Dorothy Dandridge: Old Hollywood Actress

Dorothy started performing in church at the age of 4 years old, and as a result, didn’t have a formal education.

She was one half of the performing duo, the Wonder Children. 

The other half was her sister, Vivian Dandridge.

At the time, Ruby was intimately involved with Geneva Williams, also known as “Neva.” 

She became a caretaker to the girls while Ruby worked and acted as manager for the signing duo.

The Great Crash of 1929 forced the duo to retire.

Undeterred, in her quest for stardom, Ruby and Neva moved the family to Hollywood.

In 1934, the singing duo welcomed a third member – Etta Jones – and became the singing trio “The Dandridge Sisters.

The trio was a success.

They performed in several films and in the renowned nightclub Cotton Club of New York City in 1938.

It was here that she met Harold Nicholas, a lady’s man, showbusiness vet, and ½ of the performing duo the Nicholas Brothers.

Neva continued her role as manager, this time to The Dandridge Sisters.

She was known for her harsh temperament and oppressive nature.

As Dorthey grew up, she became a great beauty and attracted a lot of attention. This caused Neva to become incredibly obsessive.

In 1939, The Dandridge Sisters were invited to perform at the Palladium in London.

Neva was their only escort.

It was during this trip that she took advantage of her position as caretaker and abused Dorothy.

This led Dorothy to distance herself from this group and declare her independence in order to go solo as a singer and actress.

Dorothy was only 16 at the time. 

Harolyn Suzanne Nicholas was born with cerebral anoxia – which is when the brain is completely deprived of oxygen. The result was brain damage.

She couldn’t recognize people, not even her parents.

This caused Dorothy great heartache. 

She blamed herself for waiting too long to give birth.

While initially the birth of Harolyn strengthened their marriage, once symptoms of Harolyn’s condition started showing up, Harold started traveling frequently in search of answers for his daughter’s condition.

In 1948, Dorothy asked for a divorce. It was finalized in 1951.

Dorothy returned to work, given that she needed help with Harolyn’s care.

In 1948, she attended the Actors Laboratory in Hollywood, one of the top acting schools in America – and became one of the first black students.

She soon started working with Phil Moore, a jazz musician she met while performing in the Cotton Club with The Dandridge Sisters.

He helped her establish her glamorous onstage presence. 

He also coached her with her singing and dancing.

With his help, she became a great on-stage performer.

In 1953, she starred alongside Harry Belafonte in Bright Road, which featured an all-black cast and Dorothy as a first-year elementary school teacher trying to reach out to a problematic student. 

This acting role was far removed from her onstage persona and received great accolades.

In 1954, after great determination, Dorothy was cast as Carmen Jones in the movie adaptation of Carmen Jones – originally a Broadway musical.

While the films’ musical numbers were dubbed for Dorothy – the director sought an opera singer instead of Dorothy’s melodic voice – Dorothy’s performance was riveting.

This performance catapulted her to A-List stardom and won her an Oscar nomination.

This nomination marked a historical moment. 

This was the first time an African American had been nominated for an academy for a leading role.

Her rivals were:

• WINNER – Grace Kelly – The Country Girl

• Judy Garland – A Star Is Born

• Audrey Hepburn – Sabrina

• Jane Wyman – Magnificent Obsession

Following this film’s success, Dorothy and Otto Preminger, the director of Carmen Jones, dated for a few years.

At the time, he was separated from his wife but still married.

Controlling in nature, he insisted that Dorothy only take leading roles, which weren’t readily available. 

Eventually, offers dwindled.

While her star had dimmed, she shone brightly whenever given an opportunity.

For example, her performance in Island in the Sun (1957) received great reviews, as did her work in the movie Porgy and Bess (1959).

 The latter role provided her with a nomination for a Golden Globe.

I watched a few of her movies to derive greater inspiration for a unique piece of jewelry inspired by Dorothy Dandridge.

First, I watched Bright Road. 

Little did I know, but this was a book-to-movie adaptation. 

The source material was written by an African-American teacher who wrote a series of short stories relating to her personal experience.

The film was a wonderful black-and-white production featuring an all-black cast.

I loved it. 

I found it inspirational, beautifully shot, and something that a modern audience would also appreciate.

I found the following excerpts on Wikipedia relating to Bright Road especially interesting:

Bright Road was not commercially successful [3] and was criticized for having "dealt too timidly with racial and economic questions."[4] Dandridge, however, had been specifically attracted to the lack of racial conflict in Bright Road's story. She wrote that she was "profoundly fond of ... a theme which showed that beneath any color skin, people were simply people. I had a feeling that themes like this might do more real good than the more hard-hitting protest pictures. I wanted any black girl in the audience to look at me performing in this film and be able to say to herself, 'Why, this schoolteacher could be me.'"

"See How They Run" was Mary Elizabeth Vroman's first published short story, written while she was a schoolteacher in rural Alabama. First published in Ladies' Home Journal in 1951, it also appeared in Ebony magazine in 1952. When Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer purchased the rights to adapt the story to film, Vroman helped write the screenplay, and as a result, became the first black member of the Screen Writers Guild.[2]

Following Bright Road, I watched Carmen Jones.

This film was made up of an almost entirely all-black cast.

I loved watching a sassier version of Dorothy bringing Carmen Jones to life.

The costumes were amazing—everything from the military uniforms to glamourous gowns – 5/5 stars.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t as big a fan of this film – which was a bit of a surprise to me as I generally love this kind of film. 

My biggest complaint would be the dubbing of Dorothy’s musical parts. 

They were distracting, and given that there was quite a bit of singing, it took me out of the story frequently.

I think Otto Preminger, the director of Carmen Jones, would have been better off using Dorothy’s musical talents instead of hiring a trained opera singer.

Unsurprisingly, many critics also struggled with the dubbing. 

After watching Carmen Jones, I wanted to know more and was quite surprised to find that Dorothy wasn’t Otto Preminger’s first pick, given that she was “a beautiful butterfly” – but not Carmen.

Incredible.

According to Wikipedia, Otto needed further convincing & Dorothy delivered via an exceptional portrayal of Carmen. 

Here's the excerpt from Wikipedia: 

Preminger was familiar with Dorothy Dandridge but felt she was incapable of exuding the sultry sex appeal the role of Carmen demanded, particularly after having seen Dandridge's performance as a demure schoolteacher opposite Belafonte in Bright Road (1953).[16] Her agent's office was in the same building where Preminger's brother Ingo worked, and he asked Ingo to intercede on his client's behalf. At his first meeting with Dandridge, Preminger told her she was "lovely" and looked like a "model" or "a beautiful butterfly," but not Carmen,[17] and suggested she audition for the role of Cindy Lou. Dandridge took the script and left, and when she returned she was dressed and behaved exactly as Preminger envisioned Carmen. The director was impressed enough to schedule a screen test for mid-May, after Dandridge completed a singing engagement in St. Louis. In the interim he cast Juilliard School graduate Olga James as Cindy Lou.[18]

The second piece I designed with Dorothy in mind is this enchanting green crystal bracelet. 

Accented with back beads and embroidery, I had visions of her performing in a nightclub in one of her snake-like dresses, holding her microphone, and showing off this elegant bracelet. 

Too much?

I don’t think so. 

The more I learn of Dorothy, the more I love her. 

My biggest dream in life was to find the love of my life as well. 

I’m just so sad she didn’t get to that place in her life. 

I genuinely think she would have succeeded had she had a bit more time. 

As for this piece, it’s dedicated to the one and only Dorothy Dandridge.

What do you think?

I know I’ve only scratched the surface of all that her life entailed, but I am so excited to dive deeper into her story in the future.

* If you know that any part of these excerpts is false, please let me know. You can reach me via email: lovealways@kaleidoscopesandpolkadots.com or via a direct message on Facebook or Instagram.