world] suffering was much too acute to be so trivial as to present a middle-class woman who is dealing with the business of being a nurse.”
Carroll continued, “But we were of the opinion that what we were doing was important, and we never left that point of view … even though some of that criticism of course was valid. We were of a mind that this was a different show. We were allowed to have this show.”
Shortly after reports surfaced of her death, celebrities reacted to the news about the trail blazing actress.
Diahann Carroll you taught us so much. We are stronger, more beautiful and risk takers because of you. We will forever sing your praises and speak your name. Love Love Love, Debbie pic.twitter.com/1LBUUa2Ql3
— Debbie Allen (@msdebbieallen) October 4, 2019
We are sad to say goodbye to a true icon, Diahann Carroll. The first African-American Tony winner in a leading role, winning for her performance in No Strings in 1962. #DiahannCarroll pic.twitter.com/C9VCzwuJmt
— The Tony Awards (@TheTonyAwards) October 4, 2019
The champagne won’t be burnt in Heaven. RIP, Diahann Carroll. #anotherdivagone pic.twitter.com/saOCPyJ2ra
— Jonathan Capehart (@CapehartJ) October 4, 2019
“I’m sometimes amazed at how few people realize what it takes for a black woman to survive in this business.” #DiahannCarroll https://t.co/d5INSLqiPl
— Eugene Scott (@Eugene_Scott) October 4, 2019
As a child, I dressed up as Dominique Devereaux for Halloween. As a journalist, I briefly spoke with Diahann Carroll as she promoted her book “The Legs Are the Last to Go.” #RIP Ms. Carroll. pic.twitter.com/iMr7DrlHQW
— Nadra Nittle (@NadraKareem) October 4, 2019
“I want to be the first black bitch on television.” I love that Diahann Carroll was always fighting for roles that showed all the many facets of blackness and helped normalize it. Without her, I wouldn’t be writing lead roles for black women. Thank you, Ms. Carroll. #RestInPeace https://t.co/egdwGQ2xCS
— Tracy Y. Oliver (@TracyYOliver) October 4, 2019
This makes me sad. Was first introduced to Diahann Carroll as Whitley Gilbert’s mama, but in time, came to see her legend in fuller form. She worked hard to show the world a fuller picture of us. God rest her soul. And more than anything, thank you. https://t.co/0Rra3Y8gUe
— Michael Arceneaux (@youngsinick) October 4, 2019
Diahann Carroll walked this earth for 84 years and broke ground with every footstep. An icon. One of the all-time greats. She blazed trails through dense forests and elegantly left diamonds along the path for the rest of us to follow. Extraordinary life. Thank you, Ms. Carroll. pic.twitter.com/YXjh7d3LWU
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) October 4, 2019
Carroll is survived by her daughter, Suzanne, and grandchildren, August and Sydney.