# RIP Diahann Carroll **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** celebrity-death\ **Created:** [October 4, 2019, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272 "2019-10-04T17:19:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/1 "2019-10-04T17:19:48Z")
[Diahann Carroll, Pioneering Actress on ‘Julia’ and ‘Dynasty,’ Dies at 84](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/diahann-carroll-dead-pioneering-actress-julia-dynasty-was-84-1196051) I remember watching _Julia_ when I was a kid. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/2 "2019-10-04T17:38:32Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > [Diahann Carroll, Pioneering Actress on ‘Julia’ and ‘Dynasty,’ Dies at 84](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/diahann-carroll-dead-pioneering-actress-julia-dynasty-was-84-1196051) > > I remember watching _Julia_ when I was a kid. She definitely broke ground for other actors of color. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/3 "2019-10-04T18:15:20Z")
Corey must have gotten through with another emergency that couldn’t wait. RIP, Julia. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/4 "2019-10-04T19:01:10Z")
I thought she was good in _Julia,_ but superb in _[Claudine](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071334/)_, which got her an Oscar nomination. RIP. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/5 "2019-10-04T19:20:54Z")
Obligatory IMDb [link](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0140792/). Busy up until a few years ago. The last thing I remember seeing her in where she stood out was as “Mama” Burke on _Grey’s Anatomy_ for a few episodes. A very … forceful character. While certain aspects of her starring role in _Julia_ were new, remember that there were several minorities in starring TV roles well before that. It’s a shame to see her listed as “the first …” with no or inadequate qualifiers. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/6 "2019-10-04T19:22:27Z")
Other than knowing who she was from general pop culture osmosis, I’ve been wracking my brain trying to figure out what role I specifically was associating her with. Finally checked IMDb: She was Whitley’s mother on _A Different World_, which was perfect casting. ---
**Author:** ![Rough\_Draft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@Rough\_Draft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rough_Draft)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/7 "2019-10-04T21:03:38Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > [Diahann Carroll, Pioneering Actress on ‘Julia’ and ‘Dynasty,’ Dies at 84](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/diahann-carroll-dead-pioneering-actress-julia-dynasty-was-84-1196051) > > I remember watching _Julia_ when I was a kid. Me too. She was a great actress and an incredibly beautiful woman. RIP. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/8 "2019-10-04T21:26:35Z")
^ When I was eight years old, I was going to marry her, but then Denise Nicholas came along. Sorry, Diahann, I’m fickle. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2019, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/9 "2019-10-05T15:41:00Z")
Dianne Carroll was also a fine stage actor. She originated the role of Norman Desmond in the Canadian production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard, opposite Rex Smith’s Joe Gillis. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2019, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/10 "2019-10-06T00:50:12Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > … > I remember watching _Julia_ when I was a kid. Me 3. I woulda been 7-8 when it came out, and I remember it being one of my favorite shows. I think I really liked the relationship between her and her son. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2019, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-diahann-carroll/841272/11 "2019-10-06T00:56:15Z")
My favorite character that she played was Whitley Gilbert’s mother on “A Different World”.