Pioneering African-American actress Cicely Tyson dies at 96

New York, January 29 (RHC)-- Award-winning African-American actress Cicely Tyson, who was born and raised in Harlem, New York, has died at the age of 96.  In 1974, Tyson won two Emmy Awards for perhaps her best known role as the lead character in the TV drama “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.” 

Cicely Tyson also had a supporting role in the 1977 television mini-series “Roots.”  Cicely Tyson has played many acclaimed TV and movie roles, consistently portraying positive images of African-American women. 

In addition to her screen career, Tyson appeared in various theater productions.  She received a Drama Desk Award in 1962 for her Off-Broadway performance in Moon on a Rainbow Shawl.  Tyson also starred as Carrie Watts in the Broadway play The Trip to Bountiful, winning the Tony Award, the Outer Critics Award, and the Drama Desk Award for Best Actress in a Play in 2013.  Cicely Tyson was named a Kennedy Center honoree in 2015. In November 2016, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is the highest civilian honor in the United States.  And in 2020, she was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.