Vanessa L. Williams
- Birthday
- Mar 18, 1963
- Birthplace
- Bronx, New York, USA
Bio: The roller coaster career of actress and singer Vanessa L. Williams provides an excellent example of fortitude, resilience, and real talent winning out over adversity. In 1983, Williams made history when she was the first black woman to be chosen Miss America. For a time she was the country's darling as she toured about, attending to her royal duties, but when… More Bio: The roller coaster career of actress and singer Vanessa L. Williams provides an excellent example of fortitude, resilience, and real talent winning out over adversity. In 1983, Williams made history when she was the first black woman to be chosen Miss America. For a time she was the country's darling as she toured about, attending to her royal duties, but when Penthouse magazine published nude photographs that she had posed for years before, Williams lost her crown, two million dollars in product endorsements, and the lead in a Broadway show; suddenly, America's sweetheart found herself the subject of moral outrage, criticisms, and cruel jokes. But though her career and reputation were in shambles, Williams kept her dignity and faith, and continued on, first making her name as a successful R&B singer (one of her songs went gold, "Save the Best for Last") and then receiving considerable critical acclaim on Broadway for starring in Kiss of the Spider Woman. Williams made her feature film debut in The Pick-Up Artist (1987) and went on to forge a steady career as an actress. Notable subsequent film roles include one co-starring with Arnold Schwarzenegger in Eraser (1996) and the part of a career-obsessed wife in Soul Food (1997). After spending the early 2000s working on theatrical productions, including the Broadway Musical Revue Sondheim on Sondheim, Williams returned to the big screen for the award winning drama My Brother in 2007, and won rave reviews in 2006 for her portrayal of Wilhelmina Slater, the ruthless editor-and-chief of a fashion magazine on ABC's hit series Ugly Betty, and was praised for her portrayal of Renee Perry in the seventh season of Desperate Housewives. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
Filmography
-
Temptation (2013)
- Janice
- 16%
-
Delhi Safari (2012)
- Begam
- 17%
-
Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009)
- Vita
- 44%
-
Flirting with Forty (2008)
- Actor
-
Mama Mirabelle's Home Movies - Its Movie Time! (2008)
- Actor
- See all 53 films
Vanessa L. Williams Videos
Hannah Montana: The Movie
2 minutes 23 seconds
Shaft
2 minutes 8 seconds
Johnson Family Vacation
2 minutes 2 seconds
Adventures Of Elmo In Grouchland
2 minutes 2 seconds
Light It Up
2 minutes 49 seconds
Born Today
- Kelly Monaco (37 years old)
- Karen Duffy (52 years old)
- Drew Carey (55 years old)
- Tom Tykwer (48 years old)
- Linden Ashby (53 years old)
- Zalman King (71 years old)
- Felissa Rose (44 years old)
- Frank McHugh (115 years old)
- Heather Wahlquist (36 years old)
- H. Jon Benjamin (47 years old)
- Laurel Holloman (42 years old)
- Mark Arnold (56 years old)
- Kappei Yamaguchi (48 years old)
- Alexander De Jordy (20 years old)
- Adam Wylie (29 years old)
- Herbert Marshall (123 years old)
- Lane Garrison (33 years old)
- John Ortiz (45 years old)
- Charlie Yeung (39 years old)
- Joan Collins (80 years old)
- Nigel Davenport (85 years old)
- Sam Milby (31 years old)
- Jewel (39 years old)
- Guinevere Turner (45 years old)
- See more (24)
