Well, maybe Eartha Kitt, until she got blacklisted.
While Poitier had defied the odds to become a leading man, where was his leading lady counterpart?
everett collection
Claudia McNeil was one exception.
The Best Blacktresses: The 1970s.Credit:Everett Collection - Design: Alex Sandoval
One that was slightly more inclusive and slightly more progressive.
Moreover, Black artists had made significant strides in the previous decade Poitier, Motown,Lt.
Uhura and the ’70s afforded them a greater autonomy.
Claudia McNeil in ‘A Raisin in the Sun’.everett collection
Picture it: 1972.
A real banner year for film:The Godfather,Cabaret,Deep Throat.
Diana Ross was, well, Diana F—ing Ross.
Diana Ross and The Supremes.james Kriegsmann/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty
to all those fancy trained thespians who will never feel the golden glow of Oscar.
So Ross had that going for her.
All her work paid off and she knocked it out of the goddamn park.
Diana Ross in ‘Lady Sings the Blues’.Paramount Pictures/Getty
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In contrast to Ross' pop star fame, Tyson was from the theater.
She had never wanted to be an actress, but a modeling scout set her on a different path.
She was the first Black woman to wear an Afro on American television (in 1962).
Diana Ross at the 1973 Academy Awards.getty
The title refers to the name of the familys dog.
No one has ever run better in all of film.
Up against Liv Ullman inThe Emigrantsand Maggie Smith inTravels With My Aunt, Ross and Tyson lost toLiza MinnelliinCabaret.
Cicely Tyson in ‘East Side/West Side’.CBS via Getty
11), its an anomaly, but when a Black movie fails, its an indictment.
There are worse fates.
She won two Emmys for the TV movieThe Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittmanand earned a nomination forRoots.
CIcely Tyson in ‘Sounder’.Stanley Bielecki Movie Collection/Getty
Carroll made her screen debut inCarmen Jones, Dandrdiges breakout film.
The younger actress had auditioned for the lead but settled for a supporting part.
I have known this woman all my life, Carroll wrote in her 1986 autobiography.
Cicely Tyson at the 1973 Academy Awards.Fairchild Archive/WWD/Penske Media via Getty
In 1974, Black cinema had undergone a radical shift.
Blaxploitation films were pretty equal opportunity.
Men kicked ass, and so did women.
Diahann Carroll in ‘Julia’.getty
She was the anti-Diahann Carroll.
But Carrroll was determined to getClaudinemade.
Well, she kinda had to be.
Diahann Carroll and James Earl Jones in ‘Claudine’.Stanley Bielecki Movie Collection/Getty
Sands wanted Carroll to replace her.
Its a rare film for 1974, or even for now.
Shedied in 2019 at age 84.
Diahann Carroll at the 1975 Academy Awards.getty
The 70s did much better by Black actresses than the previous decades the bar being incredibly, insultingly low.
Great parts remained few and far between, but they were there.
The Academy, then, had a choice to recognize them or not.
It’s a choice that the awards body is still struggling with.
And then theres Ross.
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