Dorothy Jean Dandridge is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is the first African-American movie star to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress, which is for her performance in Carmen Jones. Dandridge has performed as a singer at venues such as the Cotton Club and the Apollo Theater. Early in her career, she starred in The Wonder Children, later The Dandridge Sisters, and appeared consecutively in movies, often in unrecognized roles. In 1959, Dandridge was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Porgy and Bess. She is the subject of the 1999 HBO biopic film, Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. She was recognized with a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame. Dandridge has been married and divorced twice, first with dancer Harold Nicholas and then with hotel owner Jack Denison. Dandridge dies under mysterious circumstances at the age of 42

American actress and singer best known for playing the lead role in Carmen Jones, a performance that earned her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in 1954. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her part in Porgy and Bess five years later.