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Ethel Ayler

American actress From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ethel Ayler
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Ethyl Spraggins Ayler[1] (May 1, 1930 – November 18, 2018) was an American character actress with a career spanning over five decades.

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Ayler was born in Whistler, Alabama[2] and graduated from Fisk University.[3]

In 1957, she made her off-Broadway debut in the Langston Hughes musical, Simply Heavenly.[4] Later that year, she debuted on Broadway in the multiple Tony Award-nominated musical, Jamaica as an understudy for Lena Horne (also making her Broadway debut).[5]

Another notable early performance was in Jean Genet's play, The Blacks: A Clown Show,[1] which ran off-Broadway for 1,408 performances and received three Obie Awards, including Best New Play. The impressive cast of black actors included three future Academy Award nominees: James Earl Jones, Cicely Tyson and Louis Gossett Jr.[6]

Throughout her career, Ayler appeared frequently with the Negro Ensemble Company. This included notable performances in The First Breeze of Summer,[7] Eden[8] and Nevis Mountain Dew.[9]

On television, Ayler had a recurring role as Carrie Hanks, Clair Huxtable's mother on The Cosby Show.[10] She also made memorable performances in the films To Sleep with Anger (1990) and Eve's Bayou (1997).

For her work in To Sleep with Anger, Ayler received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female.[11]

Ayler's last Broadway appearance was in another Tony-nominated production, The Little Foxes, in 1997.[12] On November 18, 2018, she died in Loma Linda, California,[1] at the age of 88.[13]

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Selected credits

Theatre

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Film

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References

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