Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999)
- Starring:
- Halle Berry, Brent Spiner, (more)
- Director(s):
- Martha Coolidge
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- R
- Category:
- Television, Drama
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Dorothy Dandridge was a singer, nightclub entertainer, and actress who became the first African-American woman to receive an Academy award nomination as Best Actress (for her standout performance in 1954's Carmen Jones; she lost to Grace Kelly). However, despite her striking beauty and obvious talent, Dandridge was a sexy, glamorous black femme fatale at a time when Hollywood pin-up queens were supposed to be giggly blondes. The film industry didn't know what to do with her, and while her nightclub act was a bit too smooth for the Southern roadhouse circuit, as a black performer she wasn't allowed to stay in many of the hotels and resorts where she performed. Dandridge also had a sad personal life, filled with tragedy and romantic disappointment, and she died of an overdose of pills in 1965, at the age of 41. This made-for-cable biographical drama stars Halle Berry as Dorothy Dandridge, supported by Brent Spiner, Obba Babatunde, and Klaus Maria Brandauer. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 115 mins
Complete Cast:
- Halle Berry - Dorothy Dandridge
- Obba Babatunde - Harold Nicholas
- Cynda Williams - Vivian Dandridge
- Tamara Taylor - Geri Nicholas
- Klaus Maria Brandauer - Otto Preminger
- Sharon Brown - Etta Jones
- Sarah Scott Davis
- Benjamin Brown - Sidney Poitier
- Brent Spiner - Earl Mills
- Loretta Devine - Ruby Dandridge
- La Tanya Richardson - Auntie
- D.B. Sweeney - Jack Dennison
- William Atherton - Darryl F. Zanuck
- Mark Bramhall - Carmen Jones Production Designer
- Billy Mayo - Sergeant
- Director(s):
- Martha Coolidge
- Writer(s):
- Scott Abbott
- Producer(s):
- Larry Albucher
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- R(Sexual Situations, Adult Language)
- Categories:
- Television, Drama
- Closed Captioning:
- Check All Versions
- Subtitles:
- Check All Versions
- 1999 - Introducing Dorothy Dandridge - Hollywood Foreign Press Association - Best Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television
- 1999 - Introducing Dorothy Dandridge - Screen Actors Guild - Best Female Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie
