Ethel Waters
(1896 - 1977)She was so lovable, so huggable on film that you wished she was your third grandma. One of the world's top jazz and blues singers, she was also a topnotch actress and the first black actress to receive star billing on Broadway and in movies. Stocky and plump with sparkling eyes and a smile that could "melt an iceberg", she exuded warmth and kindness in her roles. Born on October 31, 1896 in Chester, Pennsylvania in abject poverty, she often had to steal food to keep from going hungry. At one time she was working a $4.75 a week job as chambermaid in a Philadelphia hotel and during this time she first acted on the stage. She got jobs in small-time nightclubs and vaudeville as a result of winning an amateur night competition. She worked her way to Harlem singing blues and eventually hit it big on Broadway which began her career as a star of theatre, film and music. Her film debut came in 1929 in "On With the Show" playing Herself. Her other films included: "Rufus Jones for President" (1933) as Mother of Rufus; "Cairo" (1942) as Cleona Jones; "Tales of Manhattan" (1942) as Esther; "Stagedoor Canteen" (1943) as Stage Door Canteen Star; "Cabin in the Sky" (1943) with Rex Ingram and an all-black cast, as Petunia Jackson; "Pinky" (1949) as Granny, for which she received an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actress; "Member of the Wedding" (1952) as Bernice Sadie Brown; "The Sound and the Fury" (1959) as Dilsey, her last film and she appeared in the 1985 film "That's Dancing!" in archival footage. On TV she was best know and beloved for her role as Beulah on the "Beulah" series (1950-52). One of her trademarks was her jovial, boisterous laugh. She became a regular on the "Billy Graham Evangelism Crusades" on TV singing religious songs. She also guest starred on "The Borden Show" in 1947 and "Route 66" in 1961. She died on September 1, 1977 in Chatsworth, California of kidney and heart failure at the age of 80.
From Great Character Actors, Page 4.
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