Emmy-winning actress Mary Alice has died. She was 85.
Alice, who appeared in The Matrix: Revolutions, Awakenings and A Different World, died Wednesday (July 27) at home in her Manhattan apartment, The Hollywood Reporter reports.
Alice’s death was also confirmed on Twitter by Huffington Post editor Philip Lewis, who shared Thursday (July 28), “Mary Alice, known for her roles as ‘Lettie’ on A Different World and Effie Williams in Sparkle, has died, one of her close friends tells me. ‘We are all very sad at the loss.’”
A cause of death was not immediately available.
Alice had a decades-long career in film and television, but she got her start in the classroom. The actress was a teacher before she ever stepped onstage or in front of a camera, according to THR. After graduating from college, Alice became a teacher in Chicago, then pursued acting as a member of a theater group.
In 1966, she booked her first paid acting job in theater, per THR, and TV roles soon followed. Her first appearance on TV came in 1970, when she appeared on the soap All My Children, according to her IMDb page.
Alice went on to book TV movies and recurring roles on series like Sanford and Son and The Doctors. In 1976, she starred in the Supremes movie Sparkle, playing Effie.
Following her role in A Different World, which she appeared on from 1988-1989, Alice acted on shows like L.A. Law, I’ll Fly Away and Law & Order, and booked roles in films like Malcolm X and The Bonfire of the Vanities.
Throughout the course of her career, Alice earned numerous honors, including one Emmy nomination and one Emmy win, an Independent Spirit Award nomination and a Tony Award. In 2000, she was inducted into the American Theater Hall Of Fame.
Alice earned her Tony for her role as Rose in the August Wilson play Fences. Viola Davis, who played the same role in the film version of the play, paid tribute to Alice on Twitter Thursday, writing, “RIP Mary Alice…the original Rose Maxson. You were one of the greatest actresses of all time!! Thank you for the work, inspiration and thank you for Rose. Godspeed Queen ❤️❤️❤️❤️.”
Alice’s final projects included Sunshine State, Line of Fire and The Jury. Her last acting credit was in the 2005 TV series Kojak, in which she played Joyce.
