The world is in mourning after the sad news of the passing of iconic, award-winning actress, Cicely Tyson, was announced.
She was 96.
“I have managed Miss Tyson’s career for over 40 years, and each year was a privilege and blessing,” her manager, Larry Thompson, said in a statement. “Cicely thought of her new memoir as a Christmas tree decorated with all the ornaments of her personal and professional life. Today she placed the last ornament, a Star, on top of the tree.”
Tyson was best known for her roles in the epic Hollywood movies, “Sounder” (1972), for which she was nominated an Oscar, “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman” (1974), for which she nabbed two Emmys, “Roots” (1977), “The Marva Collins Story” (1981), “The Women of Brewster Place” (1989), and “The Help” (2011).
In 2016, President Barack Obama presented Tyson with the nation’s highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, for her contribution to the arts and American culture. In 2019, Tyson was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame and received a Career Achievement Peabody Award in 2020.
The social media tributes flooded in, with fans and fellow celebrities honoring her groundbreaking career.
Ava DuVernay, who directed Tyson in the 2020 TV series “Cherish the Day,” posted a loving tribute to her Instagram.
“Your hugs I’ll remember. How your petite arms wrapped around me like mighty branches of a sunlit tree, strong and warm. Your laugh I’ll remember. How it came easily and heartily and sounded like good music. Your work I’ll remember. How your brave portrayals transformed the way the world witnessed Black women, whether they could accept what you shared or not. Your words I’ll remember. How each time I hung up the phone, I’d write them down so as not forget the precious jewels of encouragement and wisdom you’d gifted me. Your love I’ll remember. You loved me for some reason. You told me so often. I thank you for that forever and I’ll carry your love with me as I go,” she wrote.
Here’s how social media paid tribute to Cicely Tyson:
Rest in Peace, Cicely Tyson.
