Diahann Carroll Age, Early Life, Background, Career Highlights, Awards, Husbands and Charity

American television and stage singer, Diahann Carroll age was not even 20 when she started to gain prominence through her performances in major studio films like Carmen Jones and Porgy Bess.

Synopsis

Diahann Carroll has performed in 1950s movies Carmen Jones and Porgy Bess which rose her prominence and worth as a singer. She has also performed on Broadway. One of her remarkable roles was portraying Dominique Deveraux in Primetime soap opera Dynasty for three seasons. Diahann Carroll age was somewhere in between 30 to 35 only when she received Golden Globe award for Best Actress in a Television series.

Early Life and Background

Diahann Carroll was born Carol Diahann Johnson on July 17, 1935 in The Bronx, New York in the United States. Her parent are John Johnson and Mabel. When she was an infant, her family relocated to Harlem where she grew up and attended Music and Art High School. She cites her parents’ support for her enrollment in dance, singing and modeling classes.

Diahann Carroll age was 15 when she started modeling for Ebony. As a teenager, she had good height and lean body fit for modeling. She later joined New York University where she majored in Sociology. She is an African American woman who holds American citizenship.

Professional Career Highlights

Carroll got her breakthrough appearance on the Dumont Television Network program Chance of a Lifetime. Diahann Carroll age was 18 at the time. The how won her $1,000 prize for her rendition of song “Why Was I born?” Soon, Carroll got the opportunity to win 4-week-long Engagements at Café Society and Latin Quarter nightclubs.

In addition to singing, Diahann Carroll made a debut in film Carmen Jones in 1954 in a supporting role. The same year, she made her Broadway musical debut, House of Flowers. She landed the role of Clara in Porgy and Bess in 1959.

In 1960, she made a guest appearance in an episode of series Peter Gunn. Similarly, she made her starring debut with Paris Blues in 1961 alongside Sidney Poitier and Paul Newman. Her remarkable role was in 1968 TV series Julia. She became the first African American woman to star in her own TV series where she did not play the role of a domestic worker.

She landed a high-profile role in Dynasty where she played the role until 1987. Similarly, she played Eleanor Potter in The Five Heartbeats (1991) and Mrs. Greyson in Lonesome Dove: The Series (1995). Her starring role include playing Norma Desmond in 1996 film Sunset Boulevard. Further, she provided voice to Queen La in The Legend of Tarzan (2001).

Carroll’s recent appearances are in Grey’s Anatomy where she played Jane Burke in 2006. Similarly, she was also the cast of White Collar as June in 2008. She appeared as Nana in 2 lifetime movies At Risk and The Front in addition to appearing in docudrama 1 a Minute in 2010.

Awards and Nominations

The boasting talented singer and actress, Diahann Carroll age was not even 30 when she climbed the ladder of prominence and success winning multiple awards and nominations. Carroll won Tony Award in 1962 for Best Actress for the film No Strings. She was the first black woman to receive the award. Likewise, she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her role in the film, Claudine.

For Julia, Diahann Carroll earned a Golden Globe award for Best Actress in Television Series in 1968. The same series earned her an Emmy Award nomination the following year. The actress bagged her third Emmy nomination in 1989 for her role of Marion Gilbert in A Different World.

Personal Life and Husbands

Diahann Carroll has married 4 times. Her first marriage was with producer Monte Kay with whom she has a daughter, Suzanne Kay Banford (1960). In 1973, she remarried Las Vegas boutique owner, Fred Glusman, whom she charged of physical abuse.

She filed for divorce with him and married Robert DeLeon in 1975. After DeLeon’s death in a car crash, Carroll married singer Vic Damone in 1987. However, the couple legally separated in 1991, reconciled and then again divorced in 1996. After Damone, the performer dated and got engaged to British TV host and producer, David Frost. They remained in relationship from 1970 to 1973.

Charity and Net Worth

The cancer survivor, Diahann Carroll is the member of the Celebrity Action Council that serves women struggling with drugs, alcohol and prostitution.

The brilliant performer, Diahann Carroll age is 88 years by 2017 and has netted worth of $28 million through her acting and singing career.