She won our hearts with "Julia". She became a guilty pleasure with "Dynasty". She is Diahann Carroll, and she is a national treasure. Born in Harlem on July 17, 1935 (as Carol Diann Johnson), this diva overcame life's adversities to become the very definition of fabulosity. She made her Broadway debut in 1954's "House of Flowers", and her film debut that same year in "Carmen Jones". But it was her '68 sitcom, "Julia", which made her a star. This ground-breaking series (which we remember quite fondly) won her an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe. It also led to countless other television appearances, including parts on "Webster", "Ellen", and the immortal "Star Wars Holiday Special" (along with Bea Arthur, Harvey Korman, and Jefferson Starship!). As if that weren't enough, she had a fabulous comeback in the '80s on "Dynasty", a television show cast almost entirely of divas, most of whom are better off forgotten. As Dominique Deveraux, she was---in her own words---"the first black bitch on TV." But being divine does take it's toll, and in Diahann's case that meant four marriages (including one to singer Vic Damone), a well-publicized engagement to television personality David Frost, and a nine-year troubled affair with the very married Sydney Portier. In 1998 she was diagnosed with breast cancer, but is now cancer-free and is a powerful speaker for cancer awareness. She never stopped working, and was recently seen in the film "Eve's Bayou" and the TV bio "The Natalie Cole Story" (playing Natalie's mother, a woman she actually knows!). She also has her own fashion line, which features clothing, shoes, perfume, and of course wigs. Diahann Carroll will never cease to inspire, and forever remains an icon of style, class, and glamour.
DIAHANN CARROLL IS A DIVA NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN!!!
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