Dorothy Dandridge

Lore & Background

Dorothy Dandridge was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to entertainer Ruby Butler and Cyril Dandridge, a cabinetmaker and Baptist minister. Her parents separated before her birth. Ruby created a song-and-dance act for her daughters Vivian and Dorothy, called the Wonder Children, managed by her lover Geneva Williams, who was said to have a bad temper and cruelly disciplined the children. The sisters toured the Southern United States for five years, rarely attending school. During the Great Depression, the family moved to Hollywood, California, where Ruby found work in small domestic-servant parts. In 1930, Dorothy attended McKinley Junior High School in Pasadena. The Wonder Children were renamed the Dandridge Sisters in 1934, teaming with dance schoolmate Etta Jones.

The Dandridge Sisters performed at high-profile New York nightclubs including the Cotton Club and the Apollo Theater. Dandridge first appeared on screen at age 12, doubling for one of The Cabin Kids in the 1935 film Mississippi. She appeared in uncredited roles in several films, including The Big Broadcast of 1936, A Day at the Races, and It Can't Last Forever. Her first credited film role was in Four Shall Die (1940). She had small roles in Lady from Louisiana and Sundown (both 1941). She appeared in the specialty number 'Chattanooga Choo Choo' in Sun Valley Serenade (1941), her first performance with the Nicholas Brothers. She also appeared in 10 Soundies during 1941 and 1942, and was a featured performer in Duke Ellington's musical review 'Jump for Joy' in 1941. She performed with Count Basie in Hit Parade of 1943 and with Louis Armstrong in Atlantic City (1944) and Pillow to Post (1945). In 1944, she starred on stage in 'Sweet 'N Hot' at the Mayan theatre in Los Angeles. In 1951, she appeared as Melmendi in Tarzan's Peril, receiving attention for wearing 'provocatively revealing' clothing, which got her on the cover of Ebony in April 1951. She had a spectacular opening at the Mocambo nightclub in May 1951, leading to appearances in New York and at Café de Paris in London. A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer agent saw her at the Mocambo in December 1952 and recommended her to production chief Dore Schary, resulting in her first starring role in Bright Road opposite Harry Belafonte.

In 1953, 20th Century Fox began casting an all-black musical adaptation of Carmen Jones. Director Otto Preminger initially thought Dandridge suited the smaller role of Cindy Lou, but after she worked with Max Factor makeup artists to convey the look of Carmen and he viewed her 1941 Soundie 'Easy Street', he cast her in the title role. Her voice was dubbed by white mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne. Carmen Jones opened October 28, 1954, to favorable reviews and strong box-office returns, eventually earning over $10 million. Dandridge became the first black woman featured on the cover of Life on November 1, 1954. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress, the first African American nominated for a leading role. At the 27th Academy Awards on March 30, 1955, she presented the award for Film Editing. In 1959, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a Laurel Award for Porgy and Bess. Dandridge was married and divorced twice, first to dancer Harold Nicholas (father of her daughter Harolyn Suzanne) and then to hotel owner Jack Denison. She died in 1965 at age 42.

Reader's Guide

Dorothy Dandridge's significance lies in her groundbreaking achievement as the first African American nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress, for her role in Carmen Jones (1954). This nomination challenged racial barriers in Hollywood during the 1950s, a time when African American actors were largely relegated to stereotypical roles. Her performance as the seductive Carmen made her one of Hollywood's first African American sex symbols. She also earned a BAFTA nomination for Best Foreign Actress for the same film. In 1959, she was nominated for both a Golden Globe Award and a Laurel Award for Porgy and Bess. Her legacy includes being the subject of the 1999 biographical film Introducing Dorothy Dandridge, with Halle Berry portraying her. In 1983, she was posthumously recognized with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Dandridge's career, from child performer in the Wonder Children and Dandridge Sisters to acclaimed actress, paved the way for future African American performers in film.

Did You Know?

• Dorothy Dandridge was the first African American nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress, for Carmen Jones (1954).
• Her voice in Carmen Jones was dubbed by white mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne.
• She was the first black woman featured on the cover of Life magazine, on November 1, 1954.
• Dandridge was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a Laurel Award for Porgy and Bess in 1959.