Diahann Carroll.Photo: Everett
Hollywood is remembering trailblazing “icon” Diahann Carroll.
In a statement to PEOPLE, Warwick, 78, said, “My personal world has taken a downward spiral. Losing my dear friend and Mentor comes as a true hurt to my heart!! I know I’ll miss her as I’m certain all that knew her will. Rest In Peace my dear friend.”
Duvernay, 47, tweeted alongside multiple black-and-white photos of Carroll throughout the years: “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.”
Grier, 63, posted on Twitter, “Rest In Peace Queen Diahann Caroll! Your work is done. The battle is over. You’ve earned your seat on the throne. Thank you for teaching me, walking with me, and showing me your grace, wisdom, artistry and charm. You will be missed.”
“One of my cast members told me that I resemble a young Diahann carol,” said Hudson. “Beyonce was the first person to ever tell me that . So I thought I’d take a look!”
Other stars including Robin Thede, Marg Helgenberger, Tika Sumpter and Mitzi Gaynor honored the actress with touching posts and throwback photos on Twitter.
Born Carol Diahann Johnson to subway motorman John and nurse Mabel Johnson in the Bronx, New York, Carroll grew up in Harlem, where her family moved when she was an infant. Carroll started her career at 15, modeling forEssencemagazine but her heart was in performing: “I always knew I had to do something that was in front of an audience,” Carroll told PEOPLE in 2008.
Carroll’s other prominent film roles during that time period include Clara in 1959’sPorgy and Bessstarring Sidney Poitier, Dandridge and Sammy Davis Jr. and Connie Lampson in 1961’sParis Blues, opposite Poitier, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. Also during that time Carroll and Poitier began anine-year love affair, though both were married when they met: Carroll to her first husband, record producer Monte Kay, and Poitier to his first wife, model Juanita Hardy.
In 1974, Carroll was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress for her turn inClaudine.
In 1983, she was the first black actress to replace a white actress in a dramatic role on Broadway inAgnes of God. And when she joinedDynastyin March of 1984, as the glamorous, jet-setting Dominique Deveraux, half-sister to Blake Carrington, Carroll became the first black person to star in a primetime soap. In 1986, she wrote an autobiographyDiahann! with Ross Firestone.
Carroll told PEOPLE she found the pioneer label to be a complicated but tremendous blessing, particularly with regard toJulia. “The attention and responsibility were so stressful,” the actress-singer said in 2008. “But I’m enormously proud of that show.”
source: people.com
