AFP/Los Angeles
(AFP.)
Honorary Oscar-winning star s career spanned seven decades and tackled issues of racism and social justice.
Cicely Tyson, the pioneering African-American actress and honorary Oscar winner, died Thursday aged 96, her manager said.
Known best for Emmy-winning television movie
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman and her Academy-nominated turn in 1972 film
Sounder, Tyson’s acting career spanned seven decades and often tackled issues of racism and social justice.
She frequently turned down roles she saw as reinforcing negative Black stereotypes, including maids and prostitutes, and was seen as recently as last year on the small-screen thriller
How to Get Away with Murder.
Cicely Tyson, the pioneering Hollywood legend known for her performances in film and TV projects including 'Sounder' and 'The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman,' has died at 96.
Cicely Tyson: Award-winning star of stage and screen dies aged 96 kingdomfm.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kingdomfm.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Groundbreaking and award-winning actress Cicely Tyson dies at 96 Robert D. McFadden
Ben Sklar /The New York Times News Service
Cicely Tyson, the stage, screen and television actress whose vivid portrayals of strong African-American women shattered racial stereotypes in the dramatic arts of the 1970s, propelling her to stardom and fame as an exemplar for civil rights, died Thursday. She was 96.
Her death was announced by her long-time manager, Larry Thompson.
In a remarkable career of seven decades, Ms. Tyson broke ground for serious Black actors by refusing to take parts that demeaned Black people. She urged Black colleagues to do the same and often went without work. She was critical of films and television programs that cast Black characters as criminal, servile or immoral, and insisted that African-Americans, even if poor or downtrodden, should be portrayed with dignity.